Are Virtual Reality Applications Helping Companies Grow?
Virtual reality applications are commonly associated with the gaming industry, but software companies are making it possible for product manufacturers to use virtual reality to increase sales, shorten the supply chain, and drive preferences from retailer storefronts. Virtual reality is making strides in product retail applications, especially in the area of complex or customizable products.
Which industries are investing in virtual reality applications?
Furniture
While consumers are familiar with IKEA and Wayfair, furniture manufacturers and distributors should be aware of companies like Cylindo, Innersense3D, and Intiaro. They’re collaborating with business software/product visualization providers to bring virtual reality applications to the furniture product industry. Sometimes referred to as 3D retail merchandising and augmented reality, the industry is forecasted to rise at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 63.3% from now through 2025 (reports.valuates.com).
Medical & Life Sciences Products
In the medical and life science industries, 3D modeling software is replacing 2D CAD technology to take products from concept to manufacturing faster and with more reliability.
Hardware and Tech Products
Technology product sales require modern, efficient sales tools. Legacy configuration tools won’t meet designer expectations; a scalable, cloud-based design tool with CPQ capability and CRM integration is a must in this competitive space.
Home Improvement and Structures
While the home improvement and building industry is growing, so is the competition. HGTV, Pinterest, and Instagram have changed home improvement forever, even for manufacturers. Don’t settle for still images; give your distributors and designers something that will make their jobs easier and keep them coming back to you for their next project or idea.
Virtual Reality for Product Manufacturing & Sales
Most manufacturers have an online-product catalog, or they may even have a showroom. In the showroom, reps track a customer’s walkthrough by jotting down wishes and purchasing commitments on paper to later create orders. In the online product catalog, customers check boxes and make notes, sending sales reps a digital summary of their requests.
In today’s global marketplace, virtual reality is growing alongside both of these options, moving the product catalog AND the showroom to a tablet with click-through options via touchscreen.
According to a recent MarketsandMarkets report, the virtual reality market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 33.47% from now through 2024, and in a world where COVID19 is restricting travel and face-to-face meetings, that number will be even higher.
Virtual Reality Options
In the gaming industry, virtual reality has one meaning: The user experiences a three-dimensional environment and interacts with the environment during the game. In the manufacturing industry, interaction features don’t need to be as sophisticated as in the gaming industry. Your software development team can work within existing apps and frameworks to lessen development time and keep costs down.
We’ve been helping businesses develop custom software to increase sales, manage customers, expand dealer networks, and automate the quoting and ordering process. With our experience, AR and VR features can be built into a custom product visualization tool.