Where It All Began - The First Augmented Reality (AR) App in the Building Products Industry
In 2014, I was leading digital marketing at TimberTech and AZEK. Shortly after the two brands joined forces, I was tasked with launching the best iPad App in the industry for AZEK. This was incredibly exciting, as I had an open canvas.
RESEARCH
I had just finished a simple iPad App for TimberTech months before, so I had already done all my competitor research. I wanted this app to be different. I wanted it to truly solve a problem. Find a pain point and create a solution that helps our channel partners (dealers and contractors) AND homeowners.
So I picked up the phone and talked with dozens of dealers, contractors, and builders. I wanted to know how they used their smartphones and tablets out in the field and on the job. How do you use it with homeowners, and what causes you to make it a core part of your sales process.
We included many of the learnings into our iPad App - ability to visualize different decking/railing combinations, photo gallery, install and promo videos, easy access to catalog and photo of products. They also liked to save combinations and add notes to recall after the meeting. All fantastic and valuable resources built into the app.
THE PROBLEM NOBODY COULD SOLVE
The biggest pain point I heard over and over was the ability to show what a deck would look like on the back of a home. There were complex visualizers where you could upload a 2D photo of a home, but that was difficult and time-consuming for most contractors and builders. They wanted something quick and simple.
So that is what we built. The first Augmented Reality (AR) iPad App that allowed homeowners to visualize any combination of decking and railing on the back of their house.
THE CONCERN WITH AUGMENTED REALITY
Augmented Reality was in its infancy, and nobody knew what it was! This was years before Pokemon Go was released and put AR on the map. I had to first convince internal leadership that this was a good investment, but also educate our channel partners and consumers on the very basics of AR.
This was about innovation and solving a problem. So we pushed forward into the unknown. We initially launched with a teaser AR experience in which our catalogs became interactive. By “scanning” the cover of our product catalogs, a 3D house appeared and you could customize the porch, pavers, decking, and railing. This was the warmup, the appetizer for the main course which would launch months later.
THE RESULTS
The feedback was amazing. I remember the moment I revealed the AR technology at our National Sales Meeting, and the room of 100+ people gasped when the deck appeared out of nowhere and I could walk all the way around it.
I spent the next few months recording tutorial and promo videos for the AR iPad App, and traveling the country training dealers and contractors and getting feedback on the app. Every dealer meeting ended with the owner saying “Ok, let’s go buy some iPads tomorrow.”
Our Sales Reps also embraced the innovation. Sales were being closed thanks to our Augmented Reality app!
$50,000 JOB!
“The AZEK App strikes again!”
5 YEARS LATER
When these apps launched in 2014, I expected AR and VR to be common solutions for the building products industry. I was wrong.
I want to change that. Visualization is core to the buying process. We all want to get a glimpse of what our project could look like in the end. Technology can make that a reality. Not to mention, its a valuable marketing and sales tools for manufacturers and others!
Over the past 5 years, I’ve had the opportunity to work with amazing companies and help launch successful AR and VR projects. It’s time to innovate. Let’s Start Building.