The Role of AR/VR in Virtual Stores

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AR & VR

Retail businesses must look forward to implementing technologies like AR and VR as they have a vast potential market. With the implementation of these technologies, its demand will be substantial in the future, enabling businesses to grow and improve financial prospects. Moreover, it will also help retailers and consumers have a better shopping experience while reducing operating costs for retailers and offering an immersive, engaging experience to consumers.

Bringing the in-store experience online has numerous advantages for both merchants and customers. 90% of purchases are still made in person rather than online, representing an ample potential opportunity for businesses. Hence, implementing Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality can vastly improve customer engagement and involvement.

Applications of VR and AR in retail

Augmented Reality has influenced where people purchase for nearly two-thirds (61%) of the 1,000 respondents polled in the United States. Furniture dealers may use the technology to assist customers in finding the perfect furniture for their apartment space. Shoppers may quickly assess the color and style of the furniture they’ve chosen before deciding whether or not to purchase it.

Augmented Reality allows users to ‘test’ hundreds of beauty products using augmented Reality and makes decisions based on their preferences. Retailers benefit from this by offering discounts and rewards to customers, as selling things on a digital platform is usually less expensive than selling them in a physical store.

The fashion and footwear industries use a “try-before-you-buy” strategy. AR has the potential to bring the process of trying on garments and trying on new styles to the comfort of one’s home. It will significantly expand the range of choices available to consumers.

As per Goodyear, nearly 1,000 persons had recently purchased or were planning to buy passenger tires, high-performance tires, or light-truck tires. Managers at Goodyear discovered that by experimenting with a wide variety of pricing, they could forecast whether customers would notice a price change. If a company offers a lot of similar things, it might exclude some of the slower-selling ones from the mix. Instead, it might introduce new stuff in sets with low competition but high or growing demand.

The company determined the percentage of customers who switched snack brands. It also allowed managers to assess overall and by consumer segment demand for each type of snack. The snack industry’s strategic ramifications were significant due to the findings.

In the frozen-food aisle, how should products be organized?

Multiple virtual freezer cases loaded with images of its own and competitors’ brands were utilized in a study by one corporation. The best way to organize a product is to consider the type of goods and the needs and purchasing habits of the customer. Companies were able to investigate consumer behavior in a private lab setting. In their brand equity study, the simulation allowed Goodyear to modify products, prices, and warranty levels. The capacity of simulation to track how people shop aided the corporation in determining the impact of changes in shelf organization on consumer attention.

Marketers may use virtual-shopping technologies to reduce barriers and enhance potential rewards. Create a three-dimensional computer-generated model of the smallest product category your company competes. In a virtual store, determine cross-brand price elasticities and consumer price sensitivity. Managers can take several tactical steps to make shopping more convenient for customers. Managers can use computer simulation testing to determine if and how to join new markets. The virtual store may one day become a channel for direct, intimate, and intelligent engagement with customers.

For example, Outdoor Voices is a recreational, technical gear brand based in the United States. Talkative specializes in exploiting virtual shopping to provide a better omnichannel experience thanks to their video chat.

Outdoor Voices’ in-house stylists can now provide personalized clienteling both in-store and online thanks to the usage of video chat. For example, if a consumer questions how a product fits, the store employees can use video to provide sizing and include recommendations. It means that Outdoor Voices can serve its site’s visitors while also improving employee and customer engagement.

In retail, augmented reality and virtual reality open up new avenues for the sector. Both technologies are extending and expanding the retail industry’s traditional services. Adopting virtual technology is an effective strategy for making online and offline interactions more human. The future of retail is heavily reliant on technology, and AR and VR will play a significant role.

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