As the COVID-19 pandemic stimulated companies to move to a virtual space more efficiently, eCommerce became the main channel through which companies can sell and communicate with their customers. Alongside a remarkable rise in eCommerce, the competition among online retailers has gotten even fiercer, making companies look for new ways to distinguish themselves and use creative marketing techniques, such as 3D advertising.
3D advertising brings marketing to the next, more interactive level. It offers users the ability to interact with products through e-advertising by allowing companies to showcase their products from any angle. Customers can interact with the 3D product by dragging and orienting it, which creates a more interactive product experience than traditional advertising could. 3D ads have been recognized and implemented by global companies such as Purina ONE, Nissan, and Belvedere.
3D technology is full of potential and can help your business grow in many ways with the customer shopping experience and boosting sales. So, without beating around the bush, we present the top 6 benefits that 3D advertising can bring to your business:
3D ads can help you reach up to 8 times higher engagement than 2D ads. More interactivity, which 3D ads provide, is something that entices consumers. By zooming in, out, rotating, and configuring the product, users can enjoy a detailed look at the 3D model from any direction or angle. One of the best-known automotive companies– Nissan– has created a 3D ad to showcase their cars' newest features. Since the 3D model introduction, they saw their engagement rate increase 8 times. Hence, 3D ads are the key to enhancing digital ad performance and distinguishing your products from the competition.
3D advertising drives a higher return on ad spend (ROAS - a metric that measures the revenue you make for each advertising dollar spend). The higher the ROAS, the greater the revenue, which shows an increase in sales. Adidas – a well-known sportswear brand, has implemented a 3D solution for their Adidas Colombia campaign. The 3D creatives caused ROAS to skyrocket and reach ~2.8 returns. 3D ads are an excellent solution for those actively looking at how to increase returns. According to Statista, by 2025, the annual revenue from 3D ads and images is expected to increase by 3 times.
3D ads can help to increase customers' purchase intent. Measuring the firm's performance is an essential procedure of every successful business. One of the core KPI's for every retailer is the intent to purchase. 3D creatives have proved to increase this metric. Premium vodka company, Belvedere, has felt a significant impact generated by the 3D ad campaign. Their decision to take the business a step further has resulted in 4.9x higher purchase intent, above the usual category norms. The increased purchase intent not only helped Belvedere to increase sales but also strengthen their premium brand image. The latter example proves that 3D ads are a helpful tool to increase revenue and product recognition.
3D adverts can increase traffic to your website and improve the conversion rate. 3D ads can increase performance metrics such as CTR, engagement, conversions, and site time. Did you know that 3D ads have been shown to deliver a 44% increase in cart additions and a 27% increase in orders for users who interacted with a 3D viewer? This is because they are highly appealing for the consumer – the more interactive elements that exist, the better the chance the ad has of fostering interest and engagement.
3D advertising has a significant effect on reducing consumer's perception of risk. 3D advertising has emerged as a form of rich advertising to enable consumers to inspect products online as much as possible in a retail store, resulting in lower risk perception. Marketing professors Charles Dennis and Raed Algharabat point out that the superiority of 3D elements could be attributed to the 3D authenticity, "a psychological state in which 3D virtual objects are perceived as actual objects in a sensory way".
3D ads are proven to stand out in customers' eyes from the thousands of advertisements seen every day. 3D ads can be of great help and assist in capturing consumers early in the funnel. While the latter visualization technique is entertaining for the potential purchasers, it also builds trust and long-term relationships with the clients. Besides, 3D ads can also help you fight off the competition. Getting ahead of the rivals and applying innovative online visuals can help you increase your market share in 2021.
Although technologies such as 3D visualizations and Augmented Reality were already gaining popularity throughout 2019, the biggest explosion happened due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Stores' closures have encouraged retailers to count on eCommerce and the tools that provide a similar in-store product experience. As consumers want to touch, feel, and even view the products against specific outfits, or alongside furniture items, understand the product's actual size and materials, the power of 3D adverts escalated to a new level because of the pandemic.
To conclude, it's fair to say 3D adverts bring huge value to eCommerce from both the company and customer viewpoint. 3D ads are interactive, engaging, and can help businesses reach their goals by boosting the conversion rate, traffic to the website and increasing the return on ad spend. Since Google introduced Swirl – an interactive digital ad format powered by 3D technology, display advertising has reached new heights. CGTrader is thrilled to be one of Google's trusted 3D partners, hand-selected and approved to develop for Swirl ads to bring such value to eCommerce businesses.
Lara Oliveira is a Content Manager at Modelry. With over a decade of experience writing across corporates and startups, she is now focused on helping companies innovate with 3D and AR technology. Reach out to her at pr@cgtrader.com to talk about possible content collaborations!
