I Want That Outfit! – Product Configurator for Outfits
Ever found the perfect item of clothing online and wished it was easier to find matching items? Selecting a special dress or suit is usually just the start of a long and sometimes frustrating online process. “I’ve found the perfect dress for a friend’s wedding but really need a complete outfit ….the shoes, handbag and perhaps jewelry accessories to match, but it’s a pain to have to constantly click back and forth to find suitable matching products. And even if I find my accessories elsewhere, how can I be sure the colour shade will match?”
A well-constructed product configurator can help customers think and decide, eliminating confusion. It gives e-Commerce retailers a new way to organize and shape the buying process; we show only what needs to be shown given the context of the configurator and buying decision to be made.
Let’s look at the example of finding the perfect dress for a special occasion. The traditional method of brick and mortar shopping offers the advantage of visually presenting a complete outfit. Displaying an outfit in this way offers ideas and inspiration, something many shoppers would also like to utilize when they shop online. Nav-to-Net™ Configurator can provide this functionality giving the customer the ability to build an outfit whilst shopping online.
A product configurator helps to determine a customer’s purpose or their specific style, tone, or feeling. Instead of browsing through a vast product catalog and going back and forth between categories and items, a configurator presents specially selected items in a logical manner.
Using the product configurator to create an outfit means the user can access all the corresponding products on the same page without leaving the main item. For example, the main item may be a dress but Configurator will also show additional accessories such as shoes, handbags, shawls, or jewelry items as matching items. An example of how to set it up (this is by no means the only way to do so – be creative!) would be to have customers first select the correct size for the dress. Suggested shoes may then follow with the option of selecting the right size or heel height using item variants or perhaps skipping the step if I don’t need shoes at all. A matching handbag or hat would also be some options available to add to the order. Finally, customers will be able to choose from a selection of accessories such as jewelry or scarves completes the outfit, saving loads of time searching elsewhere.
Ways to Guide with Configurator
Cross-Sell and Upsell: Plenty of suggestions can be made in a way that’s not intrusive or irrelevant to the customer. In a configurator environment, a customer can expected to be shown relevant products that they would be interested in, chosen by you and your experience and knowledge.
Exclusions: Exclusions in Configurator are used as a way to guide customer decisions by only showing what them what they need to know. For example, if a customer selects their size, they will not be shown any dresses that don’t carry that particular size. In this way, customers will not be disappointed when they can’t get the dress they want.
Nav-to-Net™ Configurator Benefits
Empowered Customers: When products are presented in an integrated configurator, it puts the customer in the driving seat in terms of making informed choices. As options are specifically chosen as suggestions to the main product, it gives the user confidence that their end product will work well and look good.
Increased Sales: The benefit for companies is the ability to tailor products for consumers so that the client is essentially purchasing a collection of items instead of a single product. It enables cross selling suggestions which complements the main product to create the finished look.
Nav-to-Net™ Configurator adds structure, context, and a new shopping experience to your feature-rich Nav-to-Net™ webshop. The example we outlined in this blog post can be applied to other situations where customers desire creativity but within set guidelines. An integrated rules-based selling wizard like Configurator will satisfy their need to create their ideal end product or package while still relying on your expertise and experience. It also helps to establish the fact that you are a one-stop shop.
If you would like to learn more about Nav-to-Net™ Configurator or our e-Commerce solutions, feel free to talk to us or request a personalized demo!
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We’ve got more blog posts about Configurator. Learn about the benefits and multiple practical applications, including selling products that have constraints like Uniforms.