Virtual Reality: Bringing Some Excitement Back to an E-commerce Landscape Grown Dull

Virtual and augmented reality to liven up e-commerce.

Major retailers are bringing it back, though perhaps a little late. The sales demonstrator, the promoter, the street vendor we love so much at a lively weekend market has stepped back into stores. Stands and other specialty corners are flourishing, and that’s a good thing. Consumers need to rediscover human interaction. Virtual and augmented reality could be the solution for an e-commerce landscape that has grown dull.

Alternatives for e-commerce.

E-commerce has other solutions too. V-commerce, avatars, chatbots, and voice assistants are set to become the norm. In an April 2017 article, Forbes argued that augmented reality is for consumers, while virtual reality is for business. That is partly true.

How can augmented reality be used?

Augmented reality applications make it possible to place an object in a real-world context: a piece of furniture in a home, an appliance in its surroundings. These applications also let people virtually try on new clothing, an accessory, or a hairstyle. Augmented reality makes decision-making and engagement easier. But that’s not all. Augmented reality also allows a brand to present a new point-of-sale (POS) advertising concept, new technical fixtures, or a product range in a real-world setting (a shelf, a store, or elsewhere).

Likewise, what are the possible uses of virtual reality?

Virtual reality applications are more readily associated with B2B services: designing 3D packaging with multiple interactions, or presenting new store concepts and layouts to customers. No more paper: tomorrow, packaging reviews and category reviews will be done in virtual reality. Virtual reality already has its place in industry, training, and engineering. The use of virtual reality in retail is less obvious, and yet it seems to meet a genuine consumer need. Back in 2015, before virtual reality went mainstream with the arrival of affordable headsets, consumers were already favoring retail-related uses. Studies by Walker Sands and Greenlight VR revealed that more than 50% of consumers were interested in the concept of virtual shopping or felt a brand would be more attractive if it used this technology.

V-commerce: an answer to consumer needs?

V-commerce is an obvious answer to the “dullness” of e-commerce websites. And when used in store, it can showcase a product’s features, possible range extensions, variants, and accessories, and let shoppers customize their purchase. In short, it does the job that vendors do for us at the market. Want to learn more about virtual reality? Download our free white paper "The Impact of 3D in Retail"