Following suit to IKEA, online retailer ASOS has launched its first augmented magazine.
With over 450,000 subscribers, ASOS Magazine readers will be able to download the ‘Scan to Shop’ app to their smartphones and bring the pages to life through video. The app, powered by Aurasma, enables readers to point their phones at images of this season’s must have pieces and simply click to buy from the ASOS mobile site.
Duncan Edwards, editorial & design director, ASOS Magazine, said Aurasma’s technology has given them a neat way to connect the website with the printed magazine.
“We know our readers love fashion and their mobiles and this app unites the two. Our readers look forward to receiving the magazine in the post, but they also want the convenience and immediacy of shopping via their phones,” he said.
The ‘Scan to Shop’ can be downloaded for free from the App Store and Google Play for smartphones. The app uses image recognition technology to scan images and then augment them with interactive digital content called “auras”.
In total there are over 50 different auras throughout the September issue of ASOS Magazine, transforming the journey from magazine to website and ultimately to purchase. Digital treasure hunts have also been incorporated into the magazine, where hidden symbols can be unlocked in return for exclusive offers.
“We’re delighted to partner with ASOS, one of the world’s biggest fashion e-tailers, to bring a whole new dimension to the shopping experience. ASOS Magazine is bursting with fantastic content and great fashion, which can now come to life thanks to the new ‘Scan to Shop’ app with Aurasma inside,” Martina King, managing director, Aurasma, said.
“ASOS customers tend to be addicted to fashion and to their phones so this partnership is the perfect fit! ASOS has taken Aurasma’s technology to the next level.”