Learning how customers feel about your store, your products and your brand is the universal goal of shopper research. What varies are the many different channels that insights teams can take to get there.
Traditional methods including surveys, focus groups, purchase intent data, historical data and mock in-store shopping trips are all valid methods that can give teams a better sense of their shoppers. But they often can’t tell the whole story, or the right story. That’s where virtual simulations can come in to create a unique solution for some of the common headaches of shopper research.
When it comes to surveys and focus groups, there are limitations like unreliable memory recall or a disconnect between what people say they’ll do and what they actually do. Historical data is just that — it’s in the past, and is not a great predictor of the future. In-person mock shopping exercises are a more accurate way to understand how shoppers react to new concepts — but they come with a huge price tag and a long timeline.
Virtual solves for these issues. With 3D simulations, you can observe shoppers in specific conditions and scenarios in the context of a real store.
Download our free guide to Best Practices in Virtual Research to learn more about the key reasons why leveraging virtual is a unique, game-changing solution for retail planning.
