The holiday season rolling around means a lot of exciting things: going on vacation, visiting family, receiving gifts and, of course, Starbucks’ holiday cups. After 22 years of releasing newly-designed holiday cups each year, the brand decided to add a new element in 2019 by creating an AR feature on Instagram Stories for the cups (think Snapchat filters). If a user has one of Starbucks’ holiday cups, the AR effect will detect the cup and create a neat animated effect around it unique to each design.

Here’s why Starbucks’ holiday cup AR activation is a great marketing move:

• Keeps a classic relevant. The Starbucks holiday cups are already a big deal, especially on social media. The AR element embraces technology to make the cups even more unique and shareable than in past years.
  
• Gives a new reason to buy. In order to use the AR effect, you have to have a holiday cup, which encourages purchases. Each of the four limited-edition cups has a different effect, to boot! #GottaCatchEmAll
• Meets people where they are. With over 500 million daily active Instagram Stories users, this activation gives Starbucks a platform to reach countless potential customers. It allows fans to create a unique moment with the brand, which they can share with all of their friends online.

Brands take note: Starbucks shows us all that customers are no longer just looking for what’s inside the cup—they’re looking for an experience.