From tablet to table: How augmented reality influences food desirability

Area of Science:

• Consumer Behavior
• Marketing Technology
• Psychology

Background:

• The food and beverage industry is rapidly adopting augmented reality (AR) to improve customer experiences.
• Academic research is emerging to understand AR's impact on consumer judgments and behaviors in this sector.

Purpose of the Study:

• To empirically investigate how augmented reality influences consumer desire and purchase likelihood for food items.
• To explore the psychological mechanisms, specifically mental simulation and personal relevance, underlying AR's effects.

Main Methods:

• Conducted two field studies with consequential consumer behavior.
• Performed two controlled laboratory experiments.
• Utilized augmented reality to visually superimpose food items in real-time environments.

Main Results:

• Augmented reality significantly increases consumers' ability to mentally simulate food consumption.
• This enhanced mental simulation directly boosts desire and the likelihood of purchasing the food item.
• The effect of AR is mediated by an increased sense of personal relevance attributed to the food items by consumers.

Conclusions:

• Augmented reality is an effective tool for increasing consumer desire and purchase intentions in the food and beverage sector.
• The technology's success is linked to its ability to foster mental simulation and personal relevance.
• Further research is warranted to explore the nuances of AR implementation in marketing contexts.