AR allows e-commerce customers to preview products or experience services in their own environment and on their own time, before electing to make a purchase. Using AR, your customers can preview products and be more likely to pick the right product the first time.
Here are the top four ways that e-commerce stores are currently using AR.
1. Social media filters.
We mentioned Snapchat up top. If you’ve been on there or Instagram Stories lately, you’ve probably used an AR filter. These filters were once used ‘just for fun’, but over the years there has been a rise in the number of brands who are jumping on the AR bandwagon.
Why are brands using social media AR filters? There are three key benefits:
- Increased awareness of a brand or product: It is a great way to showcase a new product by telling people to ‘test’ how it’ll look on them.
- Increased engagement: AR filters are a good way to boost audience engagement. For example, you can encourage people to tag you in their stories when they use the filter to enter a competition.
- “Wow” factor: There are so many brands on social media right now. Adding an AR filter can help showcase just what makes you special.
Remember back in 2017 when Ben & Jerry’s created a highly interactive Facebook AR filter game to launch a new ice cream flavor? The game encouraged people to ‘catch’ marshmallows in their mouth. This type of filter takes more work to bring to market but it is endlessly entertaining and shareable.
We MakeUp, the Italian cosmetics brand, created an AR filter on Facebook that allowed users to ‘try-on’ different shades of its lipstick. Users could find their perfect match and make the purchase right away.
The creative involved a video that demonstrated the filter’s use, encouraging users to try it for themselves. The campaign was a huge success with53% higher CTR and a 28-point lift in sales when compared to video-only ads.
2. Preview placement.
Buying the wrong item is quite common in ecommerce because the customer can’t physically handle the product. For example, the shopper might buy a sofa set and later realize that it just doesn’t look good with the rest of the décor. That’s where preview placement can help.
It gives customers a real-time glimpse of what the product will look like when placed in their environment.
For example, Sony Electronics recently launched the Envision TV AR app as a way to “try before you buy”. This means that homeowners could preview how a Sony TV will fit on the wall or in the space that they had in mind for placement. With the app, users could accurately determine which TV size was perfect for their space by using a smartphone and the Envision TV AR app.
Etsy, an online marketplace famous for giving creators a platform to sell their art. With so many options it can be tough to select a print or painting, let alone visualize how it will look in a space. That’s why Etsy is helping consumers preview wall art in their own spaces with a new AR feature on its iOS app. So, you no longer have to rely on imagination alone when wondering if a certain print would look good above your couch.
Here’s another example of preview placement.
Burrow, a DTC furniture brand, uses AR to help customers visualize how their couches will fit in their living rooms. Their Burrow at Home app uses ARKit to place true-to-scale 3D models of Burrow’s couches in photos taken on customers’ iPhones and iPads.
3. Virtual try-on solutions.
According to a report from customer experience platform Narvar, the top reason why consumers returned goods from Amazon (34%) and other retailers (46%), was the wrong size, fit, or color.
Not every brand can offer a home try-on facility likeRevelry that allows dress samples and swatches shipped right to your door. But virtual try-on is an alternative that’s trying to close the gap.
AR helps online shoppers understand what they’re buying and how precisely items from clothing to cosmetics will work for them. Virtual try-on allows them to see how the item will look before adding it to the shopping cart.
Today, there’s a slew of brands who have embraced AR technology to offer virtual try-on functionality to the customers. For example, online jewelry retailer Kollectin’s app launched an AR feature called “Xperience” to let customers virtually try on jewelry.
Similarly, eyeglass maker Warby Parker is also playing in the AR space, allowing people to see what a pair of glasses looks like on their faces before making a purchase.
4. Interactive user manuals.
Today, user guides are becoming a lot smarter and interactive. With digital transformation on their shoulders, ecommerce brands are creating interactive user guides that run on top of their website or software. They help users better understand how their product works.
An interactive user manual responds to user actions, providing on-page contextual support when using a software, website, or application. It brands to automate customer support and onboarding and provide more autonomy to the consumer when using a new platform for the first time.
Many AR user manual apps scan the product and indicate the buttons in the real-life environment using graphical arrows and animations with text. While others like Ask Mercedes use Augmented Reality to let you explore the functions of numerous operating elements in a playful way.
Simply enter your questions into the chat text or voice and receive the corresponding response. Complicated issues are easily and systematically explained with images or descriptive videos.
We, rangoon.tech, provides you with a web-based augmented reality platform designed specifically to increase customer engagement and online sales.
More about AR for e-commerce and online shop.
https://bit.ly/ARcommerce
