In today’s dynamic digital marketing world, brands increasingly turn to Augmented Reality (AR) to create engaging scavenger and treasure hunts. This approach combines the allure of real-world exploration with digital enhancements, offering customers an immersive and memorable experience. Groove Jones is one of the leading AR development companies in the world, and we have unique insights and capabilities to bring your AR scavenger and treasure hunt campaign to life.

The concept, popularized by the success of Pokemon Go, leverages the widespread use of smartphones. These AR experiences become more engaging and repeatable by incorporating game-like elements into non-gaming contexts. AR scavenger hunts involve participants using their mobile phones to find virtual items or complete tasks, often linked to a brand’s story, enhancing the interactive experience.

Web-based AR allows for dynamic experiences using a smartphone’s camera and a web browser, eliminating the need for additional apps. Brands can activate these games using simple methods like QR codes or GPS-powered hunts, making them accessible and easy to implement. Groove Jones is an official developer of the world’s top WebAR SDKs. We leverage the right SDK for any of our WebAR productions at the cheapest price.

“We’ve been consistently wowed by Groove Jones’ creativity and so impressed with how they have leveraged our software to build beautiful AR experiences. As proven by their case studies, the work is not only beautiful but effective too. They are certainly one of the leading immersive agencies globally.”

– Max Dawes, Managing Director at Zappar

How It Works

1. Interactive Maps and Clues: Brands can create custom maps and clues that guide participants through specific locations, be it a store, an event, or even a nationwide experience.
2. Virtual Rewards and Challenges: As participants navigate the hunt, they encounter virtual challenges or collect digital tokens, which can be exchanged for discounts, offers, or information about the brand.
3. Real-World Interaction: The hunts often require visiting physical locations, increasing foot traffic, and direct engagement with the brand’s physical presence.
4. Scan and Play: Anyone can play by scanning a QR Code at a physical location or leveraging an online map and a GPS-enabled location.

WebAR User Journey

With WebAR, we can quickly launch a program without the user downloading an App. This can be achieved as an on-site physical experience, or it can be launched as a national campaign online. Scanning a QR code or tapping on a link will send the user to the AR Scavenger Hunt or Treasure Hunt’s landing page. The user starts the experience from here, automatically launching their camera in the web browser. (The user doesn’t have to do anything special, it if frictionless and quick.)

10 Reasons Why Brands Should Use AR Scavenger or Treasure Hunts

1. Enhanced Customer Engagement: AR hunts create an engaging, interactive experience beyond passive advertising, fostering a deeper connection with the brand.
2. Increased Brand Awareness: These hunts can generate buzz and word-of-mouth publicity, significantly boosting brand visibility.
3. Data Collection and Insights: Brands can gather valuable data on customer preferences and behaviors during these hunts.
4. Versatility and Customization: AR hunts can be tailored to suit any brand or campaign theme.
5. Boost in Sales and Foot Traffic: AR hunts can directly increase sales and foot traffic by directing participants to physical stores or specific products.
6. Educational and Informative: They can entertain customers while educating them about brand history or product features.
7. Social Media Integration: Sharing experiences on social media amplifies the reach and impact of the campaign.
8. Building Community: These hunts can foster community among participants, enhancing brand loyalty.
9. Tech-Savvy Image: Employing AR technology positions a brand as innovative and forward-thinking.
10. No Extra Hardware or Software: Everything can be experienced through your customer’s mobile device, so your budget can be focused on the digital experience.

Brands That Are Using AR Scavenger Hunts or Treasure Hunts

AR-powered hunts blend the real and digital worlds, tapping into humans’ love for exploration. They involve interactive maps, virtual challenges, and real-world interaction, often leading to physical locations like stores or events. This approach enhances customer engagement, increases brand awareness, and provides valuable data insights. Brands like Nissan, Oreo, Verizon, and Foot Locker have successfully used AR hunts for marketing.

Nissan’s “Thrill Street AR Scavenger Hunt” at the New York Auto Show used AR face filters to engage car enthusiasts and offered prizes for participation. The introduction of Niantic’s Lightship Visual Positioning System (VPS) has revolutionized these hunts, allowing for more precise and engaging AR experiences tied to real-world locations. Brands can now create highly accurate, location-specific interactions, enhancing customer engagement.

Case Study: Nissan Thrill Street AR Scavenger Hunt

George P. Johnson worked with Groove Jones to bring to life an interactive AR scavenger hunt inspired by Nissan’s “Thrill Driver” national television campaign. In the television commercial, Eugene Levy transforms into an action hero when he experiences the thrill of driving a Nissan. Full case study – https://www.groovejones.com/nissan-launches-thrill-seekers-ar-scavenger-hunt-at-the-new-york-auto-show/

For the New York Auto Show, we asked car enthusiasts to seek out and show off their “Thrill Face” in an interactive scavenger hunt using AR face filters hidden throughout the Nissan show floor. Customers could win prizes by finding the three face filters and activating each “Thrill Face” by taking selfies.

Locked AR effects indicated that they needed to be found. Once a customer activated them, they became unlocked. To unlock all three, complete the checklist, and display the award badge, customers could then go to the Rewards Bar to receive their prize.

Keys To The Success of the Program

• Gamified Experience
• Checklist to manage your goals and manage your progress
• Supporting materials for the users for easy onboarding
• Easy virtual/digital prizing and rewards

An AR Scavenger Hunt can also be taken outside, where customers can engage in the program on a larger scale. We do this through the same backend that Pokemon Go was built on.

Revolutionizing Customer Engagement with GPS-Enabled Hunts

We are often asked how a brand can tap into a location-based hunt that leverages GPS data, and the AR scavenger hunt experience is part of the environment. With the recent introduction of Niantic’s Lightship Visual Positioning System (VPS) for the Web, we can now do this.

Groove Jones is an approved Lightship VPS developer. We can now offer brands an unparalleled opportunity to engage with their customers in the real world with stunning accuracy and interactivity. Niantic’s Lightship VPS enhances this by providing centimeter-level accuracy in positioning and orientation, allowing for more precise and engaging AR experiences tied to real-world locations. Groove Jones can tap into Niantic’s VPS system and create a national or local hunt through the mapping system. We can select predetermined locations within the VPS database or create personalized and private map spots for your campaign.

Successful Implementations and Future Potential

Brands like Oreo, Verizon, H.E.B., and Foot Locker have successfully used Lightship VPS to enhance customer engagement. With Lightship VPS, these experiences can now be tied to specific real-world locations with high precision, opening up possibilities for more intricate and location-specific interactions. For instance, a brand could create an AR experience around historical landmarks, where users engage with the brand and learn about the location’s history. Retail stores can use it to create interactive experiences within the store, guiding customers to specific products or offering promotions.

H.E.B.’s AR Sustainability Campaign using Niantic’s VPS in the City of Austin

Check out the AR experience we created for H.E.B. using the Niantics VPS positional tracking system. It allows us to create a dramatic AR hotspot that could be unlocked and viewed on any building corner throughout the city of Austin, Texas. By scanning a QR Code, users can locate and unlock the AR murals.