What’s Next For Engaging With Audiences on Facebook and Instagram
Meta has just announced that it will shut down its Spark AR platform, the SDK tool we have relied upon to develop AR filters for Facebook and Instagram. Meta’s announcement is here. After January 14th, 2025, this platform will no longer support native AR effects on these platforms. Groove Jones has been developing native social AR experiences for Facebook since 2017, which has generated over 20 million videos. While this marks the end of an era for native social AR on Facebook and Instagram, it also opens up new opportunities for us at Groove Jones to innovate and expand our offerings.
Looking Back: Pushing Boundaries With Spark AR and the Dallas Mavericks AR Experience
Our expertise in AR technology goes beyond just creating effects for social platforms. One of our standout achievements was developing the world’s largest AR effect using Meta’s Spark AR platform for the Dallas Mavericks. This ambitious project transformed a mural near the American Airlines center into a massive AR experience, captivating thousands of fans and setting a new benchmark for what’s possible with augmented reality. The mural was 70′ x 200′, making it the largest Augmented Reality installation using the Spark AR Studio on Facebook at the time. The production won numerous awards, including an OBIE. This project exemplifies how Groove Jones continually pushes the boundaries of AR, delivering experiences that are not only immersive but also monumental in scale.
Performance Insights: The Reality of Facebook and Instagram AR Effects
Historically, AR campaigns we’ve developed for Facebook and Instagram have often underperformed compared to similar effects on platforms like Snap and TikTok. For instance, in our award-winning H-E-B campaign, while AR effects were deployed across multiple platforms, Snap outperformed both Facebook and Instagram regarding user engagement and reach. Similarly, our campaign featuring NHL star Jake Oettinger, which also spanned multiple platforms, saw stronger performance on Snap.
These trends suggest that while native AR effects on Facebook and Instagram were valuable, they were not the primary drivers of engagement in our multi-platform campaigns. Therefore, the impending shutdown of Spark AR represents a shift in tools rather than a loss of impact.
On average Snap outperformed Instagram and Facebook 10 fold. – Groove Jones
The Future is WebAR
Our focus for Facebook and Instagram campaigns will pivot to Web AR. Web AR allows us to create immersive, browser-based experiences that offer greater flexibility and can be accessed across all devices without requiring app downloads. This approach not only sidesteps the limitations of platform-dependent AR but also opens up new creative possibilities.
Advantages of Web AR for Your Campaigns
1. Wider Reach: Web AR works seamlessly across all devices, ensuring a uniform experience for users on any platform.
2. Flexible Deployment: Campaigns can still run on Facebook and Instagram, but with Web AR, we can link directly to richer, more dynamic AR experiences.
3. Enhanced Creative Potential: Web AR frees us from the constraints of platform-specific tools, enabling us to deliver more innovative and interactive experiences.
Social Ad Campaigns on Facebook or Instagram with an AR Experience
While native AR filters on Facebook and Instagram will soon disappear, our commitment to delivering cutting-edge AR experiences remains unchanged. We can still develop native social AR effects for platforms like Snap and TikTok, ensuring your brand continues to captivate audiences where they are most engaged.
For Facebook and Instagram, we will focus on leveraging Web AR experiences. Web AR allows us to create immersive, interactive experiences that can be accessed directly through a web browser without needing any app downloads. This approach provides several advantages:
1. Social Ad Campaigns: Brands can still leverage the power of social ad campaigns on Facebook and Instagram by simply including a link to the WebAR experience in their ad – and driving traffic to that experience.
2. Platform Independence: Web AR works across all devices and operating systems, ensuring a consistent user experience.
3. Seamless Integration: We can still run your AR campaigns on Facebook and Instagram, driving traffic directly to Web AR experiences that are just as engaging as native filters.
Our Continued Commitment to Innovation
At Groove Jones, we’re no strangers to adapting to the ever-evolving digital landscape. Our Web AR expertise means we are fully equipped to transition your campaigns seamlessly from native AR filters to web-based experiences. We’ve already been developing Web AR solutions for clients across various industries, and we’re excited to bring this cutting-edge technology to your next campaign.
How We Can Help
If you’re looking to continue delivering impactful AR experiences on Facebook and Instagram, we’re here to help. Our team will work with you to design and develop Web AR experiences that meet your marketing goals and take advantage of the latest innovations in AR technology. Visit our Web AR page here for more information on how Groove Jones can help you transition your AR campaigns to Web AR.
Social and WebAR Campaigns
