If there’s one omnipresent marketing issue that most upscale retail companies have had to contend with during this unusual Covid-year, it has been how to get customers to physically enter a shop’s premises to stroll, peruse, and pick as they would have done in the past, pre-pandemic era.
For the high-end market, however, that’s into home improvement or renovation, or even building one's new house or weekend getaway, this is the exact demographic that’s the most paranoid about leaving the safety of their homes.
Yet, they are the very same customers and clients who want to sit in the sofa they intend to buy—they want to feel the leather, the heft of the fabric, or measure the dimensions to make sure it fits in the space they’re eyeing the piece of furniture for. It’s a demanding niche market that knows what it wants, is ready to pay top peso as long as it’s exactly what they want, and is always to ready to renovate and acquire. They are, practically, the recession-proof section of the populace.
One of more impressive innovations I’ve seen lately is the Focus Global360-degree Virtual Showroom. It is an interactive presentation that allows you to explore 5,000 square meters of the best and most trusted home furnishings brands, right in the comfort of your home or wherever you’re using your device to access the site.
The five floors of display space that can be found at the 24/7 flagship Focus Global building at BGC has now been converted into an interactive virtual walk through. All the renowned brands represented by Focus Global are represented, and it’s a technological feat that’s going to be hard to beat in terms of doing it all for your customers.
With this interactive presentation, you can move around the virtual showroom just as you would if you’re physically present at the Focus Global building. The easy-to-navigate controls make it a breeze for anyone ready to “enter” the site.
You can click on the circles as you virtually walk through the showrooms to get more information about any of the products on display. A ruler tool feature allows you to easily get the dimensions of any product.
You can share the link of any area in the showroom you like via email or other social media platforms—this is especially helpful if you want to send something to your interior designer, or if the designer wants to show you something specific from the Focus Global showrooms.
Ethan Allen, SieMatic, B&B Italia, Hunter Douglas, Miele, Sub-Zero & Wolf, Villeroy & Boch, Dornbracht, Tempur, Sealy, Boffi—from furniture to wardrobe systems, window treatments to bathroom fixtures, kitchen cabinets to home appliances—all these brands are represented in the virtual showroom, and quite honestly, it’s really like being physically at the showroom.
For someone like me, the only thing missing would be the smell of the leather, of the scents and aromas I associate with the Focus Global showrooms. Above all, I would miss the smells and sounds of the wonderful food being prepared at the Focus Global test kitchen. For the meantime, this virtual experience will be a suitable substitute.
Check out the virtual showroom via this link: 360-degree Virtual Showroom.