VR and AR are so hot, so how will they define e-commerce?

On March 17th, Alibaba announced the establishment of a VR lab and released the "Buy+" plan, which will fully deploy VR. This news also shows that domestic giants headed by Ali have officially started to exert their strength in the VR field.

So far, VR has become a hot topic in the game world, but as e-commerce companies slowly try to provide their consumers with the same immersive experience, VR and AR will also play the next irreplaceable role in the e-commerce circle. Let's take a look at how major domestic and foreign companies represented by Ali test water VR e-commerce.

From the budding fashion on the runway to the "virtual journey" in the shops, VR and AR create opportunities for consumers to experience novel products from all perspectives, and at the same time bring unprecedented shopping experiences that are close to real life to e-commerce.

entering the fashion world

in the first half of p>215, Rebecca Minkoff, a famous luxury brand, and River Island teamed up with Google to display their new works on Caradboard. Shoot Rebecca Minkoff's fashion show in advance, users can download the film to their smartphones with a simple head movement, and you can have a bird's eye view of the whole show, from the seats of the runway, a photographer or even any audience. Undoubtedly, after this activity, Cardboard was immediately labeled as a tall fashion label.

in order to celebrate the successful opening of the famous fashion brand Jean-Pierre Braganza design conference, River Island prepared an AR feast for the audience, who could choose clothes in the online mall and then put them on the models on the stage.

VR home e-commerce, design the perfect home in your mind

In the field of e-commerce, not only the fashion circle, but also VR and AR have invaded other sub-fields, such as furniture and interior design.

at an earlier exhibition, the famous home retailer IKEA Group added AR technology to their APP, allowing customers to watch and place 3D virtual objects in their "home". Giving customers such an opportunity to see the layout of their home in their favorite way in advance eliminates doubts and makes customers convinced that this furniture is really suitable for buying home before buying. This undoubtedly creates a win-win situation, which not only greatly improves customer satisfaction, but also reduces the return rate and complaint rate, thus improving the reputation of IKEA.

In September last year, Marks & Spencer added the VR Experience Hall to the traditional exhibition hall. By using Oculus Rift and Leap Motion, your "shopping guide" Amy will give you three different suggestions to help you make a better choice among different products.

The response of the best customers is very good, and they even said that they would actively share their experiences on social media platforms.

There are too many changes in indoor layout and furniture selection, so it is difficult to fully display the functionality and differences of all household products by VR technology alone. However, the combination of VR and AR can provide better solutions to the customization needs of indoor space.

bringing VR and AR into traditional industries

retailers in traditional industries are also looking for breakthrough ways to bring VR/AR to consumers, so as to maintain their competitiveness and avoid being killed on the beach by the tide of the internet again.

Bungie, a game maker, has cooperated with Microsoft and Ads Reality, an expert in AR field, to launch an "interactive video wall" and an "AR window" so that players can stand next to the characters in Halo, such as Chief Sergeant or Spartan Locke. Players can also use the APP to scan the marks on the floor of the store to play selfies with the game characters in the corridor.

"Black Friday" has become the biggest shopping festival of the US imperialists in a year, and the transaction volume of Alibaba's "Double Eleven" shopping carnival reached 91.2 billion RMB in just one day. From these phenomena, it seems logical to introduce new technologies similar to VR into the shopping experience. Fraser, an old British department store, uses AR technology to set up a shopping window in the mall, so that users can scan the "switch" and then have the opportunity to get the "Black Five" coupon.

Tommy Hilfiger, an American leisure brand, has set up VR equipment in its flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York, so customers can watch the autumn fashion show from the front view with Samsung GearVR. They will arrange VR equipment in major flagship stores in the United States and Europe one after another, bringing customers a novel entertainment experience, and at the same time making the upcoming new products get better publicity effect.

another company that makes traditional industries reborn with VR is Avenue Imperial. Founded in 213, it provides VR solutions for famous fashion brands, enabling users to "shop" in various brand halls by using VR headsets at home. At present, the famous fashion brands are Harvey Nichols, Karen Millen and Jimmy Choo. Similarly, the first project "Creator God" after the establishment of Ali VR Lab aims to establish the world's largest 3D product library with merchants and accelerate the shopping experience in the virtual world.

so can VR redefine the shopping experience?

With more and more retailers and e-commerce companies entering the market, the boundaries between online and offline shopping are becoming increasingly blurred. The mobile Internet pays the most attention to the application of "scenes". From the selection of brands and styles before purchase, to the dressing and fitting during purchase, and then to the "similar product recommendation" after purchase, VR/AR shopping scenes are everywhere. Undoubtedly, e-commerce is embracing change, and VR and AR must be a huge revolution for e-commerce and offline shopping.