Extended reality promises a new way for business leaders in the retail landscape to connect colleagues and reach their audience like never before. In recent years, demand for new tools capable of strengthening the emotional connections between brands and consumers has accelerated.
The challenges of the pandemic pushed more consumers than ever before into the digital landscape for commerce, where it’s often harder for brands to build relationships and loyalty. Tools like virtual, augmented, and mixed reality could help to recreate some of the meaningful experiences we’re used to seeing with in-person retail interactions.
Currently, some brands are already making waves in the retail landscape, with the development of solutions built specifically for the retail industry. Let’s take a look at some of the organizations on the cutting edge of XR retail.
MetaVRse
Promising an easy route into the future of the metaverse, MetaVRse gives retail companies everything they need to engage with their audience in a newly digital future.
The code-optional platform allows companies to create and share interactive 3D experiences in a powerful interactive landscape. There’s even a full virtual showroom, where marketers and sales people in the retail space can interact with customers in a new and engaging way.
With MetaVRse, companies can access everything from state-of-the-art onboarding experiences for their customers, to try-before-you-buy interactions. The easy-to-use platform ensures retail companies can show off their products and services like never before, with product showcases, real-time collaboration, and white labelling for all experiences.
Meta Oculus
One of the top contenders in the virtual reality space today, thanks to the use of more affordable software and hardware solutions, Oculus (from Meta) brings the power of XR to every retail brand. Companies like Nestle Purina have already discovered the power of Oculus for things like retail shelf planning, while other companies use the VR tools for employee training.
Thanks to an easy-to-use environment ready for any business leader to adopt, the Oculus environment offers a powerful entryway to all of the benefits of extended reality for modern retail brands. You can use Meta headsets and software to interact with B2B and B2C clients, or to train your retail assistants to be more empathetic and effective.
Yord Studio
A globally-leading development and XR design studio, Yord leads retail companies into the future of immersive reality. As retail brands look for new ways to interact with their customers, provide product education, and deliver demonstrations, Yord could be the key.
The virtual studio environment provides support for AR filters, augmented reality interactions, and virtual reality spaces where you can give your customers a behind-the-scenes experience of your latest product and service. You can even create your own virtual fashion show with Yord.
With years of experience working on everything from strategy development in the XR space to powerful software design, Yord Studio can help with every aspect of bringing your new project to life. The company already has the trust of countless worldwide clients.
Microsoft
Microsoft is gaining ground as one of the leaders in the Mixed Reality landscape for a reason. The company’s state-of-the-art technology allows companies to embrace the virtual and real worlds to create more immersive training, collaborative, and customer service experiences. Microsoft has already helped countless retail brands to unlock their true potential with their technology.
The Microsoft HoloLens environment gives companies like Natuzzi and L’Oréal a way to interact with their clients and support their team members like never before. Walgreens even used the Microsoft ecosystem to train employees to deliver better customer experiences and restock products quickly.
Whether you’re trying to give your customers an experience they’ll never forget, or you want to make your team members more productive, Microsoft HoloLens has you covered.
HTC VIVE
One of the top companies producing enterprise-quality virtual reality experiences today, HTC VIVE is helping brands of all sizes to interact with customers and empower employees. The VIVE ecosystem has helped leading brands to bring their new products to market faster, as well as improving internal workflow and collaboration.
Companies like Adidas in the retail landscape have used HTC VIVE’s virtual reality technology to revolutionize internal workflow while other brands have discovered new ways of enhancing lead generation and nurturing. The HTC VIVE ecosystem is also ideal for companies looking to immerse their team members in powerful training opportunities.
With highly realistic virtual reality environments and immersive interactions, HTC VIVE is powering a new generation of retail experiences.
Apple
For a lot of companies in the retail sector, making the first steps into the XR environment begins with the creation of an easy-to-use AR application. These apps make it quick and convenient for customers to imagine what furniture products might look like in their home, or try on a shade of lipstick before ordering a product online.
Apple, one of the market leaders in the technology landscape, ensures retail companies of any size can create the apps their customers need, with the ARKit environment – a constantly updated toolkit for AR innovation. The ARKit quickly and easily allows app developers to build AR elements into their games and apps, with minimal investment.
Apple’s state-of-the-art technology is easy to use, and ensures companies can reach their customers on one of the biggest app marketplaces in the world.
Similar to Apple, Google has its own solution for companies in the retail industry looking for an easy entry point into the XR space. ARCore is a state-of-the-art solution designed to simplify the way developers build augmented reality experiences.
With ARCore, companies in the retail space can gain access to everything they need to build a retail app in one space, including convenient downloads, guides, and forum insights. There’s access to a range of tools, and you can even choose iOS as your preferred development environment.
For companies in the retail environment taking their first steps into the XR industry, a solution like ARCore offers a flexible and cost-effective way to get started.
