How augmented reality creates new shopping experiences

Without suspecting what the new technology could change in the future, many people had their first point of contact with augmented reality with the advent of the cell phone game "Pokémon Go". In the Pokémon game, cell phone users could catch virtual monsters. Viewed through the smartphone, it appeared as if the characters were in the real environment. The cult game has long since left its hype behind, but a lot has happened in the meantime. Today, augmented reality is not only used in gaming, there are also more and more use cases in marketing, medicine or retail.

Why augmented reality will prevail

Augmented reality applications enrich the user's current environment with virtual information and thus increase his or her scope of action. Simply described, it is a virtual image superimposed on the real world. Augmented reality is often mentioned in the same breath as virtual reality, a related technology. However, virtual reality is a completely virtual image. In order to experience this, equipment such as virtual reality glasses and very powerful servers are required. Experts therefore agree that augmented reality will prevail as a technology for the time being - at least outside the gaming industry.

In purchasing on the part of companies, technology can make significant contributions. For example, it offers the possibility of facilitating product searches. In addition, the technology can be used in the maintenance and repair of machines.

Augmented reality supports the product search

Today, corporate buyers increasingly search for suitable products online, comparing prices, features and ratings. The procurement process is extremely complex, especially for highly specific and technical products. It can be significantly simplified by means of augmented reality applications. One example: Amazon's "Augmented Reality View" app functionality allows potential buyers to project furnishings, electronic devices and much more directly into the real environment via the app. Prospective buyers can thus assess whether the desired item will fit in the home. A similar function is, of course, also conceivable in the B2B sector.

Buyers from companies can benefit from augmented reality if they can get an idea in advance of how a product will later integrate into the real environment. Including all relevant product information such as size or functionalities. In this way, a time and location-independent examination of highly complex procurement objects becomes possible. These applications can develop their full potential in combination with a video-based consultation. Individual functionalities of machines or other products can be demonstrated or explained in detail. Individual product requirements can also be discussed and specified directly on the object. This type of technical support allows buyers to make fully informed purchasing decisions. It thus has the potential to spare buyers many unpleasant surprises in the future that they may previously have experienced when ordering from catalogs.

Digital product presentation combined with online marketing

Professional buyers today have to work efficiently and cost-effectively. That's why online research is playing an increasingly important role. Suppliers who want to use the new possibilities of digital product presentation must thus also always invest in online marketing. What good is the best 3D animation, the most beautiful 360-degree video or the most advanced augmented reality application if the product in question cannot even be found online? Gone are the days when professionally researching procurement professionals pored through catalog books and traveled from trade show to trade show. Trade show trips abroad, which may involve overnight stays, often fall victim to the savings game today.

The Corona pandemic is giving online marketing an additional boost. Because rows of trade shows had to be canceled because of Covid-19, their importance has additionally decreased. During the pandemic, even more people than before have become accustomed to making their purchases online. Private shopping behavior naturally also influences the habits of professional buyers. They want to be able to research and compare appealing product information with easy-to-understand texts, detailed specifications and images on the Internet. In the future, they will be able to view products in a virtual reality display or have them projected into the room by a clever augmented reality application to get a better idea.

Be present on the right platforms

To enable professional buyers to find products on the Internet, it is advantageous for suppliers to be listed on digital platforms such as wlw ("Who supplies what") or Europages are present. This is because the company profiles and products on these platforms can also be found via Google and other general search engines. The wlw and Europages platforms belong to the parent company Visable, which offers additional opportunities to increase reach on the Internet with its online marketing services.

Online marketing combined with digital product presentations simplifies the buying process. For example, a buyer from South America interested in CNC milling machines finds a machine from a Swiss supplier thanks to corresponding product information on wlw and Europages. Thanks to an app from this supplier, the buyer can view the machine in his office down to the smallest detail. In the future, he can save himself a visit to a trade show in Europe, which involves travel costs of several thousand francs and the time involved.

Thanks to augmented and virtual reality, professional buyers can view a desired product from their workplace with just one click and receive detailed information. Trade shows and personal contacts will not be completely replaced, but purchasing decisions will increasingly be initiated online as a first step. For example, if a company wants to buy a large and expensive machine, an online comparison will be followed by discussions with a sales consultant, engineers and perhaps even the managing director. That's where individual advice and personal contact are still important. But the initial research will increasingly only take place online.

Maintenance work on equipment and machines remotely

In addition to product search, there are many other applications of augmented reality in the B2B sector. For example, maintenance and repair work on devices and machines can also be carried out with augmented reality support. With the help of special glasses, technicians can call up a projection of the specific device and thus have the special features of the device literally in front of their eyes. All of this works regardless of location. In this way, technicians can prepare for a specific job and estimate the time and materials required in advance. This saves installers time and possibly unnecessary trips and minimizes the time during which defective equipment is at a standstill.

Digitization of the product range and sales training

Before augmented reality can be used profitably in companies, a number of prerequisites must be met. For example, in order to support the product search, all catalog data from the manufacturers must be available digitally. In addition, it is necessary to train sales staff to be able to conduct virtual sales talks. Augmented reality-supported maintenance work can also only be implemented if the fitters have special glasses that enable corresponding displays. But certain requirements must also be met on the purchasing side. For example, products can of course only be viewed virtually with the appropriate apps or glasses.

What has been tried and tested and used in the consumer business for some time now is currently only gaining tentative acceptance in the B2B sector. Technologies such as augmented reality and virtual reality have the potential to raise the purchasing behavior of professional buyers to a whole new level. Even if companies are only slowly beginning to address the topics of augmented reality and virtual reality, they should still plan for application possibilities as early as possible and begin to digitize their product catalog. Online platforms such as wlw and EUROPAGES can be used optimally for this purpose thanks to their diverse options for product presentation, while also increasing the online accessibility of products.

The present article is published by Visible presents. Visable supports small and medium-sized companies in making their products and services internationally accessible to buyers. As a combination of its own B2B platforms and online marketing services, such as Google Ads and retargeting, tailored specifically to business customers, the company offers a broad digital portfolio for increasing reach on the Internet.

The platforms operated by Visable GmbH include wlw ("Wer liefert was"), today the leading B2B platform in the D-A-CH region with around 620,000 registered companies, and the European B2B platform Europages, on which around 3 million companies are registered. Together, the platforms reach around 4 million B2B buyers a month who are looking for detailed company and product information.