What is the difference between product visualization and 3D configuration? How does 3D configuration work with augmented reality?
What Is Product Visualization
Product visualization brings your products to life online and allows buyers to interact with and explore the details and features of items, much as they would in store. Allowing buyers to see products in 3D not only ensures that they can view the product from every angle (no more, “but what does the back look like?”), but encourages them to appreciate the details that make your product the right choice for them.
Product visualizers can vary in their level of detail and functionality, however the goal should always be to showcase products as they appear in real life. Accurate product representations have proven to increase consumer confidence and decrease the rate of return across product categories. 22% of consumers have returned an item due to inaccurate product visuals.
Even if there is only one option for a product, product visualization software can deliver significant value for both the buyer and the brand. For the buyer, the increased confidence built by knowing exactly what the purchase will look like at arrival makes for a more enjoyable, less stressful shopping experience.For the brand, happier customers are always a win, as they often will come back for repeat purchases or spread the word about your products to friends and family. Additionally, using product visualization software is often a cost savings for companies when compared to traditional photography and videography. Photoshoots are expensive in both a monetary and timing sense; they also are limited to capturing the product as it currently appears. Product updates, new features, or new styles require future shoots or a lot of time in photoshop (if possible) to accurately capture the product’s appearance. Product visualization software allows your team to quickly and easily update product visuals across the site and media channels by updating the 3D image to reflect the new product specs; no photoshoot needed.
If your products have a set configuration or if each product option is listed on its own page of your website, a product visualizer is an impactful tool for enhancing your customer experience and increasing your rate of conversion.
What Is 3D Product Configuration?
What about products that are more complex or allow buyers to make one or more selections? 3D configurators can be implemented within a brand’s existing site to create a fully immersive shopping experience that showcases each option and feature available for purchase.
Whereas product visualization is designed to display a single product configuration in an immersive environment, 3D product configuration takes the experience a step farther by allowing shoppers to choose and engage with product options such as colors, textures, and added features. There is no set number of options needed to make a visual configurator beneficial; even if the options are limited to colors, seeing the product as it will actually appear in 3D makes for a more satisfying customer experience. Customers want to be sure that the shade of red they are choosing is true to what they are looking for, or that the two colors they think they want will actually look how they think they will once added to their product.
The benefits of 3D for eCommerce are amplified for products where additional parts, features, or specializations can be added. These are elements that can greatly affect the buyer’s overall experience with the product, both from a functionality standpoint and a monetary one. Enthusiastic customers may be tempted to add every feature available on their new purchase, but without seeing those additional features on the product as a whole, they may not be happy with what arrives on their doorstep. Conversely, a buyer may opt to skip a feature that would benefit them, but whose value is not clear when offered on the site.
3D Visualization, Configuration, and Augmented Reality
Augmented reality is in high demand for ecommerce buyers, allowing them to see the products they are shopping for with the features and options they have selected. Product visualization and 3D Configuration from Dopple are both compatible with AR experiences, and can be deployed on a variety of platforms using WebAR.
