From the results of our continuing user research, we’ve found that interactive print is becoming more and more desirable from users, and they’re looking to more easily enjoy content. Users also want to be able to access this content later and to share it with others.

Based on this trend, we’ve already added features to the Layar App to meet this need. The Recent Content section – a kind of “history” section for Layar – allows users to review interactive print items and links they’ve previously interacted with. In the coming months we’ll be expanding this functionality to allow users to save and share full interactive print experiences.

As for the latest version of Layar, we’ve introduced a new feature that aims to improve the overall user experience. It’s called “Pop-out” and it allows users to literally pop the interactive experience out of the print page and onto their device.

Now users can continue to enjoy content however they want, all without keeping their device pointed at the original page. Instead of hunching over with a magazine in one hand and a phone in the other, users can now lean back and engage with interactive print with both hands in full comfort. With Pop-out, users are more likely to both engage with and share their experience with others. You can see how it works in the video above.

Our preliminary results from Layar 8.1 (we has been out on iOS for a few weeks now) show that engagement with interactive print has increased thanks to the Pop-out feature. Roughly half of users that see an interactive augment use the Pop-out feature to continue the experience away from the page, advertisement or other item.

When users tap the new Pop-out button in the lower-left corner, we show the original page and added digital content on their screen. They can move, zoom and tap all they want - all without needing to keep their device pointed at whatever it is they scanned.

“I really like this feature because it makes engaging with interactive print so much easier and convenient,” said Layar Product Manager Maurice Groenhart. “With the new Pop-out feature, I can lean back and enjoy the interactive print experience as comfortably as possible.”

The new Layar 8.1 is available now for iOS and Android.

At the end of 2013, we conducted a global online survey among Layar App users to get a better idea of why consumers download Layar, how they use the app to scan interactive print and more.

From this research we were able to draw some strong conclusions that shed light on some meaningful business opportunities for publishers and marketeers. Here are some of the key findings from the survey that you can use to take advantage of interactive print for your business.

Consumers Are Drawn to Layar’s Brand and Possibilities of Interactive Print

Thanks to Layar’s strong brand awareness, 35% of respondents downloaded Layar out of pure curiosity. Another 31% downloaded the app because they were eager to access the extra digital content provided by interactive print in a publication or ad. Of the 4% of respondents who downloaded the Layar App for any “other” reason, most did so because they considered Layar to be “cool” or “awesome,” or because they “just love AR.”

Users Are Familiar With Or Open to Making Mobile Purchases

More than half of Layar App users have made a purchase on their mobile device, and an additional one-third say they could in the future. This is a huge opportunity for publishers, advertisers, marketeers and more to take advantage of interactive print for mobile ecommerce revenue.

Consumers Are Eager to Experience Interactive Print

65% of those that have scanned with Layar try to get their hands on as much AR content as possible or will scan when given the chance to. 95% of those that haven’t scanned with the Layar App are interested in having an interactive print experience. This is an excellent opportunity to provide extra content that consumers are eager to engage with.

Layar Users Fall Into More Mature Age Brackets

32% of Layar App users fall between the ages of 20 and 30. Just 14% are younger than 20 while 54% are above 30. Layar’s users are older than the average smartphone user. Publishers can take advantage of this by targeting their interactive print to a more mature audience.

To dive deeper into the results of our global user research, download the PDF here!

Layar Has the Solution with Interactive Print

In this era of technological change, innovation is essential to each industry. In magazine publishing there is very limited room for innovation; the focus is on survival and every penny counts. Yet to survive, investing time, resources and good people in new innovations and learning how to make them work is essential. Don’t forget that magazine publishing websites didn’t make money from the start, but making money seems to be the bar current new innovations are held to.

Interactive print is a powerful innovation that is in its last round of learnings to earn its lasting place in the publishing industry, adding value, engagement and revenue. Some publishers have been “playing around” with interactive print, and the numbers are getting more serious: at Layar we’ve seen over 50,000 executed campaigns. To help make the last round of learnings happen effectively, we’re introducing the Layar Innovation Program to accelerate the learning curve and strengthen this print-based opportunity of the magazine industry.

Innovation Is Key to Every Business
In the last 200 years, innovation hasn’t been needed as much as it is now. Most industries have relied on scalable efficiencies: larger production, lower cost and high barriers to entry. Accomplish that and innovation hasn’t been needed.

Today this has changed. Innovation is crucial for any business to last. An exponential rate of technology growth is present with market uncertainty and disruption where competition can come from around every corner. We all have heard the disruption examples in music and video, and as we all know, change is happening in publishing as well. We have also learned that the companies which remain afloat are the ones that keep innovating alongside their day-to-day business. And not just short-term innovation. It’s lasting innovation that constantly returns value.

Magazine Publishers Forgot How to Innovate
Publishers of magazines have taken a double hit in the last 10 years. New technologies disrupted their core advertising business model and their distribution platform (the Internet) and means of consumption (the Web and tablets). Add to that the economic depression in the last several years and the industry finds itself in survival mode.

The industry is focusing on survival and forgetting about innovation. Short-term results are what count in such a period of survival. Yet how does one ensure long term survival for the industry with such accelerated technology, business and market innovation? Innovation is essential. Without it, outsiders will come in and do it without the main players, just as Apple did for music and YouTube did for video.

Currently, any innovation in the magazine industry has to make money from the start. This approach may keep the bottom line steady but it doesn’t result in long-lasting innovation. It ignores the existence of a learning curve and may not even be innovation anymore but only short-lasting gimmicks. There is a lot of skepticism in the industry, even for innovation. Although this is understandable given the situation, it will not help the industry get to the next level.

Yet this wasn’t always the case. In the past, magazine publishers were able to find great long-lasting innovative models by investing in them and helping them work over time by trying, testing and learning. Websites didn’t make money from the start, nor did digital editions, commerce, merchandising and events. Enough did make money, however, eventually resulting in solid revenues.

So how do we make room in the world of publishing to keep innovating?

Layar Wants to Help Get the Mojo Back
Interactive print is a step innovation for the publishing industry. It’s the technology that links the printed world to the digital world, turning a substitute into an add on and resulting in extra value for readers and advertisers. Some have said its the best innovation since color ink jet printing was introduced. Others say its the second screen of print. The key thing is that it strengthens the core product – printed paper – and links it to the online world and all of its opportunities. It’s an alliance of strengths.

^{Mojo, from the movie Austin Powers.}

Layar has seen over 300,000 interactive print pages published with a big part coming from magazine publishers all over the world, both big and small, as well as in the B2C, B2B and custom media arenas. We’ve learned a lot about what works and also what doesn’t. Many of the puzzle pieces on how to do interactive print well have become clear, but the whole puzzle has not been solved just yet.

We don’t want to wait for the pieces to fall into place, we want to help complete the puzzle. Layar has the learnings and insights from publishing specialists and from over 50,000 published campaigns. We want to systematically work with publishers to make interactive print successful in the long run. The Layar Innovation Program is for publishers who are ready to commit to making interactive print work for them in a lasting manner.

In the Layar Innovation Program, we bring our lessons learned, expertise and technology to the table. We ask that publishers come to the table with the magazine titles they think will work best with interactive print based on target group, content and advertisers. Publishers should be ready to work for 6-12 issues to learn and build the proof for using the technology in their business.

During the program, Layar and the publisher will work together issue-by-issue to develop and create interactive content and advertising, print calls-to-action, analytics, reporting and more. The result is the proof on how interactive print adds a lasting value to the business as well as the knowledge of activating the new channel, the amount of work needed and content types that succeed. The program requires an average investment of around €65,000 (roughly $90,000), but you can now enter to get in at no cost this year. How?

A Call for Mavericks
The reality is that print is still the core of the publishing business. While ad revenue and subscriptions are down, interactive print grows the business, enhances the business – call it what you want. Layar reinforces print. That’s why Layar is looking for the true mavericks in magazine publishing.

We are giving away 1 full membership to the Innovation Program for free! We are looking for publishers who will convince us that they are ready to join. If we’re impressed and we choose you, you’ll receive the full benefit of the Innovation Program at no cost. We want to put our money where our mouth is. If you’re ready to bring the mojo back to publishing and think you need to be part of this program, enter to win today at layar.com/augmented-reality/innovation-program.

Maarten Lens-FitzGerald
Layar Co-Founder

Here at Layar, we’ve had an eventful 2013.

This year was our first full calendar year with the Layar Creator, which we launched in the summer of 2012. We continued to make improvements to the Creator, the Layar App and the powerful technologies that make it all possible. We also introduced new products and services to best meet the needs of the burgeoning interactive print market.

But most importantly, in 2013 we continued to see the growth of interactive print itself, as more and more publishers, brands and marketeers turned to Layar to bring the print and digital worlds closer together with AR.

As we look ahead toward 2014 and the wealth of possibilities it is sure to bring, we wanted to take this opportunity to take a personal look back at some of our favorite campaigns from the last year. Have a look through the slider below to see our picks for 2013’s top campaigns as chosen by members of the Layar Team.

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