Consumer shopping habits have changed over the past decade and their decision-making process is defined by their omnichannel interactions. Customers nowadays are seeking out online ratings, product reviews, videos and discussions as they move down the path to purchase. They want to see the product from every angle before they decide to buy it online or visit your store.
In one of our previous blog posts, we talked about the importance of product visualization and the fact that the human brain processes visuals 60,000 times faster than text. You can have the most creative product descriptions, but if you don’t have high-quality visuals, it just won’t cut it.
Stories Sell
Storytelling is not just a buzzword. It goes back to ancient times when people used storytelling to communicate, share ideas and learn. Now we are witnessing that storytelling is inevitable for every business. No matter if you want to position your brand on the market, attract and keep the best talent in your company, or sell products - you have to tell a story.
The human brain is more receptive to stories than to data and facts. The main reason is that we get the information in a more memorable form, so we can easily relate and accept the main message.
“People don’t buy products, but rather the stories these products represent” - Storytelling: The Story Making Machine and Formatting Minds
However, creating authentic and compelling stories that will drive engagement is more challenging than ever.
The persuasive power of visual storytelling
The average human attention span is shrinking, so you have little time to make an impact.
Research shows that people remember only 20% of what they read, 10% of what they hear and up to 80% of what they see and do.
Visuals have the power to evoke emotions and to trigger a reaction. Here are some statistics to prove this statement:
- 93% of consumers consider visual appearance to be the key deciding factor in a purchasing decision.
- 4x as many consumers would prefer to watch a video about a product than to read about it.
- 2x improved engagement - 360-degree spins and image rotation functionality can significantly improve your web session duration by offering interactivity.
We learn to read as we grow up, while sight and hearing are two of our five core senses. We are wired for the visual processing of information, so focusing on visual storytelling can be the ace up your sleeve.
The Main Challenge for E-tailers
There are a lot of benefits that come with online shopping. More choices, the ability to compare items, rich content and the right information, at the right time. Still, one of the main reasons why customers doubt their buying decision when it comes to online shopping is the inability to touch or try out the product.
When it comes to online shopping, companies must understand that their no. 1 task is to boost shopper confidence and to make their buying decision as simple as possible. Investing in product visualization will give your customers peace of mind, and it will save you from all the headaches that come with product returns.
Stories Create Purpose - Context Gives Shape and Meaning.
In-context images help you boost emotional engagement, ultimately leading to a higher conversion rate.
Research from Google shows that 64% of women who shop for apparel on their smartphone agree that seeing images of products in context positively influences their purchase decision.
It’s much easier to sell products when you show them being used. No matter if it is jewelry, a purse, a sofa or a car. This helps shoppers get rid of their fears about the product’s usage, aesthetic, and size. According to BigCommerce, 78% of online shoppers want products to be brought to life with images.
In-context images give you more freedom to show the benefits and purpose of your products. To put it another way, in-context images empower businesses to trigger emotions through telling stories.
Room Scenes - A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words...and Sales
Online merchandising is a mix of art and science, and it can make a difference for your e-commerce business. From high-quality images, videos, and advanced visualization tools, to product comparisons, recommendations, reviews, and ratings - customers are looking for a rich product page experience before they decide to make a purchase.
Your task is to display the products in such a way that stimulates interests and creates excitement, urging visitors to buy what they see.
When it comes to the furniture industry, bridging the gap between the user experience at physical stores and in the digital world becomes increasingly important. As one of our clients Plush found out, often times, the online shopping experience can be used to enhance, instead of substitute, the in-store purchase.
Having in mind that most purchase journeys start online, you have to provide superior online customer experience in order to attract customer attention.
Customers find it hard to imagine how a sofa would look when combined with other pieces of furniture, how large is it in real life, and how it will fit in their living room.
Room scenes are very important for that reason. Show the quality and versatility of your product. Put it in context, highlight its beauty. Reinforce your customer’s perception that the product they are about to invest in is the right choice.
High-quality room scenes are the online equivalent of feeling rich, velvety textures, soft cushions, or diving into bed.
Ready to Go the Extra Mile?
Traditional product photography has a lot of downsides: it’s complicated, static, inflexible and very costly. There has to be a better way.
And actually, there is. Cylindo has introduced a new and never-before-seen way of capturing customer imagination. Cylindo Styleshots represent interactive room scenes with a versatile approach to building authentic room sets for furniture brands and retailers.
Ready to experience the room scenes you’ve been waiting for?
