An augmented reality business card and other animals

Rocketmakers App from Rocketmakers on Vimeo.

What does your business card do? Apparently the world’s greatest innovators are making them edible, functional (as a bottle opener or sewing kit) and are even incorporating a USB into them for extra client appeal. Perhaps you're innovating in your own small way and using yours to remind people of a special offer, incorporating a QR code or using it as a loyalty card for your business?

At Rocketmakers we wanted to make our business cards a true demonstration of some of our technical skills, and engage the next generation at the same time. So we handed the challenge to Ben Long, one of our Frontend Developers at Rocketmakers. He applied his creative and technical skills to the problem and quickly became the mastermind behind our interactive Rocketmakers logo and augmented reality app.

To the naked eye, our business cards look pretty unassuming - all the key information and a clear logo on the reverse. But if you download the Rocketmakers app and hover your camera over the Rocketmakers logo (whether on the floor of our office or on our stickers or on our business cards) you can watch our rocket blast off into whatever space you’re in! Check out our video below to see how it works.

I caught up with Ben to find out about the inspiration behind the Rocketmakers app and his tips for making your business cards interactive.

Where did the innovative idea for the Rocketmakers app come from?

I got the idea as soon as we moved into the new office in Bath, the centerpiece in the entrance is a massive Rocketmakers logo on the floor. As a kid, I was a big fan of thunderbirds, so I think I also drew a little inspiration from thunderbirds 1 which launches from under the swimming pool. It also gave me the opportunity to learn some new tech I hadn't used before.

When and how do Rocketmakers use the app?

I think mainly it's a good conversation starter for new clients coming into the office, just to show off something that's a bit of fun. It's also been used at some events as kids and adults really love to see the rocket launch. It’s a handy way to quickly demonstrate what augmented reality can do and it works wherever our logo is really!

How can people at home get involved with the app?

It's in both the app stores so anyone can download it wherever they are in the world! You just need a copy of our logo to trigger the augmented reality experience - you can get that from our website as a download. It is a little rough around the edges but it works well and hopefully in the future we will be adding more innovative features to showcase some of our work.

What are your tips to help others to make their business card stand out?

Anything that adds a little extra interactivity. In our case it's a mini AR rocket, which makes it a little more memorable, but it could be something like a NFC tag embedded into the card. Near-Field-Communication tags are small physical “tags” or “stickers” containing NFC chips that can be programmed to provide any kind of information to your smartphone. So in the case of a business card, when tapped with a supported smartphone it could instantly open up your website or launch your app.

At Rocketmakers we leverage our experience to build innovative software for companies of all sizes. If you have a vision for a project and you need a technical partner to help you design, develop and deploy it, get in touch: firstcontact@rocketmakers.com