5 Ways a Product Configurator Helps You Get to Market Faster

Product managers brainstorming through a product configurator

If you have an eCommerce store that could benefit from the use of a product configurator (and most of them could), you should also know that this capability also helps your company adopt a more innovative product development posture. 

Put more simply: it helps you build better products faster.

Read on to find out five ways in which 3D product configuration can help your company move with more speed when it comes to reliably developing and launching new products.

1. You can use it yourself to test the product configurations of complex products

When you're developing a new product, there's nothing quite like having the right brainstorming tools at your disposal. 

Some older methods for brainstorming still work fine (a pencil and paper can be dangerous tools in the right hands). But a product configurator is an example of leaning into modern technology to embrace creativity. 

Think of how your company's current brainstorming process works now. Perhaps you use a whiteboard (either a real one in a conference room or a virtual one over Zoom).

Why use a whiteboard? It's so you can capture ideas — words, drawings and pictures are all on the table when the team is sitting down to co-create.

A product configurator can also play a part in your team's group strategy sessions.

Let's say a team member of yours comes up with a new idea for a product feature or customization. Rather than draw a picture to help the team envision it, you can use the online product configurator to see how it would look. This helps you better understand what your customers might need.

It's a powerful visual tool for your customers. But don't discount the impact it can also have on your team's collaboration. 

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2. It shortens the product incubation period

Having access to a product configurator for your business allows you to rethink your workflows. When you have access to a versatile tool that provides you with virtual reality and augmented reality capabilities, it enhances your ability to visualize your end product.

Once you've tinkered with multiple ideas, having access to the product configurator shortens the time it takes to get from concept to creation. The configuration process helps you get from idea to product without costly R&D and physical production costs getting in the way.

Being able to gather your team in front of your product configurator to bring their ideas to life is a valuable asset in your product development. It can either give you more ideas for your own product or suggestions you can make to your customers for the customized creations they can make in your online shops.

3. It leads to a faster checkout

Satisfied customer completing a sale through a product configurator quickly

Your customers don't care about the technology that goes into your sales experience. Things like 3D models and configuration rules are of no interest to them. They just want to understand what benefits they personally derive from those tools.

Picture the traditional sales process:

A salesperson may call up your prospect, extol the benefits of a product and create a compelling argument as to why they should buy from you. It's on that person to talk about the potential customization, which would then be relayed to a member of your production team.

The whole timeline is complicated and laborious.

With 3D product configuration, you use automation to turn the customer into their own product developer. No one understands the customer's unique needs and wants more than them; this is why they should be in the driver's seat when it comes to building custom products.

The product configurator's functionality does just that for them. Rather than wait on your customers to connect with your sales staff, you'll shorten the amount of time it takes them to move from initial interest to purchase.

This shortens the sales funnel, which also gives you more time to focus on developing new products and moving on to launching those next.

4. Your product configurator does your market research for you

kashiyama-ringOnce you've launched a product, 3D product configuration provides you with valuable insight into what your customers want in terms of features.

After you have this valuable data, you can better understand what type of value your product line is providing.

You can emphasize the features and capabilities the majority of your customers are taking advantage of. If there's a customization you offer that isn't as popular, you can deprioritize it.

 

This is the most valuable customer research information you can gather. While your target market is testing out different features within your product configurator, you can record what's working and what isn't.

Monitoring the features your customers value most is what leads to innovation in developing future products. It allows you to understand exactly where your business's strengths lie in terms of a value proposition to your customers.

5. It creates a more desirable customer experience, leading to more purchases

Alinea-600px-compressedEvery business, whether it uses eCommerce or traditional methods, has customer satisfaction as one of its goals. Prioritizing this is how you build customer loyalty.

Your 3D product configurator helps shorten your sales process by giving customers a preview of what their finished product will look like. 

They don't have to wait to order or do additional research online. They get a stunning, photorealistic image right there on your website.

By adopting such a customer-friendly format, you can increase your overall sales. More sales lead to higher profits, which represents capital you can then put back into the business.

Giving your customer multiple product options gives you a leg up on your competition, which can lead to more revenue generation. When you're flush with cash, it's much easier to build your company faster by purchasing more product materials from distributors or investing more into promotion.

Product configurator software isn’t just another add-on your sales team can brag about when promoting your custom products. It leads to more outputs for customers, which increases your overall bottom line.

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3D product configuration isn't just useful for your customers. It's also useful to your business. It can help you rethink where it provides value and how it can improve the products it currently offers. 

That's why it makes sense for you to implement it in your online store, as well as in your business's co-creation and collaboration processes.

To help do that, turn to Threekit. We can help you tap into the power of 3D product configuration to supercharge your business while also keeping your current customers and adding new ones. For more on how we can assist, contact us today.