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How To: Making 3D the foundation of immersive e-commerce experiences

Garrett Eastham, chief data officer at Vertebrae, shares how retailers, given the importance of 3D, are embarking on immersive commerce initiatives but need to invest carefully and avoid common pitfalls

Photo by istock.com

November 15, 2019

By Garrett Eastham, chief data officer, Vertebrae

As more and more retailers flock to immersive commerce using augmented reality, 3D imaging should be treated as a valuable standalone asset that can communicate vital product information at a glance.

3D, the building block for AR, goes beyond the plane of a flat image to show the product in its entirety even when viewed on a flat, two-dimensional display (such as smartphones and computer screens). 3D and 360-degree imagery are often lumped together and the terms used interchangeably, but the two experiences are distinct.

While 360-degree images spin to show a product's back and sides, only 3D assets allow shoppers to tilt and flip items to get a full view from every angle. And unlike 360-degree photos, 3D images can be zoomed to show fine product details, such as buckles and zips on a handbag or ports on a computer.

Given these capabilities, 3D imaging can help shoppers resolve key questions about product size, style, and dimensions. The ability to zoom in and examine products from every angle is especially crucial for mobile users, given that one in five phone shoppers say they hesitate to buy using their phones because they can't see item details clearly. It's no surprise that shoppers find 3D to be 38% more engaging than traditional 2D photos, according to a study by Vertebrae.

In addition to its benefits as a standalone feature, 3D renderings are the building blocks for AR. Tools that enable virtual placement of products within real-world environments rely on quality 3D imagery to accurately portray fit and size.

Given the importance of 3D, merchants embarking on immersive commerce initiatives should invest carefully — and avoid common pitfalls — so that they build a robust library of renderings and the expertise to manage them for maximum return on investment.

Among the guidelines to heed:

Choose web-based 3D for wide access — now and in the future

Recent advances in technology have made it easier than ever for consumers to view 3D and AR content via their mobile and desktop Web browsers, which means merchants can now place assets at any point along the eCommerce path to purchase without requiring shoppers to download a standalone mobile app. Tight-knit connections between immersive content and commerce help boost conversion and realize return on investment.

Sellers can syndicate Web-based assets easily among brands and sites they own - for example, by integrating 3D images on product pages for both domestic and international Web sites. Beyond merchants' domains, AR content can enhance brand visibility during the discovery phase of the shopping journey. At its recent I/O developers' conference, Google announced that 3D and AR visualizations would be accessible in search results, and social network giant Facebook is working on widening use of its Spark AR platform that powers AR within Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp, and Messenger.

Quality matters

Not only do poor 3D experiences fail to showcase the products they're intended to sell, but they can adversely impact AR tools. Both can be off-putting to shoppers; in fact, poor quality and the lack of content are the top barriers to wider AR adoption, according to eMarketer. Shoddy first efforts by merchants may doom future investments if shoppers are hesitant to give immersive content a second chance.

Moreover, quality 3D renderings are essential to advanced features now at the forefront of AR development. For example, custom configurator tools can be built to enable shoppers to view their bespoke color and style options in AR in real-time — but only if the base 3D model includes individual components that can be recombined on the fly. Future innovations will likewise rely on a foundation of robust, detailed 3D renderings, so merchants should invest in quality assets now to avoid the necessity of recreating them later.

Choose the right imaging technique for the product category

The three chief methods for creating 3D assets — photogrammetry, 3D modeling, and laser scanning — each have benefits and drawbacks.  For example, photogrammetry, which builds models based on images from an array of cameras that surround the product, captures a great amount of detail, but isn't ideal for products with reflective or refractive surfaces, such as glassware, shiny plastic, or jewelry.

To maximize the quality of their 3D assets, merchants must navigate the options and their variations in quality, cost, and production speed, even selecting different capture methods for different product categories, if necessary. Building in-house teams with the right knowledge has so far proved challenging: 30% of marketing professionals say the lack of internal expertise has prevented them from investing in AR initiatives, with another 8% lacking the resources to develop an immersive content platform.

Asset management and tracking shouldn't require 3D credentials

Planning for 3D image storage and management should go hand-in-hand with development, and merchants should aim to put control of assets in the hands of marketers and merchandisers, much as 2D images are used today. Capabilities such as syncing assets to the e-commerce product catalog, enabling version control, and previewing and testing tools prior to launch are all increasingly within reach, but require specialized knowledge to implement.

In addition, analytics tracking capabilities should be built in, so that merchants can closely monitor the impact of 3D and AR assets on e-commerce performance. Thanks to the interactive nature of 3D and AR assets, a new class of metrics is emerging to track how shoppers manipulate and examine images — giving merchants new insights into the product features and styles that matter most.

The rush is on to produce 3D and AR assets at scale. With negative consequences for poor implementations, merchants must prioritize quality 3D development to maximize investments and future success.