By
Andrew Woodberry, InstaVR
Virtual Reality (VR) gets plenty of headlines and
bullish growth projections. For retailers, the primary question remains: how
can this technology be incorporated into the buying process, at a reasonable
price point, and actually drive purchases? The good news for retailers is that
advances in technology now allow companies to create VR quickly in-house, at a
fraction of what it cost just a few years ago.
The Zuo Modern Example
Take for example Oakland, Calif.-based
furniture designer Zuo Modern. As part of the design process, they already had
created high-quality CGI renders of their various furniture and lighting
products. For Market shows in Las Vegas and Atlanta, they
created virtual CGI home tours, full of Zuo Modern
offerings, each with a virtual price tag that, when engaged with, would open a
web page containing more product info and specs. The sales team for Zuo could
stand by and act as advisers, while show visitors viewed the large virtual
inventory on their own, using oversized Samsung tablets.
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The benefits of using VR were many. The tablets
generated conversations by capturing the attention of potential buyers walking
by; the VR experiences were interactive/memorable; it allowed Zuo Modern to
showcase a much broader range of products than they could in the physical
location; and it gave them potential analytical feedback on which products
garnered the most interest.
The investment in creating VR was very
reasonable. Zuo already had the high-quality CGI renders, but retailers without
those can easily purchase a 360-degree camera for under $1K to take
high-quality photos. Our web-based subscription software they used was all
drag-and-drop, with no coding required, meaning they could do the whole project
in-house. And for display, there are many reasonably priced VR headsets on the
market, or you can go headset-free and just use oversized tablets like the iPad
Pro. Plus you can publish the same VR app to a web site for online and mobile
audiences.
Smart Uses Of VR In Retail
There are
many use cases for VR in retail, but here are the more popular ones we’ve been
seeing recently:
Extending Inventory: Physical retail space
is obviously getting more expensive. For products not popular enough to warrant
showroom space, VR provides a great alternative. Buyers can be immersed into a
VR headset, and have a valuable visual and auditory experience, discovering
products that can’t be accessed physically in the retailer.
Before & After VR Experiences: The benefits of some
purchases are simply harder to showcase in the confines of a retail space. For
instance, lighting company Premise LED uses VR to show before-and-afters of lighting installs at client
locations. Having the prospective buyer drive to the existing client isn’t
feasible. But virtually immersing them in the lighting situation before and
after install gives a great representation of the benefits of purchasing
updated lighting.
Viewing Products in Different Environments: Many purchases are
meant to be used outdoors or for specific occasions. It’s hard to get a read on
the object in a four-walled environment. VR can take you anywhere — meaning you
can virtually feel what it’s like to drive a boat or see what a home addition
would look like. You can quickly test out potential purchases in rapid
succession using VR, saving time during the buying process.
Why Invest In VR Now?
As mentioned, thanks to new technology
anyone can create VR now. Using the technology sooner rather than later will
give you a leg up on the competition. VR helps companies stand out as tech-forward,
it helps facilitate the buying process by presenting products in an immersive
way, and it extends marketable inventory significantly beyond that which can be
showcased in a physical environment. Don’t let perceptions of the technology
scare you — it’s likely much more affordable and faster to create than your
initial expectations.
Andrew Woodberry is the Head of Sales & Marketing at InstaVR, a web-based VR authoring, publishing, and analysis solution. Launched
in early 2016, over 30,000 companies and individuals use InstaVR to create
engaging VR experiences for all the major VR platforms.
