Interactive 360 Virtual Tours – The Future of Digital Commerce
Facebook have now dedicated 20% of their work force (10,000 people) to Virtual Reality development (theverge.com). This is a staggering statistic and is a clear indication of where the internet and the ‘digiverse’ is heading.
But it’s not just about VR headsets. Lots of content online is now ‘virtual’, and in a COVID world organisations are realising the financial benefits of these online commerce developments.
360degree virtual tours of locations are allowing businesses to put their shops in front of people and engage customers like never before – from all over the world. The advantages are numerous:
A virtual tour really does increase transparency and trust in your brand. Clients and customers feel more affinity with you and less anxiety about taking the first step to engage when they see inside your business and how or where you work.
According to a study by BIA/Kelsey, 97% of consumers go online prior to making a purchase to research products and services locally. Whatever is the business, whether retail, offices or service industry, the evidence suggest that more people will be willing to purchase or work with you if they know who you are.
Virtual Tours provide abundance of visual information and help customers make informed decisions. If potential customers are looking at your business, in this competitive digital environment you should be giving your business every chance to provide people with all the visual data they want. You’ll be solving the customers problem faster and in a more palatable way.
When you deliver more visual and interactive content online with a virtual tour, you inevitably increase you level of engagement. You will:
- Reach a broader market – you are not bound by your location…
- Attract more customers
- Have a website that statistics show (with virtual tours) is viewed longer than those without.
- Increases click-through rates
- Most likely be ahead of your competitors
In fact, according to www.digitalintheround.com/virtual-tour-statistics
- 50% of adult users on the internet rely on virtual tours in their research and decision-making process.
- Customers spend 5 to 10 times more on websites with virtual tours.
- 67% of people want more businesses to offer virtual tours.
- There are more than 5 million visits daily on worldwide virtual tours.
- Virtual tours increase a business listing’s interest by two-fold.
- Customers aged 18 to 34 are 130% more likely to book a place if there is a virtual tour.
When a website has a virtual tour and 360 degree photos, the conversion rate on products sold on those pages is about 27% higher than for standard two-dimensional images. Statistics also show that you get more sales in a smaller amount of time.
The more you can sell online, the more automated your sales funnel becomes and you incur less infrastructural costs.
You spend good money on your shop floor, offices or business premises. Why not show it off to the world an encourage both digital and in-person sales?
Break down the barriers stopping people turning up at your door or buying online by introducing yourself to them in the digital universe. It is, and should be, a superb marketing tool for you.
We were New Zealand’s first Google Street View 360 Business View Trusted Agency. We are also a Matterport partner and Tourmake’s first and only Premium Partner in New Zealand. We know this tech well, so if you want to discuss how this could help you improve your sales funnel and branding, give us a shout.