Visual commerce 101: essential knowledge for eCommerce brands

“Even with a professional photographer and a great camera, you can't match the quality of the 3D that you can generate through the Omi app.”
—Gwendal Tissier, Founder & CEO @ Black Honey 

4. Visual product configurators

You might never have heard of a visual product configurator — but you’ve probably used one. This is a tool that lets you toggle between different versions of a product. The most common use case is changing the color of an item. If you’ve ever bought a t-shirt online, you might have changed the settings to see whether you prefer the blue or the white version, for example. Now you know — that tool for changing the settings was called a visual product configurator! 

These tools typically lead to higher engagement, since they allow your eCommerce customers to customize the item they’re buying in real time.  

5. AR and VR experiences

Some forward-thinking eCommerce retailers are experimenting with augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) shopping experiences, and for good reason — according to the Square Future of Commerce report, 58% of online shoppers said they’re interested in trying newer shopping experiences. 22% specifically said they were looking forward to the advent of VR shopping. 

If your products represent a significant one-off purchase for customers — think: furniture or automobiles—and you’d like to drum up press with an unusual visual marketing channel, why not create an AR or VR experience? 

6. User-generated visual content

User generated content (UGC) is gold. 93% of marketers who use UGC claim that it performs markedly better than traditional branded content. If users love your product enough to take and share their own images or videos of it, that’s a powerful sign to new would-be customers that your product is desirable and trustworthy. 

If you have customer photos and reviews, you should be placing them front and centre of your visual commerce strategy. These lend your brand an air of authenticity and offer convincing social proof.  

Key benefits of visual commerce for online brands

A visual commerce approach can transform eCommerce businesses. Here’s just a handful of the benefits to expect if you try this strategy: 

• Enhanced customer experience: high-quality visuals like videos, AR, and 3D product viewers are simply more interesting to interact with than eCommerce sites that feature walls of text. They improve the experience of browsing your site. 

• Higher conversion rates: visuals give users a clear idea of what they’d be getting if they bought your product. This improved confidence and understanding significantly increases the likelihood a user will make a purchase. 

• Lower return rates: did you know 22% of eCommerce returns happen because the product looked different in person than it did on the website? Prioritize your product’s visual representation and you’ll set clear expectations for buyers from the off. 

• Stronger, more recognizable brand: research shows that people experience more powerful emotional responses to images than words, so it’s no surprise that brands who use visual commerce tend to create a deeper and more lasting impression on their users

How to implement visual commerce to better engage customers and bring in more sales

Visual commerce is better thought of as an approach to eCommerce marketing than a set of repeatable instructions you can apply to any product and market. Nonetheless, here are the high level steps towards engaging eCommerce customers with visual commerce. 

1. Outline your visual commerce strategy

Stand back from your existing marketing, and consider how images and imagery might play a greater role. Start by thinking about your target audience, where they shop for your product, what factors influence their buying decision, and which channels they prefer to consume content in. You could also examine your competitors for inspiration. 

Different industries benefit from different visual commerce elements, for example, eCommerce companies who sell…

• Cosmetic and skincare products might benefit from creative, high-quality product photography that matches seasonal campaigns and evokes a compelling brand story  

• Furniture and large household items might benefits from creating an AR experience, so that customers can see how their goods might look in their houses or offices 

• Complex items, like toys and games or fitness equipment might benefit from product videos, to demonstrate how their items are intended to be used 

• Clothing and footwear might benefit from generating and promoting UGC, which offers social proof 

2. Invest in essential resources 

To bring your visual commerce strategy to life, you’ll need to get your hands on the necessary design tools and resources. 

Naturally, the best ones for the job will depend on your budget, and the kinds of assets you’ve decided to create. Consider:

• A product visualization tool like Omi for creating 3D product visualizations, product animations, and photorealistic product images in any number of creative settings (and all at 10-20x less than the price of a traditional product photoshoot!) 

• Augmented reality tools, including specialist software like ARKit (Apple) or ARCore (Google) along with a web- or mobile based AR viewer 

• Tools to create a demo video, including a video camera and voiceover and editing software 

Once you’ve got everything you need, get to work creating your imagery — the world of eCommerce moves quickly, and done is better than perfect. 

3.  Integrate your visual assets with your existing platforms

Decide which of your digital spaces will bear the fruits of your visual commerce strategy — whether that’s your social channels, your app, or your eCommerce site itself. Depending on how ambitious your plans were, this might mean:

• Embedding a 3D viewer plugin on your eCommerce site, so that users can interact with your interactive 3D product render  

• Exporting visuals for social media in the correct size, aspect ratio and file format 

• Ensuring all videos, images, and interactive experiences are optimized for mobile, since around 72% of global eCommerce sales are conducted on this device type  

Create the imagery you need to succeed at visual commerce with Omi

eCommerce shoppers can’t pick up your product, feel it, shake it, or smell it. But, in order to convert them into loyal customers, you’ll need to communicate what’s great about it in a way which engages their senses. Visual commerce — leading your eCommerce marketing with imagery — is a market-tested way to do that.  

With a tool like Omi, it’s more economical than you’d think to execute on a studio-quality visual commerce strategy. You don’t need to invest in expensive on-location photoshoots or 3D modelling artists. Simply ship us your product, and our team will produce a 3D rendering that captures its dimensions, colours, and even textures. Then, you can:

• Generate endless unlimited visuals in our Virtual Studio, and make use of hundreds of templates, creative props, and environments. You can even save your favorite lighting settings for next time.  

• Make polished 3D product animations which, our clients report, boost a product pages’ engagement rate by an average of 32% 

• Create interactive 3D viewers that integrate embed easily into your eCommerce site 

Best of all, the tool is so easy to use that any visually-savvy teammate will pick it up in minutes. 

Maybe we’re biased, but it really is the ultimate solution for scaling product imagery efficiently. With Omi, the only limit to your brand’s visual storytelling is your imagination.