Influence of Augmented Reality on Purchase Intention : The IKEA Case

Augmented reality (AR) allows the enrichment of the physical world by adding virtual computer-generated digital information in real time to it (Furht, 2014). This provides marketers with previously unimagined options for reaching out and engaging with customers. Having the power to put the (virtual) products in the hand of customers, creates interesting opportunities for the users to engage with a brand, service or product (Yaoyuneyong et al., 2016). Although the AR market is expected to grow exponentially by the year 2020 (Digi-Capital, 2016) and several companies already tried to expand their business with the technology, little is known about whether AR is able to enrich the customers’ shopping behaviour and thus yield favourable outcomes such as increased product knowledge, positive attitudes and higher purchase intentions. This thesis quantitatively addresses the research gap with an experimental method to determine the causal effect of the IKEA AR application on these customer dimensions in comparison to a product experience on the website. Generation Y has been chosen as an appropriate sample to experimentally discover effects on shopping behaviour. Finally, the shopping-oriented AR application is perceived as highly enjoyable and useful, and further evoked higher purchase intentions than its website counterpart. Moreover, the attitude towards the product was not found to be a main driver, but the engaging experience and the conveyed unique product knowledge itself