Everyone is talking about Google Glass. And this time, usage of the phrase “game changer” may not be an exaggeration.
On Wednesday, Google opened our eyes to the myriad of possibilities born of a remarkable wearable technology that is being hailed as one of the most significant advancements in personal computing in recent years.
A sleek technology designed for the human face, Google Glass delivers a killer augmented reality experience that will undoubtedly have profound implications on how we interact with the world around us.
Although the mass-market introduction won’t take place until next year, we already know that Glass makes it possible for users to record and share photos, obtain directions through voice control, participate in Google+ hangouts, view language translations, etc. But there’s also an incalculable array of other futuristic things we can do that we haven’t even thought of yet. That’s perhaps the most exciting consideration of all.
It isn’t difficult to envision, for example, how farsighted marketers may already be planning what they and their clients will do to capitalize on the inherent potential of Glass in the realm of retail. Watching Google’s video demonstration yesterday, I couldn’t help but marvel at the potential of mobile messaging’s intersection with Google Glass.
Greg Stuart, CEO of the Mobile Marketing Association, sees the potential too, saying that Google Glass could impact marketing in unprecedented ways. “I believe in the ingenuity of people,” he told AdAge, “and our ability to fill white space.”
For retailers, Google Glass represents a new way to leverage location and SMS to drive behaviors before consumers reach a store, let alone once they enter.
Imagine getting a message that there is a sale on Coach purses at Macys because you are within the ladies wear department. Based on your position within the store (using NFC perhaps), you are presented with a wealth of pertinent information as you approach the purse area. There within your purview are prices, color choices, customer reviews, comments, and more.
If that isn’t a revolutionary marketing experience for retail, I don’t know what is.
“I love it for no other reason than that it actually feels like we are being pulled forward,” Ian Shafer, CEO of Deep Focus, says of Google Glass. “It’s hard to say that something like that has happened since the iPhone. The innovation aspect just makes it seems like a big pull forward.”
How do you envision Google Glass impacting the world as we know it?
