Marketing Meets Augmented Reality = Marketing Meets Shut-ins Reality

From what I’ve heard, this year’s number of trick or treaters is the lowest yet. My dear friend Mr. Menser, a long time local Sudbury-an, told me this year he only had nine little goblins and ghouls come to his house on Halloween compared to almost 50 last year. And I’ve been hearing the same question from friends and family all over Ontario: where have all the trick-or-treaters gone?

Could it be that one of the most fun, carefree special days of the year is losing popularity amongst children (those of us who have the most wild, uninhibited imaginations)? I doubt it.

Something else is a miss…

Perhaps it has something to do with new developments in technology. I was reading about the ability to create a digital hologram on Strategic Public Relations's blog.

Apparently, “Meijer, a client of Empower MediaMarketing, had a “Be Transformed in 3-D” promotion: Having Fun with Masks. The microsite allows you to try on four different masks – using a web cam and augmented reality. You can record a 30 second video message using a voice to match each mask and send it to someone via email, share it via Twitter or post it to your Facebook profile.”

That’s a pretty cool concept. The blog goes on to say that this concept will become ‘a must have’ for retailers because people won’t even have to actually TRY on the clothes, they can use this 3D simulation technology to see what they would potentially look like in the clothes.
How do I make the connection between 3-D simulation technology and the declining number of children trick-or-treating?

This is my thought pattern:
People don’t even have to leave their house, let alone put on pants, to shop and “see” what it would look like if they had a mask on. Better yet, your friends don’t even have to leave their bedroom or computer rooms to see what you would look like if you were actually wearing a mask – in 3-D!

I’d say the trend here is that you spend less time outside and more time inside your home.
This leads to another point: Children are spending six hours a day in front of a screen.

THEREFORE: children spent so much time in front of their screens trying on virtual costumes, when Halloween came, they must have been trick-or-treating online in their virtual costumes, getting virtual candy!

There must be a really spooky website, so advanced it's responsible for the lack of vampires and ghosts roaming the streets on Halloween night.

If you know this website, for the love of pillowcases of candy, DON'T tell me about it!

I've always preferred a snack size Oh Henry I can eat, than a virtual one I can look at.