What could the future of brand.com websites look like? It’s not hard to envision based on ideas presented by two technology companies during this week’s SXSW convention.
Tris Holdings (www.tris.com) has created a social browser that acts as a search and chat extension for Google. It allows users to “talk” to other people also searching for the same thing or who are on the same website. Imagine searching for information on breast cancer and, rather than jumping into a list of links to begin your exploration, you see that there are currently three other users also searching for the same information. You ask them what they have found most useful so far. One of them directs you to brand.com’s website.

And when you land on brand.com’s website, rather than seeing a flat 2D-page of information, you find an immersive platform that uses mobile and web-based virtual reality and augmented reality (no headset needed) to create a highly engaging experience. Obsess (ObsessVR.com), a company that specializes in creating immersive platforms for shopping experiences, is doing just that.

Visualize a 3D room filled with information presented in various forms, including video screens, kiosks, and doctor/nurse avatars. You consume the information you are looking for by navigating through various interactive scenarios. In addition, you see that there are two other users currently visiting brand.com’s site. You approach one and again ask them what they have found most useful. Based on the interaction, you quickly locate what you are looking for.
Thanks to Obsess and Tris Holdings, this reality is not too far away.