At the height of the pandemic, when other brands were locking their shop doors and miserably watching sales decline, denim brand Diesel opened a brand new store.
Despite the global lockdown, people flocked to Diesel’s new shop. They wandered around the displays, tried clothes on, and chatted with sales assistants. How did Diesel achieve this when high streets were empty and non-essential stores were closed?
Diesel’s new store was (and still is!) a virtual store. And we don’t mean an online catalogue. Diesel offered a full VR shopping experience. People could ‘walk’ around the showroom and view items from all angles. They could talk to virtual assistants. They could even apply clothes to a model to get an idea of how the products would look in real life.
Diesel is far from the only retail brand to adopt VR sales techniques. Tommy Hilfiger, H&M, and IKEA are just a few of the prominent retailers to offer VR and AR customer experiences. And other retailers are queuing up to join the trend.
So, how are VR and AR altering the retail industry? Is it changing or even shaping the way that retailers engage with customers?
Let’s take a look.
Virtual training improves customer service
When you think of virtual reality in retail, VR showrooms are what immediately spring to mind. But VR and AR have potential beyond being a new way to show off products.
VR training is one area that’s making waves in all kinds of industries. VR allows people to experience the types of situations they may encounter in their job, without the risks this would incur in the real world. This can be a very effective way of training. VR training company 3D Walkabout explains that learning through experience improves learning quality and boosts retention by up to 75%. They also state that VR can provide that experience in a safe, secure way.
The benefits of this for industries like healthcare, construction, and conservation are obvious. VR allows operatives to learn how to use dangerous equipment or perform complex procedures without risking either their health or that of others. The stakes may not be as high for retail staff, but VR training can still bring huge benefits for retailers.
VR training programs allow retail employees to hone their customer service skills in realistic, immersive scenarios. From handling complaints to helping customers with additional needs, VR can take employees through their paces and help them to hone their approach. The result is a well-trained, well-prepared staff who can take to the sales floor and engage customers with confidence.
VR and AR allow customers to ‘try on’ clothes, makeup, and accessories digitally
One of the edges that physical clothing stores maintain over their online competitors is that customers can physically try on garments in a bricks-and-mortar store. However, VR is upping the ante with virtual try on features.
For example, watch retailer WatchBox allows customers to find the band size that fits them (and which suits them best!) through AR. A virtual version of the watch is overlaid on the customer’s wrist, allowing the customer to pick out the right size with a high degree of accuracy.
Similarly, Loreal (in partnership with Facebook) lets customers use AR to ‘try out’ makeup brands, styles, and looks on their own faces.
One thing VR and AR cannot (yet) replicate is how a garment feels on the customer’s body. However, it can give a decent idea of how it would look. Online fashion retailer ASOS provides model avatars of varying body types on their website, which customers can dress using AR.
Virtual assistants provide personalised engagement
When H&M and Tommy Hilfiger opened their virtual stores, one of the most popular aspects were the virtual assistants.
Rather than having to hunt for an employee, or wait in line to ask a question to customer service assistant, customers in the virtual stores could easily ‘chat’ to the virtual assistants and get quick, knowledgeable answers.
Further, virtual assistants could provide a personalised experience. Using customer data, they could greet each customer by name and direct them to items which may interest them.
All in all, virtual assistants provide the kind of accessible, knowledgeable, and relevant service that even the best human, in-store assistant would struggle with.
Is VR the end of physical stores?
Whenever a big innovation like VR appears, people fear that it will sweep away everything that’s gone before. In the case of retail-based VR and AR, many are concerned that they could herald the end of bricks and mortar stores. This could make shopping very hard for those who are less tech-savvy, and would also mean the loss of millions of jobs.
However, VR is unlikely to spell the end of physical stores. In fact, some retailers are using VR and AR not to diminish their physical stores, but to enhance the in-person shopping experience.
For example, Nike allows customers to scan physical items in their store and step into a VR experience which explains the item’s origin and the steps taken to produce it and bring it to the store. The real, physical presence of the item plays an essential part in the experience.
Similarly, ethical footwear brand Toms have installed VR experiences in their stores. Toms donate a portion of each sale to good causes. Toms customers can experience the impact of this in VR – transported to places like Peru, to see how buying from Toms can improve things for indigenous Peruvians.
Clicks won’t replace bricks – but VR can enhance the retail experience for customers
VR is very unlikely to kill off physical shopping. Plenty of people are reliant on bricks-and-mortar stores, and that won’t be changing any time soon. Plus, in-person shopping has a lot going for it. It’s the only way that a customer can truly assess a purchase – after all, you can’t tell exactly how a garment fits or feels online, and there’s a lot to be said for inspecting any item in person before you buy it.
However, VR and AR can add a huge amount to the shopping experience. From training up skilled customer assistants to providing personalised service, there’s a lot more to VR and AR than just virtual showrooms.
In combination, VR, AR, and in-person shopping can provide a customer experience like no other. It will be interesting to see the innovative ways that retailers combine the real with the virtual in the future.