Oracle Retail 2025 has released a study that examines how consumers are perceiving the impact of new technologies such as virtual reality (VR) and 3D printing.
The research was conducted on 709 consumers over the course of February 2017, where it found that the majority of consumers are willing to engage with new technology provided they feel that they are in control of the experience.
“Consumers clearly indicated that they have a conservative appetite for retail technologies that requires deep personal data and make decisions on their behalf,” said Mike Webster, senior vice president and general manager at Oracle Retail and Oracle Hospitality. “This signals brands to focus on building a strong foundation to win trust. Warm attitudes toward utilizing virtual reality and receiving recommendations for custom-made accessories produced with 3D printing points to consumers’ willingness to adopt new technologies if they are in control of their experience.”
The report also found that it is vital that consumers trust the brands that are offering the new experience. Overstepping that mark can lead to backlash. Some highlights from the report include the following:
- 64 percent of respondents liked the option of using virtual reality to navigate a personalized in-store experience and having a hand-picked wardrobe to try on in-store
- 64 percent of consumers responded favourably to the concept having a retailer suggest a custom-made accessory for them produced with 3D printing
- 57 percent of consumers find apparel recommendations from robots based on their social media profile invasive
- 54 percent of respondents indicated that having a grocer automatically charge and ship items based on purchase history, social and environmental data was invasive
- 46 percent of respondents indicated that receiving real-time alerts on current product recalls, and time since last recall by a manufacturer, based on previous purchase history would improve their experience
VRFocus will bring you further information on studies on VR and related technologies as they becomes available.