What’s in this article:
- Ikea introduces the gamified solution for decluttering your home on Snapchat just in time for spring cleaning
- The brand is not just using this as a temporary measure but expects such solutions to boost engagement and sales for the long term
Most of us aspire to neaten up our interiors, but we find it difficult to actually do it. Ikea now introduced an escape room theme on Snapchat to motivate us to clean things up just in time for spring cleaning.
Without referencing Marie Kondo directly, Ikea alludes to her philosophy in introducing the motivation for decluttering:
Peace of mind is hard to find when there’s a bunch of clutter in your way. That’s not an old proverb. It’s just… true. Whether you’re simply getting started, making a real dent in your clutter, or affordably transforming your space, welcome the season of a more organized, less stressed you.”
Then Ikea introduces the gamified solution available on Snapchat as of March 1st:
“Fix your clutter problems one storage solution at a time with an interactive game that helps you master the art of putting clutter in its place – literally. Download Snapchat on your device and get ready— Escape the Clutter, an augmented reality escape room from IKEA.”
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Augmented reality used for selling home furnishings and accessories isn’t new, and Ikea was one of the first to tap into it. So it was not surprising, as TechCrunch reported, that Ingka Group (the company that owns Ikea.com) acquired an AI imaging startup called Geomagical Labs back in April 2020.
That acquisition was not a response to the lockdowns that shut physical stores when the pandemic struck but part of the strategy the brand had already established years ago. But the new thing seems to be gamifying that experience, as we saw in Gamified Interior Decorating.
IKEA’s twist on that approach is selling organizational solutions to achieve decluttering. When you can’t get inspiration from visiting displays at physical stores, you turn to virtual solutions.
“One of the challenges during this Covid-19 time is that we really want to create different experiences to continue to engage our customers with our home furnishing solutions in new ways—especially visually,” the brand’s United States interior design leader, Paul Anderson, told Adweek.
The brand is not just using this as a temporary measure but expects such solutions to boost engagement and sales for the long term. As Anderson also told Adweek, the company is researching other ways to use technological solutions to connect with consumers: “AR is actually becoming a tool that a lot of retailers are using in the home furnishing sphere to allow consumers to visualize products in their own home.”
I’d venture a prediction that we will be seeing more of these gamified experiences emerge from more brands. They can be used not just to plan something pleasing to the eye but with solutions that could make a home more energy efficient, as well.