It's no surprise that the new IKEA 2014 catalog kept Trend Hunter editor Courtney Scharf up until 3am the other night. Its technological innovations allow users to interact virtually with IKEA furniture, making it not only useful for potential furniture buyers, but also a whole lot of fun.
The Ikea 2014 catalog is available for tablets, smartphones and other smart devices. Users can flip through the catalog's many pages, select an item, then train their device's camera on an area of their living space, and the catalog will place the selected item virtually into the room, allowing IKEA fans to experiment with furniture before purchasing.
Ikea lovers can also photograph themselves, and the catalog app will place them directly into the catalog itself. Users can pretend to be lifting hugely heavy couches, jumping off of virtual beds, and even sitting around a virtual table.
This brilliantly interactive catalog isn't the first completely innovative product put forth by IKEA. Courtney has also pointed out Ikea's doggy parking lot, its flash mob slumber party and pop-up subway apartment, proving that IKEA is truly at the forefront of interior design innovation.
Key Themes Behind This Trend
- Virtual Product Placement
- Opportunity for companies to innovate by creating interactive digital catalogs with virtual product placement capabilities.
- Augmented Reality Shopping
- Potential for businesses to revolutionize the shopping experience by integrating augmented reality technology to allow customers to digitally try out products before purchasing.
- Interactive Advertising
- Opportunity for brands to engage with and entertain customers by creating interactive advertising experiences similar to IKEA's 2014 catalog.
Where This Applies
- Furniture
- The furniture industry can leverage augmented reality technology to allow customers to visualize products in their homes, potentially increasing sales and customer satisfaction.
- Retail
- Retailers can create interactive digital catalogs to enhance the shopping experience and differentiate themselves from competitors.
- Marketing
- Marketing agencies can offer interactive advertising experiences to clients to increase engagement and brand awareness.
