HOW TO MAKE AN ACTION FIGURE COME TO LIFE WITH MIXED REALITY
Children often imagine unique actions from their favourite figurines, whether it’s a Barbie doll playing house or Iron Man saving the world. For marketers, being able to make this childhood fantasy a reality can definitely increase sales and product exposure, while creating a lasting impact on wandering consumers.
Hot Toys did exactly that by using the Dreamoc, a powerful display case created by Realfiction to illustrate the magic of turning fantasy into reality. Hot Toys took a toy Iron Man model and brought brought to life using 3D Holographic Display for Event Marketing, grabbing the crowd’s attention and telling a story. Although this wasn’t the first time that an action figure was placed in a Dreamoc, the animation team did an incredible job of creating an interactive suit for the figurine which dazzled onlookers and helped push sales to a completely new level.
A different kind of ‘Toy Story’
There is no doubt that the market for toys is a competitive one. Every year there are a handful of ‘hot toys’ that are seemingly on every Christmas shopping list, but to get your toy to become an object of mass desire can be quite a challenge.
Fortunately, the Marvel universe has helped push recent action figure sales through the roof as superhero movies have flooded cinemas on a yearly basis for much of the past decade. Yet, to truly capture the public’s imagination, the people at Hot Toys decided to bring a bit of ‘movie magic’ to their static figurine.
By incorporating the power of holographic marketing and elegant video elements, the Tony Stark Iron Man suit was riddled with high tech motions and breath-taking graphical elements all within a sleek case that brought the figure to life.
Even Iron Man’s operating system, J.A.R.V.I.S, was captured within this display, making onlookers feel as though they were looking at a miniature version of the real Tony Stark.
The hologram effect
Although such gadgetry is truly impressive, for the marketer who wishes to sell a dream over a utility, the retrospective effect on sales is truly amazing.
The Dreamoc by itself is an impressive device. Beautifully elegant, it quickly grabs the attention of any onlooker. However, by incorporating the movements of high definition graphics, it is nearly impossible to ignore the display. More importantly, as the Dreamoc campaign immediately captivates an audience, a definite increase of sales can be observed wherever the Dreamoc is placed.
From airports, store fronts, busy malls or even convention centres, the Dreamoc with its holographic elegance manages to steal the show every time.
With this technology you truly have the power to transform any product – from a plastic figurine to a cell phone – into a living dream.
Let me tell you a story…
Since the dawn of human history, storytelling has been an intricate part of how we identify and remember certain details. Within the world of marketing, this is no different. A brand that is able to tell an effective story that consumers can empathise with will see a much higher rate of success within their campaigns.
While older mediums such as posters and videos do have an effect on sales, there is nothing that compares to the sheer power of holographic storytelling.
This is due to the fact that while video can be effective, there still is a definite separation between the consumer and the product. The consumer is ‘watching’ the display and not truly ‘part of it’. Holographic marketing allows you to bring the video into the third dimension, thereby removing the screen between the consumer and the brand and making ‘movie magic’ a reality.
By strategically creating compelling imagery that interacts with the physical product, you blur the lines between reality and fantasy. As a result, the consumer is allowed to engage with the product on a new level. No longer are they mere observers, but instead they become participants with the campaign itself. This in turn draws in more interest from onlookers in the vicinity.
The people at Hot Toys found great success by utilising the Dreamoc for their Iron Man display and saw a definite increase in sales.
