Why should you use augmented reality in your e-commerce?
How do you like to shop? What do you need to make a decision? I guess you like to feel comfortable, make the least necessary effort and at the same time, touch and feel before you buy. Not so long ago, these two were the opposite. If you wanted to touch and feel, you had to make an effort and visit at least a few shops. If you wanted to buy from your couch while having a glass of wine, you had to take the risk and trust images and descriptions as well as imagine how it would look or fit in reality.
Happily, it’s changed now! The use of augmented reality gives consumers an immersive experience. It allows you to have real time interaction with products while remaining at home or anywhere else. Augmented reality fills the gap between physical stores and online experiences.
A consumer survey by Google found that 6 in 10 people want to visualize how a product could fit into their lives.
Shopify says more than 90% of Americans use or would consider using augmented reality for shopping and products advertised with AR saw 94% higher conversion rates. Deloitte has gone even further by claiming that 40% of people would even pay more for the possibility of using AR technology when shopping.
How augmented reality is used
Augmented reality gives brands to improve their relationship with customers as it helps to increase their engagement thanks to immerse experience. This, in the end results in increased conversion rates.
Increase brand awareness
It also help you stand our from the rest of your competitors. Where other companies use images or words, you can create an experience. With AR you can create a great buzz and bring new customers to your e-commerce.
Improve customer experience
Augmented reality has a very strong impact on user experience (UX). It transforms the way we learn, make decisions and interact. Customers have complete control over the products. Online shopping becomes more active rather than passive. People can zoom, rotate and explore products. They can personalize them to meet their requirements. At the same time, the return rate decreases as people make their decisions more aware.
73% of consumers reported high satisfaction with mobile AR experiences, 70% of consumers are more loyal to brands incorporating augmented reality as part of their shopping experience and 45% said it saves their time to make decisions.
What augmented reality means?
Augmented reality incorporates digital input with the real world. It is designed for free movement while projecting images over whatever you look at. This concept was used by a popular game Pokemon Go, so it is not new at all.
In a nutshell, it combines real and virtual reality together. As you can imagine, it’s like trying a virtual glasses or putting a virtual lamp next to your sofa to see how it’s going to fit.
Augmented reality vs virtual reality
Don’t mix augmented reality with virtual reality.They’re , however both have been adopted by e-commerce. Augmented reality is a mixture of real and virtual. It places virtual elements in real world, so you could imagine how something may look like.
Virtual is fully virtual. It is a totally computer generated reality and with the proper equipment it takes you into a different dimension. These can be anything for the player such as special glasses, gloves or a suit.
- The difference depends on devices and experience. If we were to point a few these would be:
- AR uses a real-world setting while VR is totally virtual
- AR users can control their presence in the real world; VR users are controlled by the system
- AR can be accessed with a smartphone, when VR requires at least a headset,
- AR enhances virtual and real world, while VR
- requires a headset device, but AR can be accessed with a smartphone
- AR enhances both the virtual and real world while VR only enhances a fictional reality
Who can benefit from augmented reality
Augmented reality definitely presents a new area of creativity for business marketing. By integrating existing online shops with technologies like AR and VR, retailers are looking to make shopping experiences more intuitive, friendly, and satisfying. These technologies are bringing about a breakthrough in the e-commerce industry and changing the way businesses function.
Reports show that almost 80% of shopping carts are being abandoned. This shows the great need to improve the experience and find a way to convert visitors into customers.
With augmented reality, content can be much more interactive, persuasive and give deeper experience. If you’re about to buy a sofa, you may see how it’s going to fit in your living room. No need to imagine, and believe me, I know a lot of architects and know what I’m talking about. Most people really struggle with feeling and imagining how something may look like. They don’t get the scale, proportions or color design. Now, augmented reality puts that at hand.
In addition, augmented reality can also show you what’s on sale in a supermarket or some statistics on a local neighborhood when touring a house.
Experts predict huge growth in both virtual and augmented reality technologies. The idea of effective shopping from home is constantly generating an increasing number of businesses investing in it.
In brief, it brings the store to the customer. This is especially important for people, who need items from a store a great distance away. There are many big and loved brands, which are not always based within a reasonable driving distance. Instead, they allow customers to experience new furniture without leaving their living room. As you can imagine, it’s very convenient for all busy mums or non drivers elderly people. Why should they be taken away from the pleasure of shopping in their favorite IKEA just because it’s a few miles away and public transport sucks.
Augmented reality and fashion
Some clothing stores have already also implemented augmented reality in their shopping experience. “It looked good on a model” - everyone has experienced this at least once, haven’t you? AR helps to see how you’re going to look. You can try clothes without trying them in reality. In the end, this makes the conversion rate higher, as the fear of wrong outcome is reduced. I’m sure you’ve already seen apps that let you try clothing, glasses or makeup. How cool is that?
In the fashion industry augmented reality definitely increases revenue. When customers can experience the product, they are more likely to buy it. At the same time AR can drive the customers to brick-and-mortar locations as well to ask more questions, see products in person or explore some additional ones.
It can take the monotony out of product launches. A virtual launch is a great idea that puts product directly in people’s hands without the need for physical experience.
It is truly a game changing solution for getting more engagement. Giving customers a chance to try the product from the pace of their own home, makes them more confident in making decisions. In the end of the day, more satisfaction means higher brand loyalty.
Why augmented reality is the future
Let’s be honest, the world is changing and we’re not going to move backwards, but forward. The virtual world and its types are the future. Once people can convince themselves how comfortable, limitless and time saving is online shopping, they’re not going to give it up. Of course, there are always going to be little local shops at Mrs Dorothy, as we remain humans and need face to face contact, but we will use technology to make life easier. One of those ways is augmented and virtual reality as well as coming metaversum.
Personally, I find it absolutely fascinating and love how many new opportunities we have been given in the last few years.
Sources:
https://harbingers.io/blog/rozszerzona-rzeczywistosc-w-e-commerce
https://www.reydar.com/augmented-reality-ecommerce/
https://web.archive.org/web/20180921181508/http://www.znsi.aei.polsl.pl/materialy/SI82/SI82_2.pdf
https://www.thebalancesmb.com/how-augmented-reality-can-impact-e-commerce-5188565
https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/consumer-insights/consumer-trends/ar-shopping-interest-statistics/
https://www.bigcommerce.com/articles/ecommerce/ecommerce-augmented-reality/
https://www.invespcro.com/blog/augmented-reality-in-e-commerce/
