Potentials of AR technology for the digitalization of consultancy intensive sales processes on the example of furniture sales

Abstract

Selling highly configurable or complex products in online markets  has been difficult as they often require intensive consultation time which  currently takes place in a physical store. The consultation process has various  facets that could possibly benefit from digital solutions. As a first step in our  research process, we conducted an ethnographic observation in a furniture store  to analyze current sales and consultation processes. Based on our findings, we  derive several requirements which can guide the design of IT solutions to  digitalize those processes. Additionally, we propose an augmented reality  system offering various benefits to both consultants in stores as well as  customers at home.

Introduction

Striving for competitiveness, retailers constantly look for new opportunities and  optimal strategies to keep customers interested in their wares. With the  implementation of digital technology, eCommerce had a large impact on many  industry branches in recent years. While some businesses solely arose because of a  growing digital market, most retailers at least turned part of their businesses online,  especially those looking to compete with mass scale online retailers using fully  digitalized sales processes. However, industry branches that rely on or require one or  more extensive sales consultation sessions, e.g. cars, real estate and furniture sales,  have mostly kept their businesses offline due to the number of problems in  digitalizing their complex consultation processes. In these areas, digitalization might  still prove to offer an unseen opportunity in shortening consultation time and  improving general consultation quality.

In this work, we focus on furniture sales. Nowadays, in-house furniture  consultations face several problems: While customers can browse websites to  generate ideas, they still visit the furniture store for more expensive and complex  goods to receive a proper consultation. Guided by a consultant, they want to inspect  and evaluate their possibilities in order to find a fitting configuration for their needs. Therefore, a consultant needs to know what the customers’ needs and wishes are to enable an optimal consultation. Customers on the other hand need to articulate these  to a consultant in a precise manner. Schwabe et al. [1] describe this kind of advice  giving as joint problem solving requiring an extensive knowledge exchange.  Additionally, after closing in on a fitting configuration, a customer still needs to  imagine the result. Unless the furniture store has the desired model in the selected  configuration on display, parts of different exhibits need to be mentally merged by the  customer to produce a complete picture. The customers cannot view or feel the  furniture until it has been bought, built and shipped. This can dramatically increase  customer’s uncertainty before purchasing and may lead to longer consultation times or no sales at all.

As part of a joint project aimed at researching the possible improvements by digital  sales processes in furniture retail, we worked together with a retailer specializing in  highly customizable upholstery which usually needs intensive consultation times. The  project aims to create a digital platform in which products which traditionally require  in-store consultation can be offered together with remote, online consultations. With  promising research about recommendation agents [2], remote consultations and the ability to see and interact with virtual objects in augmented reality (AR), we want to  investigate possible digitalization solutions. In order to be able to create technical  solutions helping consultants and customers alike, we need to better understand  current practices and processes in the furniture sales industry. Therefore, we apply a  design-based approach in order to guide our development. As a first step, we  conducted an ethnographic study observing and interviewing furniture consultants to  learn about the domain. Based on our findings, we derive requirements for digital  solutions and, finally, provide a possible first, AR-based solution to these  requirements.  

In our proposed AR-based solution, customers use AR to receive advice from a  consultant while simultaneously streaming their own living room to the consultant.  The consultant then could, based on the video, place and (re-)configure virtual  furniture for the customer. AR could also help customers articulate their wishes and  ideas by highlighting certain parts or providing necessary vocabulary and explanations.