The COVID-19 pandemic has altered customers’ preferred methods of shopping. To thrive in this ever-changing environment, the retail sector has had to adapt to meet consumer demands. Virtual showrooms facilitated by virtual reality companies which enable firms to present products in interactive, information-rich environments, are the driving force behind this revolution.
Here are a few examples of how virtual reality (VR) is assisting companies in generating new experiences for their customers and boosting sales.
What is a Virtual Reality Showroom?
Virtual reality showrooms are 360° digitally generated settings that have exactly the same appearance, feel, and functionality as real showrooms. Customers can “tour” the showroom, looking at the products from every angle and interacting with 3D visuals.
Products might range from industrial machinery to technological devices, makeup to clothing. Customers can examine specifications, compare this model to other models, and observe virtual demos in this environment. If clients have any questions during their visit, they can contact a salesperson directly from the digital showroom.
Uses of Virtual Reality Showrooms
Businesses can use virtual reality (VR) technology to build a digital showroom where customers can shop remotely using a headset or smart glasses. Companies employ this technology for many different purposes, for example:
- Organising Virtual House Tours: Interested parties can have a self-guided virtual tour of a house.
- Building Virtual Stores: Retail establishments use virtual environments to mirror their real ones.
- Creating Virtual Product Experiences: Businesses utilise technology to develop virtual experiences tailored to individual products.
- Developing Interactive User Manuals: Companies assist customers in real time while they utilise the product.
- Live Video Consultations: Businesses can leverage VR to simulate one-on-one client interactions in a computer-generated setting.
- Branding Promotional Activities: Virtual reality enables brands to connect emotionally with consumers. Virtual showrooms are used to convey the history of a product’s design or creation or to demonstrate how it was created.
- Customer Research: Carrying out buyer research virtually is less complicated. Companies employ customer tracking and interaction data to pinpoint individual preferences, allowing marketing teams to customise their messaging to catch a consumer’s eye.
- Providing Tailored Suggestions: Drawing on information collected by eye-tracking equipment and virtual reality software, the system generates recommendations based on the user’s preferences for product matches or other merchandise.
Brands with VR Showrooms
VR showrooms are already being used with great success by many brands. Their creative use of technology has encouraged other brands to adopt it. Here are two noteworthy instances of this phenomenon:
Amazon
The corporation set up virtual reality kiosks in Indian malls. The purpose of these kiosks was to advertise Amazon Prime membership. To examine merchandise, customers might fly in a virtual hot air balloon to a fictional Amazonian city.
Audi
Audi’s virtual reality showroom allows users to engage with a vehicle in an immersive setting while exploring and customising aspects of the car like colour and trim. The Audi digital showroom is used by more than 600 dealerships worldwide to facilitate seamless customer interaction.
Ikea
Ikea released a virtual reality app that lets users customise homes by selecting furnishings, colours, materials, and other interior elements. The brand footprint could be increased by disseminating these plans on social media. In a survey conducted by Touchstone Research, 81% of participants who had used VR said they had told friends about it.
Alibaba
Alibaba Buy+ is a virtual reality shopping platform that allows users to browse and interact with products using VR headsets, as well as explore the store and make purchases.
Advantages of VR Showrooms
The best option for today’s buyers is a virtual showroom. Businesses can only show a certain amount of products in physical storefronts, and there isn’t enough time to communicate crucial information. These difficulties are eliminated by virtual showrooms. The following are just a few of the numerous advantages of virtual reality showrooms:
Quicker Purchasing Decisions
Customers want to feel things for themselves and make judgements based on information rather than feeling rushed, uneasy, or distracted. People can shop at their own pace with virtual reality showrooms.
Compared to in-person shopping, buyers can obtain more thorough and detailed product information thanks to this technology. With all the information they need at their fingertips, they can decide to buy much more quickly and easily and can feel completely confident in their selection.
Boost Customer Engagement
In a virtual showroom, customers interact with the content for longer. The technology is made to keep customers interested while they browse. Before making a purchase, you can thoroughly inspect the products in a digital setting, navigate the showroom, zoom in when necessary, and investigate new features.
By giving customers the chance to ask questions and get direct answers from sales staff via a virtual help desk, or by showing them videos of products and services, virtual reality (VR) tools enable businesses to engage more deeply with their customers.
24/7 Accessibility and Ease of Access
One of the main advantages of virtual showrooms is that they are accessible from a range of devices, including mobile phones, tablets, desktops and laptops. According to recent research, there were 7.1 billion mobile users worldwide in 2021, which is fantastic news for marketers. Virtual showrooms also allow clients to browse and buy products at any time of day or night because they are always open.
Thus, compared to traditional stores, businesses using virtual showrooms can interact with an exponentially greater number of customers. Furthermore, because digital showrooms last longer, they generate more leads over an extended period. This function raises the profile of your brand and optimises engagement rates.
Competitive Advantage
Since the majority of companies do not yet have virtual showrooms, developing an interactive online presence might offer your company a competitive advantage. For customers, this is more than just another store; rather, a VR showroom gives companies the opportunity to project the “X-factor” that sets them apart from the competition. Additionally, it’s a chance to establish a far more intimate connection with potential customers than with a typical Internet retailer.
Lower Operational Expenses
With virtual showrooms, you can get away with the need to spend a lot of money on labour, real space, and other fixtures and equipment like cash registers. While there is an initial setup fee for the system, ongoing maintenance costs are far lower. In the end, this results in lower operational costs.
Final Thoughts
VR showrooms are a creative method for companies to interact with customers. Businesses can now showcase their products in an engaging and interactive setting thanks to technology. After that, customers can explore these products whenever and wherever they choose.
If you want to fully embrace the potential of virtual reality, you must choose the proper partner. You must collaborate with a seasoned organisation that possesses both an exceptional track record and a solid understanding of the technological know-how required to bring your vision to life.
