What is a 3D Product Configurator?

What is a 3D Product Configurator?

A 3D product configurator is an interactive online customization tool that allows users to customize elements of a product. In this article, you can learn more about 3D product configurator software and its benefits!

Ecommerce Store Sales

In 2023, eCommerce industry sales came to 4.28 trillion dollars worldwide. The online sales market is expected to increase over the course of 2024 to 5.4 trillion US dollars. This increase in online shopping means that the world of online sales is more competitive than ever. This new reality also requires eCommerce industry companies to stay light on their feet as they adjust to the changes going on all around them.

If you own an eCommerce business or are considering starting your own online business, you need to be aware of the tools that can help to launch your brand to the forefront of your niche industry. Without leveraging these added-value tools and technologies, your business is at risk of slipping behind the competition.

What is 3D Product Configuration? 

3D product configurators are interactive tools that enable a 360-degree view of a physical item and allow it to be configured (change parts etc.) on demand. There are many different 3D product configurators out there that will allow you to use them as a plug-in to create this unique and improved customer experience. Some providers include saVRee, SketchFab, and Verge3D. Each one has different characteristics which we will explain in more detail in another article. You can see an example of the saVRee 3D product configurator here:

3D Configurators help businesses improve the online shopping experience by allowing shoppers and consumers to see products from every angle and even have users customize them in different settings. This is a tool that allows you to customize colors, animate functionality, parts, pricing options, and have customers visualize and experience a product before buying it. And, it is possible to do all this without the need to see it in person or use sales reps! All of these factors are essentials parts of the online sales process.

What Can 3D Product Configurators Do?  

3D product configurators can offer many benefits to customers. These benefits range from an improved purchase process for your customers to an improved demonstration of the the products and services you are selling.

    1. Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ)  

This is one of the most valuable features that 3D product configurators can offer your eCommerce business, or bricks-and-mortar business. CPQ stands for 'configure, price, quote'. Online 3D configurators allow your business to configure, price, and offer up quotes for your products, directly through a web-browser. This makes it far easier to sell complex items with a high degree of customization and price configuration offered in their design.

This benefit of 3D product configurators allows your sales team to get involved after your customers have already selected most of the various pricing configurations and styling of their products. In fact, they may not even have to get involved in most of the sales that your eCommerce site processes if you leverage CPQ, especially if you sell or are using an automated eCommerce platform such as WooCommerce, Magento, Shopify, Opencart, PrestaShop, BigCommerce, Salesforce CommerceCloud, NetSuite, Etsy, etc.

Your customers will be able to configure the exact combination and configuration of product options they are looking for and create their final product. The price will then be calculated according to the selected specifications and configuration that your customer has picked. After this information and configuration are selected, the 3D configurator software will provide a quote that states the price of the selected visual product configuration. The customized product can then be ordered at the click of a button and this recorded in your inventory management software.

    2. Demonstrate Function and Styling 

Consumers and businesses are increasingly unwilling to buy products from businesses and manufacturers that they are uncertain about. They want to be offered an in-person shopping experience even when shopping online. This is where 3D product configurators can be a big help to your business, brand, customer satisfaction, and sales numbers.

3D configurators are able to demonstrate the functionality of each part of a product as well as demonstrate how the sum of all of the parts looks and works. Imagine sites you have engaged with where you could build a car from the tires up. This is a perfect example of the added value that 3D product configurator software can offer your brand. Consumers feel far more confident in products they can experience before they buy them.

If you are promoting complex products or products that have many styling configuration options, this is one of the best use cases for 3D product configurators.

    3. Provide Photo-Realistic Representations  

Modern consumers are less and less willing to pay attention to brands that use flat images of their products. The lack of quality that these simple images demonstrate can be a major stumbling block for brands, especially if the products in question are complicated in design.

A 3D product configurator offers customers of your brand the chance to provide photo-realistic copies when customers configure their products that convey exactly what the item in question looks like. Your consumers will even feel confident in the textures of the things they are looking at, whilst also using the zoom and pan functions, which are part of almost all configurators.

3D configurators often work with gaming-quality engines that create superior images that show the finer details of the potentially complex products you are selling. Regular 2D images simply cannot compete with the high-quality photo-realistic images that a 3D configurator will be able to provide your visual product or brand.

    4. Work on Any Device

This is one of the primary benefits of 3D configurators for many brands. It can be hard to optimize your visual product images and interactions with online shoppers on all kinds of devices. If there are major differences in the quality of visual products and the buying experience offered to online shoppers and consumers shopping on mobile, for example, you will be missing out on the customer experience and a lot of sales that your brand could be enjoying.

3D configurators allow your product images to be optimized for all kinds of devices users have, from tablets to smartphones. This means that no matter what kind of device users are shopping on, they will be able to have the same seamless and high-quality customer experience that they can find when they log into their computer.

The benefits of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) as part of a 3D configurator's functionality are significant, both of these features are standard when using a saVRee configurator.

    5. Improve User Engagement, Call to Action, and Customer Satisfaction  

3D Configurators are a really great way to access a call-to-action function that guides buyers toward finalizing the purchase process. Combining the uniquely immersive buying experience offered by 3D product configurators with a reminder that all they have to do is click 'submit' or 'next' to buy the item, can be a powerful way to convert sales.

Your 3D configurator can easily be set up to offer a range of next steps to your consumers when they are done with the creation and production process of their unique item. If you have been clear about the cost of this customized item, your customers will feel confident in taking the next steps to purchase the product.

Seeing the custom order that has been created for them can convince any buyer that they don’t want to walk away from their creation. All you need to do then to increase sales is offer a clear call to action for the customer.

    6. Create 3D Ads 

This is another area where 3D product configurators shine. You can create uniquely compelling ads using your visual product and renderings and they will offer the same benefits to potential consumers and impress customers who have not yet used visual products or visited your store.

Being able to configure how online shoppers see the product they are interested in is much more enticing than a staged photo that does not offer online shoppers any interactive features. E-commerce advertising shows all kinds of metrics to store owners about engagements, click-through rates, and more. Adding these kinds of 3D configurator-designed ads to your arsenal will tell you a lot about buyer behavior when they are offered a truly appealing ad.

You may find that you have been wasting money running regular ads with regular images. 3D configurator-driven ads are often far superior to regular ads and they can give your brand a big leg up over your competition who is advertising in the same space.

How do I Get Started Utilizing a 3D Product Configurator?  

A quality configurator will easily be customized to fit your needs. There are various products and solutions on the market that can offer these benefits to your brand. Some of the main companies that provide either off-the-shelf setup solutions or customization tools include saVRee, Sketchfab, and Expivi.

You should look into the plug-ins and software features that you want most and decide which one you can afford to work with. The range of costs for 3D Configurators can vary greatly depending on the product that you are interested in as well as your planned uses for the configurator.

Here at saVRee, we are certified partners with SketchFab and can help your company with the decision process when reviewing 3D Configurators. We also offer setup and product configuration. Contact us for questions, or if you have already decided on 3D Product Configurator software and need help to set up and implement it.

A 3D Product Configurator can Promote Your Brand and Increase Consumer Confidence 

3D configurators offer value to your brand because they can improve nearly every step of the buying process for your customers and consumers. As eCommerce competition increases, 3D product configurators will become a critical part of your online sales process and overall business operations. If your customers cannot configure products, but they can on someone else's website, why should they buy from you? A 3D product configurator helps businesses solve some of the largest issues with online selling, and it does this without the need for sales staff!

Being an early adopter of this revolutionary technology will put your brand at the forefront of this new trend and give you an advantage on the future of revenue from this valuable sales tool. While the initial costs of this technology might be a bit higher than you were expecting, you will enjoy an increase in sales that will offset this investment in no time.

There is no future scenario wherein 3D Product Configurations are not a standard tool for online sales and marketing experiences. Get your website or eCommerce stores upgraded, optimized, and future-proofed, with a 3D product configurator.