In a world where traditional print media is struggling and ad-blockers have been rising in popularity, many businesses and brands are seeking new approaches to advertising and revenue generation. The Casper Star-Tribune in Wyoming has turned to virtual reality (VR) advertising firm OmniVirt to offer 360-degree adverts.
The Casper Star-Tribune is a locally-based Wyoming newspaper that is working with OmniVirt to offer 360-degree video adverts to clients. The first of these is Edgeworth Real Estate Firm, who have produced a VR tour of a house on sale.
The 360-degree tour allows users to click through into different rooms and explore a full 360-degree view of the room. Reports have shown that consumers engage more with 360-degree video advertising than with traditional static advertising, with 360-degree images performing up to 300% better in getting users to click through to the advertised content.
“Our sales strategy is based on how well we can engage customers. Our client was excited to be the only realtor in Casper to offer such an experience. Even better, the client doubled his average CTR to 0.44% and the house was sold in under two weeks,” says Sean Johnson, Ad Director from The Casper Star-Tribune.
OmniVirt say that the advantage of its advertising platform is that it allows even small, local publishers such as the Wyoming Casper Star-Tribune can offers its clients new and engaging formats, such as VR and augmented reality (AR). The company has previously provided a platform for companies such as EasyJet and Jaguar to create VR advertising.
“More and more, we see publishers investing heavily in their O&O properties to decrease their reliance on social giants like Facebook and Snapchat. 360° advertising is one area publishers are investing in. It’s exciting to see smaller publishers like the Casper Star-Tribune capitalize on the trend of immersive content,” says Brad Phaisan, CEO of OmniVirt.
The Casper Star-Tribune is planning to work with other clients such as auto dealers to launch other 360-degree video advertisements on its site and other online properties. VRFocus will continue to report on new developments in VR advertising.