Online shopping is bigger than ever.

The case is that technologies continue to reshape modern retail, and customers become more demanding and tech-savvy, adding more pain points to retailers’ plans and strategies.

That causes retailers to change their approach in order to reach more customers.

Knowing customers’ actual needs is not enough nowadays – business owners have to predict customers’ wishes and upcoming trends. And that’s where the augmented reality showrooms are set to kill customer experience.

Augmented Reality is a powerful tool to engage customers and gain a new audience. People prefer AR for its innovation and, of course, simplicity — no need to use headsets, as is the case with VR — a regular smartphone is already enough.

It’s not surprising that furniture, clothing, and makeup tools are among the most popular cases to experiment with, as these categories are what various social groups are interested in.

Several global brands have already implemented Augmented Reality into their campaigns or services and proved that it works.

Let’s take a look at them!

IKEA

It’s not only admirable that IKEA is experimenting so thoughtfully with Augmented Reality, it’s smart, and it is poised to help drive increased sales faster for the iconic home decor retailer.

Near term, you can expect to see a whole lot more of these types of niche AR experiences, especially in the industries and verticals touching clothing and apparel retail, home design and decoration, landscaping & gardening and more.

Long term, as adoption to wearable technologies like Google Glass permeates and accelerates, we can expect AR to truly soar as unique applications will be born to serve extraordinarily specific needs.

Ferrari

Being able to provide potential buyers with a customized version of the car of their dreams within seconds is an awesome capability for anyone hoping to pursue an auto sales career, but the app doesn’t stop at just the look of the car.

Good news for anyone looking to become a mechanic, the app lets owners see beneath the surface as well!

It shows the powertrain, a zoomed-in 3D view of the engine and braking system, and can even demonstrate the car’s aerodynamics by creating a virtual wind tunnel.