Traditional ways of showcasing products online are starting to feel like a thing of the past as brands now look to immersive, interactive real-time technology to turn shoppers into buyers. But what is driving this shift? Read on to discover what the market looks like today and six product configurators that are shaping it.
Over the last few years, consumers have come to crave the ability to explore and customize products to their exact preferences. To better cater to this appetite, brands have invested in shopping experiences that give buyers more agency to find their perfect configuration, from augmented and virtual reality applications to real-time 3D models for e-commerce.
According to a report by Accenture, 47% of consumers say immersive technologies make them feel more connected with products, and more than 50% of consumers can better recall a brand that regularly engages them in immersive experiences. The use of real-time product configurators to meet this new standard is increasing. Automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) like Volkswagen are using real-time rendered configurators to launch new vehicles such as the 2021 Volkswagen ID.4.
Brands across industries are getting on board and reaping the rewards of greater engagement and conversion. Continue reading to discover the interactive product configurators that are changing the way consumers buy.
Ford: 2021 GT Heritage Edition invite-only configurator experience
Ford partnered with Texel Logic, a Jackson Dawson company, to create an exclusive buying experience. Ford’s 2021 GT Heritage Edition is being limited to only 1,350 lucky customers – to make this experience extra special, they can customize their car before purchasing using a photorealistic, render-streaming configurator, hosted on Unity’s cloud streaming platform Furioos.
Live.HOMAG, a virtual machinery showroom
HOMAG, one of the world’s top manufacturers for woodworking machinery, are reaching their market with Live.HOMAG, a virtual showroom created in Unity Forma by iXtenda. Visitors can explore more than 35 HOMAG machines, experiment with machine configurations, and discover educational videos, machine-specific training details, information windows, and links to product web pages.
Courtesy of HOMAG and iXtenda / iVP.
Onanoff: Consumer electronics customization
Onanoff, a global leader in safe, kid-friendly audio equipment, levelled up their customer experience by fully adopting real-time 3D technology. Their interactive product configurator offers 400% more capacity for customization, empowering customers to truly engage with their product selection.
Courtesy of Visionaries 777
James Purdey & Sons luxury guns
Historic 207-year-old luxury brand James Purdey & Sons is renowned for quality and attention to detail. Their hyper-real luxury gun configurator enables clients from anywhere in the world to design customized pieces, with a large choice of potential configurations available. The configurator empowers clients to specify the most intricate details for the product while elevating the brand’s digital presence.
Courtesy of Visionaries 777
Porsche: AR visualizer app and web configurator
Porsche has turned to real-time 3D to create an augmented reality (AR) application for visualizing their vehicles. Users can configure a car on their phone or upload the specifications from their web configuration into the mobile app to see what their dream Porsche looks like in their own driveway or location of choice. The app allows customers to view Porsche’s entire range of vehicles in AR at a 1:1 scale and customize the vehicle’s color and rims along with several add-on options so that customers can experience the car before buying it.
Church’s Footwear: Consul shoe
Church’s Footwear has seen significant results from its 3D configurator, built in partnership with SmartPixels. This product configurator offers 100,000 footwear variations for customers to choose from. Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Church’s 3D product configurator contributed nearly 50% of made-to-order sales, with the average transaction value (ATV) generated at 35% higher than the normal retail ATV.
Discover how you can create your own real-time 3D product configurator with Unity Forma – contact us to learn more.
