Why Furniture Manufacturers, Retailers And Designers need to integrate this new visual technology to engage your customers on your website.
"The Future” in Furniture Retail
The backbone of any good business model for the retail industry should address four catalysts that drive disruption: economy, enabling technologies, platforms, & consumer mindset.”
Deloitte
I’ve Ranted often about how technology can level the playing field. That reluctance to change is causing the home furnishings industry to implode, with only about 21,000 storefronts remaining, while places like Ashley, Bob’s Furniture and many other larger store chains are growing. “They’re implementing all of the technology that makes it easy to buy stuff, while everybody else is still operating as ‘come into my store and see my stuff.’”
I don’t have enough space to write about this exciting new technology and how it could impact your business, so please visit their website at: https://www.pictureyourfurniture.com/
I don’t have enough space to write about this exciting new technology and how it could impact your business, so please visit their website at: https://www.pictureyourfurniture.com/
Recently, I was given a presentation by PictureThisToday 3D on their new and innovative technology that lets you place an actual SKU of furniture in your room, all in 3D. OK, you may say you’ve read about this in the past, but you haven’t experienced anything like this. AND you don't need to download an APP, it's available in WebGL thereby circumventing the need to download and install software. It's like opening a web page and works in most web browsers.
Not only can you place the furniture your thinking about purchasing, you can paint the walls, add rugs, accessories, walk through the room, see the room with an orbital view and even experience what the room looks like in daylight and evening. Plus the best part is you get all the analytics on your visitor, with the added ability to track their IP address and use that to create a personalized marketing campaign via digital or direct mail.
And these are just a few of the elements integrated into this technology.
They call it ...
Not only can you place the furniture your thinking about purchasing, you can paint the walls, add rugs, accessories, walk through the room, see the room with an orbital view and even experience what the room looks like in daylight and evening. Plus the best part is you get all the analytics on your visitor, with the added ability to track their IP address and use that to create a personalized marketing campaign via digital or direct mail.
And these are just a few of the elements integrated into this technology.
They call it ...
Space Design Done With
"Attitude"
WHY YOU NEED THIS
So let’s do some due diligence as to why you need to do this.
93% of all communication is non-verbal and visuals are processed 60,000X faster than text
Today, a few companies create most of the websites and they all use a templated platform of some sort to host the furniture retailer’s content. There’s a large degree of “sameness” without many, if any tools to engage the customer in their quest to find the furnishings they are looking for and see how their design choice will look in their rooms. This is why many retailers have a high “bounce rate” and low engagement.
So why is it that furniture manufacturers and retailers are reluctant to adopt new technology?
So why is it that furniture manufacturers and retailers are reluctant to adopt new technology?
Seth Weisblatt, owner of Sam’s Appliance & Furniture in Fort Worth, Texas, believes the only way for smaller retailers to compete against the big guys is to use technology to keep up with the customer’s changing buying patterns. That doesn’t mean showing a website visitor 10,000 pictures of a particular product.
So true. So what does this company offer? I'll explain, you decide.
After decades of technological denial in furniture retailing, the race is on. Product visualization and immersive technologies are the new “must haves” in an industry struggling to emerge at the top of an industry shaken by ecommerce and mass marketers.
The solution is not to be found in current attempts to improve on past technologies. Space planners with only top-down views like those used 20 years ago are not good enough, even with enhanced 2D graphics. Placing or scanning a 3D image of a piece of furniture inside an image of your room might sell a chair, but it will not sell a room – or house – full of product. Room renderings look nice, but the customer is not able to change paint and floor coverings or replace furniture themselves. Chances are the customer will never look at that image again.
Picture This has a “forget the box” solution that addresses issues that caused furniture vendors to do away with space planners and room renderings of the past. “Countless focus groups and industry executives have told them that room planners were glitchy and difficult to use, and that product images looked “cartoonish”, so much so that the term “room planner” has negative connotations in the industry.”
Recent claims by several leading 3D development companies suggest that photorealistic product visualization is found only in massive digital file sizes, and that those files cannot be used in the real time environment. After years of focus groups discussions with industry leaders, and a great deal of trial and error in 3D software development, Picture This has proven that competition wrong!
Picture This has incorporated a 360-degree orbital viewer, a visually inspiring space planner, lifestyle photos and corporate storytelling into its proprietary “Product Showcase.” It is fun, easy to use and is going to “WOW” customers not only in retailer websites, but draws customers into those websites from furniture manufacturers, furniture retailers, interior designers, real estate, property management, renovation and homeowner applications. Customers are going to want to have access to this application for as long as they live in their home and will use it as a convenient new way to shop for everything from home furnishings and fixtures to outdoor furniture and out door space design features.
“Simply put, the company has developed the best 3D imaging software that exists today and is making it affordable to small and medium sized furnishing vendors by attaching it to multiple revenue streams.” And it's available in WebGL thereby circumventing the need to download and install software. It's like opening a web page and works in most web browsers. In otherwords NO NEED TO DOWNLOAD A PESKY APP!
It allows customers to create an exact virtual replica of their own living space in seconds. They can place and arrange high quality 3D product models, viewing configurations from every angle with day and night time lighting in real time. They can “walk” inside their space and get a true sense of how the product will fit and appear. Further, they can purchase a fully-featured 3D replica of their entire home, which is a enduring sales and communication tool that is going to take “e-commerce” to a whole new level. This floor plan can be retained indefinitely and provides square footages when buying paint or floor coverings, a tool for space planning and visualizing renovations. It can also be used to address issues related to insurance, emergency services and home maintenance.
This long list of features will make it a must have for, well … everyone.
Stop listening to the nay-sayers and see what they can do below
The solution is not to be found in current attempts to improve on past technologies. Space planners with only top-down views like those used 20 years ago are not good enough, even with enhanced 2D graphics. Placing or scanning a 3D image of a piece of furniture inside an image of your room might sell a chair, but it will not sell a room – or house – full of product. Room renderings look nice, but the customer is not able to change paint and floor coverings or replace furniture themselves. Chances are the customer will never look at that image again.
Picture This has a “forget the box” solution that addresses issues that caused furniture vendors to do away with space planners and room renderings of the past. “Countless focus groups and industry executives have told them that room planners were glitchy and difficult to use, and that product images looked “cartoonish”, so much so that the term “room planner” has negative connotations in the industry.”
Recent claims by several leading 3D development companies suggest that photorealistic product visualization is found only in massive digital file sizes, and that those files cannot be used in the real time environment. After years of focus groups discussions with industry leaders, and a great deal of trial and error in 3D software development, Picture This has proven that competition wrong!
Picture This has incorporated a 360-degree orbital viewer, a visually inspiring space planner, lifestyle photos and corporate storytelling into its proprietary “Product Showcase.” It is fun, easy to use and is going to “WOW” customers not only in retailer websites, but draws customers into those websites from furniture manufacturers, furniture retailers, interior designers, real estate, property management, renovation and homeowner applications. Customers are going to want to have access to this application for as long as they live in their home and will use it as a convenient new way to shop for everything from home furnishings and fixtures to outdoor furniture and out door space design features.
“Simply put, the company has developed the best 3D imaging software that exists today and is making it affordable to small and medium sized furnishing vendors by attaching it to multiple revenue streams.” And it's available in WebGL thereby circumventing the need to download and install software. It's like opening a web page and works in most web browsers. In otherwords NO NEED TO DOWNLOAD A PESKY APP!
It allows customers to create an exact virtual replica of their own living space in seconds. They can place and arrange high quality 3D product models, viewing configurations from every angle with day and night time lighting in real time. They can “walk” inside their space and get a true sense of how the product will fit and appear. Further, they can purchase a fully-featured 3D replica of their entire home, which is a enduring sales and communication tool that is going to take “e-commerce” to a whole new level. This floor plan can be retained indefinitely and provides square footages when buying paint or floor coverings, a tool for space planning and visualizing renovations. It can also be used to address issues related to insurance, emergency services and home maintenance.
This long list of features will make it a must have for, well … everyone.
Stop listening to the nay-sayers and see what they can do below
Check out everything they can offer to our industry
CUSTOMER FRIENDLY |
SPACE PLANNING
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integrate your CATALOG/PRODUCT CONTENTChoose and insert real products from your inventory, helping your customers visualize your product inside their own living space. We can render your products in 3D from product photography and measurements, or optionally from your CAD drawings.
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STUNNING PRESENTATIONS for consumers and for your salespeopleEngage customers with stunning fly-over and walk through views of every room in their home and outdoor spaces. Customers communicate more effectively with your salespeople, making decisions faster, easier and more accurately than ever before.
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INTEGRATE PRICING AND E-COMMERCEEngage customers with stunning fly-over and walk through views of every room in their home and outdoor spaces. Customers communicate more effectively with your salespeople, making decisions faster, easier and more accurately than ever before.
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TRACK EVERYTHINGWhen your customers engage with our platform, we know where they are and what products they are inspired by. Our sophisticated technology can provide you with the analytics you need to help close the sale, during and even after they've engaged with our technology.
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Here are the basics on how manufacturers, retailers and designers can integrate this technology into their business model I copied from their website
360-DEGREE ORBITAL PRODUCT VIEWERCustomers can turn, tumble and zoom in to view high quality digital replicas of your products, along with a complete inventory of fabric and finish options.
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COMPLETE 3D ROOM DESIGNSEngage customers by helping them replicate their living space in seconds, then place and arrange your products to see how they fit and appear.
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COMPLETE WEB INTEGRATIONOur orbital viewer and virtual space planner can be customized to fit your brand and integrated seamlessly into your website, in store kiosks and sales tablets.
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FULL E-COMMERCE INTEGRATIONMultiple sales channels include virtual staging for realtors, renovators, interior designers, procurement offices and event planners, and more.
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DESIGNER APPLICATIONInterior designers and contractors have direct access to your digital product catalog.
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RECIPROCITYRetailers gain exposure by showcasing their unique products alongside complimentary brands.
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SHOWROOM DESIGNWith our showroom configurator, planning retail showroom displays has never been easier. Now your sales people can take your market showroom on the road.
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VIRTUAL STAGINGOur designers can help stage homes listed for sale, lease and new construction. They can also help with your retail showrooms, market showrooms and more.
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my final thoughts ..... CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT IS #1 WHEN IT COMES TO CLOSING THE SALE
Here's a few simple questions:
I could list many more, but if you have a "thumbs down" or are concerned with the answers to these questions, what do you have to lose in talking with the people behind this technology?
This technology allows her to not only look at everything you have on your website but engage with it to achieve a true sense of size, the space they'll be placing the product in and its function within that space. It also ensures that the products they want will fit within their designated space, minimizing returns.
Their technology lets your customers become a true design star, and in doing so, they can add even more items from your website to upsell and create a larger ticket by combining more items to complete their room. Consumers can add furniture, lamps, rugs, paint the walls, see how it looks in daylight and at night, plus so much more.
They can save their ideas, email them to a salesperson, or even buy it right in the application. Plus they can share with their friends on social media, promoting your store and the ability for anyone to become a design star with your store's space planning application.
- Are you happy with your website and website provider?
- What is your time on site?
- What's your bounce rate?
- After your home page, what are the top 5 pages consumers go to?
- What is the top page consumers leave your website
- Are you happy with the visual assets provided by your supplier?
I could list many more, but if you have a "thumbs down" or are concerned with the answers to these questions, what do you have to lose in talking with the people behind this technology?
This technology allows her to not only look at everything you have on your website but engage with it to achieve a true sense of size, the space they'll be placing the product in and its function within that space. It also ensures that the products they want will fit within their designated space, minimizing returns.
Their technology lets your customers become a true design star, and in doing so, they can add even more items from your website to upsell and create a larger ticket by combining more items to complete their room. Consumers can add furniture, lamps, rugs, paint the walls, see how it looks in daylight and at night, plus so much more.
They can save their ideas, email them to a salesperson, or even buy it right in the application. Plus they can share with their friends on social media, promoting your store and the ability for anyone to become a design star with your store's space planning application.
TIME ON SITE AND PRODUCT ANALYTICs
If a consumer is spending time on your website, engaged, that means they are not on your competitor's website. Great for you, not so great for them.
Plus you'll get all the product analytics so you can improve your merchandising plan. Add this to the analytics from your supplier showing what products consumers are engaged with, by city, state, region or nationally, you can determine quickly and efficiently if you should consider flooring additional products from them based off the local/regional analytics of consumer engagement.
PLUS they can track IP addresses of your vistors, marrying that information to household data so you can deliver promotional materials, product information promotions and more via a variety of ways - Direct Mail, E-mail, digital ads and more.
Plus you'll get all the product analytics so you can improve your merchandising plan. Add this to the analytics from your supplier showing what products consumers are engaged with, by city, state, region or nationally, you can determine quickly and efficiently if you should consider flooring additional products from them based off the local/regional analytics of consumer engagement.
PLUS they can track IP addresses of your vistors, marrying that information to household data so you can deliver promotional materials, product information promotions and more via a variety of ways - Direct Mail, E-mail, digital ads and more.
