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Which Businesses Benefit from 3D Product Photography Platforms?
3D and 360-degree product viewers exist in many forms, so it’s important to look at some examples before deciding what might be best for your business. Everything from apparel and fashion, to jewellery, furniture, household appliances and nearly any product imaginable comes to life when put in either 3D or 360-degree format. To discover examples of today’s 3D and 360 product viewers for online retail, dive into this guide with PhotoRobot to learn more.
An effective 3D / 360 product viewer enables businesses to deliver product content to consumers that is as equally immersive as it is impressive. This is oftentimes in fully interactive consumer experiences like 360-degree product spins, 3D models and configurators.
The advantages to deploying product viewing software (like PhotoRobot Viewer) are numerous, but some will provide more benefits than others. Choosing the best product viewer will thus depend on the stage of the business, available resources, and the overall business model.
There are product viewers that deploy multi-angle still shots, viewers for complete 360-degree spin photography, and viewers for customizable or configurable 3D models. These create value in many ways: from better product presentation and customer satisfaction, to buyer’s trust, conversions and revenue. To illustrate this better, let’s look now at some examples of leading brands leveraging 3D and 360 product viewers to success.
Currently, there is no better way to replicate the in-store shopping experience than with 3D or 360-degree product viewers. Not all brands are utilizing full 360-degree spins or 3D photography, but those who do are realizing significant benefits. Here are 6 examples of brands using these formats and other media to provide shoppers a closer look at the products on offer.
A pioneer and leader in consumer technology, Apple spares little expense in their marketing ventures, and their use case for 360-degree product viewers is one of the most engaging to date. Looking specifically at their iPhone launch videos for example, Apple’s product viewer demonstrates both pride in how their hardware operates and in how it appears online. To accomplish this, they utilize nearly entirely 3D rendered phones.
Just take a look at the launch video for the iPhone 12 Pro for example. It features extreme close-ups, views from absolutely every angle of the device, and various lighting arrangements to showcase the phone’s design. Beyond this, Apple is also a pioneer in using 3D models to provide consumers with an X-ray view inside of their devices, providing a way to see how all of the latest technology looks on the inside.
Another valuable example of deploying a 360 / 3D product viewer comes from one of the leading brands in luxury vehicles, BMW. With BMW’s Build Your Own, anyone looking to make a significant purchase can first browse their high-end vehicles online from nearly every angle and in rich detail. Their product experience also provides close-up views of each automobile’s distinguishing features, including side moldings, sculpted edges and more.
The only drawback to this viewer is that the viewing experience is limited to only a horizontal spin. This means the viewer doesn’t present every possible viewing angle, so consumers will likely still want to view the automobile in person before deciding on taking it for a test-drive. Despite this, BMW’s product viewer is quite capable of encouraging potential customers to phone their local dealership and arrange to view the automobile for themself.
Next up, there is Logitech, a leading manufacturer in computer peripherals and software. Logitech makes particularly good use of 360 product viewers for new product launches. Their marketing campaigns most often feature keyboard, mouse, and headset launch videos, combining detail-rich product spins and explosive animations to showcase the moving parts as well as all the technology that goes into their products.
Logitech also deploys 360-degree product images on their website for laptops and other electronic devices. In this way, consumers have the ability to view each and every angle of the products, and they can even view devices from opening, closing, and folding positions.
If looking for a leader in 360-degree product visualization, Nike definitely ranks among the best. By utilizing 3D photography techniques and 3D models, Nike has become a game-changer in online footwear shopping and customization. Their product viewer, Nike By You, allows consumers to customize their shoe choices from color to design, texture and more.
In this way, the software allows shoppers to essentially build their own product. They can design tailor-made solutions around their footwear needs, while Nike saves both time and money in production as the company only needs to produce what’s currently in demand. This approach is of particular advantage to major brands with a wide range of customizable products, and for companies like Nike who already have a repository of 3D models for use.
For further examples of using 3D models for a product viewer, take note of American home appliance brand KitchenAid. Their 3D product viewer helps customers choose the best refrigerator to meet their home needs and includes a long line of models and options.
Now, online shoppers can open and close all doors and drawers with triggered product animations, explore compartments and moving parts with product annotations, and even switch between available customization options on the fly. This is all thanks to the Emersya platform, an online publishing software for product experiences in 3D, AR, and VR.
Finally, another industry example worth mentioning is Vitra. This brand has leveraged the Emersya platform to create a more advanced configuration experience for the billions of possible combinations for their products.
Vitra also wanted to provide higher quality close-ups of materials along with the 360-degree spin product experience. Now, Emersya’s OFML importer ensures that Vitra can upload existing OFML data directly onto the platform to create fully interactive configurators in seconds.
Vitra has also utilized Emersya to build 3D digital user instructions for their wide range of ergonomic office chairs. There is now a custom interface (designed by Vitra) linked to the 3D product viewer, which allows customers to find detailed explanations and animations for optimal use of the product.
Looking for the best 360 or 3D product viewer to meet your e-commerce business needs? At PhotoRobot, we specialize in product photography solutions for businesses small and large, and we have helped many clients exceed their product content goals. Whether it’s for utilizing existing content or looking for the best hardware and software to create even more, PhotoRobot can advise on what’s best for your situation. Don’t delay and contact us today to learn more.
