VR in Fashion — A Visual Revolution in the Making
Traditional advertising appeals only to people’s sight and hearing. VR appears to all the senses. It creates a more authentic experience than ads, which makes it ideal for most fashion brands.
But VR can help brands with more than advertising. Learn more about the use of VR in fashion and the benefits it brings to one of the world’s most exciting industries.
VR Meets Fashion
Virtual reality stimulates parts of the brain associated with visual-audio stimuli. The virtual world it creates is convincing and rich in details. Virtual reality merges the virtual with the real. This creates a truly immersive and deeply felt experience.
Tommy Hilfiger was one of the first fashion labels to deploy VR headsets in its stores. In 2015, the popular label created an immersive 360-degree VR experience of their latest fashion show. Other brands followed suit, creating an unforgettable experience for many shoppers.
But more than recreating fashion shows, VR can help brands transform the way shoppers engage with their products. Take for example Gap’s virtual dressing room. Available through a mobile app, it recreates outfits on a VR model just your size.
Customers who use the app will have a better understanding of the product than a simple website could provide. They will feel that they are taking fewer chances. Because of this, they are more likely to buy the product.
By reimagining the conventional dressing room, VR helps shoppers find products faster. It also helps brands minimize returns and reduce dressing room queues.
Building Trust and Generating Engagement with VR
VR can also help brands build customer trust. By allowing customers to interact with products through VR, they help manage expectations. Customers are less likely to feel duped into buying something that isn’t what it was advertised to be.
Unlike traditional advertising, VR can assure customers that they are making the right decision. This is very important in high-end fashion, where products can cost thousands of dollars.
In 2016, Louis Vuitton used VR to promote a new line of handbags. For its campaign, the brand recruited Lightning, a virtual superhero from Final Fantasy XIII. Novel and eye-catching, this campaign generated interest and discussion.
VR in fashion can easily increase customer engagement with a brand. And it’s easy to see why — the level of interaction VR offers is unprecedented. It virtually recreates a product in 3D, something which not even the most detailed online 360-degree product videos can.
In another example of VR in action, Elle teamed up with Huffington Post to create a unique VR issue of Women in Hollywood. Through the mobile app ElleNow, viewers can hover their smartphones over the cover to bring stars like Amy Adams or Kristen Stewart to life.
And let’s not forget about augmented reality (AR), VR’s little brother. Zara has launched its own augmented reality app, and it is not the only brand to do. This app enhances the shopping experience and provides additional product information.
VR and AR, used together or separately, invite customers to engage in new ways with fashion brands and discover new products. In a world where adblocker usage is on the rise, these technologies can bring brands closer to customers.
The Future of VR in Fashion
By 2020, VR headset sales will surpass 200 million. At the same time, an increasing number of mobile phones will support VR. The growing adoption of VR for personal users means fashion brands have the opportunity to bring VR into people’s homes.
More immersive than conventional display technologies, VR can be a powerful tool for fashion brands and retailers. From marketing to the sales process, VR seems to have its place in the fashion world firmly established.
The wide adoption of VR in fashion is only limited by the availability of VR-enabled devices. But as the price of VR technology decreases and adoption increases, fashion brands around the world are likely to find new and innovative ways to use VR.
Let’s not forget that VR also has an important novelty factor. Brands that create VR experiences before the technology becomes mainstream can leave a considerable impression on customers. And this can improve brand recall and make customers associate that brand with innovation.
If you can use VR to promote your brand, now is a great time to do it.
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