Taking advantage of the hype that has occurred with 3D printing over the past few years, marketing specialists have found new and unique ways of advertising products. Whether it be 3D printing large-scale displays with Massivit’s enormous machine or shipping out 3D prints as part of a mail campaign,advertisers have a whole new set of tools at their disposal. Most recently, pharmaceutical company Zoetis Inc. turned to the technology to launch a massive campaign across Canada to inform the public about flea infestation.
Conceived of by Canadian ad agency CHM Communications, in partnership with 3D printing service bureau MatterThings, the campaign saw the 3D printing of 440 models of houses, which were then stocked with pamphlets and illustrated with information about how flea infestation occurs and the effects that is has. With it, veterinary staff could easily teach the families of patients about how to control and remove ticks. Each room of each model took about 4.5 hours to print with 309 grams of PLA on a MakerBot Replicator 2 3D printer.
In addition to the model homes, CHM Communications implemented a simple augmented reality app for the campaign as well. By downloading an app called “Blippar” on one’s smartphone or tablet and holding the device up to the model home, an educational video about the risks and methods of control related to flea infestation were played on the screen.
While 3D printing may not have been required for this campaign, the technology no doubt helped CHM implement its program quickly. And the added bonus of AR is a simple demonstration of the increased interactivity that can be brought about with new technology. One can imagine that, if these homes were printed on-demand and a complete AR game were designed, in which users’ own pets were scanned for virtual pests, customers, and kids in particular, would learn a great deal about flea infestation.
