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Immersive technology such as Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) have attracted much attention and have been widely adopted in various sectors, including the marketplace. While AR superimposes digital content over the real world to improve the user's reality experience, VR refers to a computer-generated simulation of a three-dimensional environment that can be explored and interacted with. Immersive technology revolutionizes how consumers purchase, engage with products, and experience online retail environments in the marketplace context (dos Santos & Osório).
E-commerce has rapidly grown, but online shopping still lacks key elements of physical retail experiences. AR and VR are immersive technologies that can enhance e-commerce by providing more realistic product interactions and personalized experiences. For example, AR allows customers to visualize furniture in their homes or try on digital clothing (G. Singh, Malhotra, & Sharma, 2022). VR creates simulated retail environments for browsing and social interactions (S. Singh, Kumar, & Rao, 2022). Integrating these technologies into e-commerce can increase engagement, satisfaction, and sales (Deveci, Pamucar, Gokasar, Köppen, & Gupta, 2022). However, there are still challenges around technical capabilities, user acceptance, and integration with existing platforms. This paper analyzes recent research on AR and VR in e-commerce to highlight developments, benefits, and limitations.
It is impossible to overestimate the importance of VR and AR in online commerce. These technologies can completely transform online purchases by bridging the gap between the physical and digital worlds through immersive, interactive experiences (Roca, Hernández, Sancho, García, & Alesanco, 2020). Customers can virtually try on clothes, see furnishings in their homes, test makeup, browse virtual businesses, and more with VR and AR Retailers can exhibit their items more engaging and individualized with the help of VR and AR, enhancing customer engagement, conversion rates, and satisfaction (Uhm, Kim, Do, & Lee, 2022).
As established shops and startups experiment with these technologies to improve their online presence and acquire a competitive edge, the adoption of immersive technology in the marketplace is picking up speed. To successfully integrate immersive technology in the marketplace, several factors must be carefully considered, including customer behaviour, user experience, technological issues, and commercial ramifications (Kshetri, 2018b). To fully use VR and AR in the marketplace and maintain an edge in the rapidly changing digital market, businesses must understand these requirements.
The current state of AR and VR technologies in the marketplace and commerce is rapidly changing as more companies adopt and integrate them (Scarle et al., 2012). Many well-known merchants and marketplace platforms are integrating VR and AR into their online shopping experiences to give customers more immersive and interactive ways to explore and interact with products. For instance, fashion businesses use VR and AR to enable virtual clothing try-on, furniture retailers let customers see how furniture might look in their homes, and beauty brands provide virtual makeup trials (Lee, 2020). New and established companies also use VR and AR to upend conventional marketplace business models and provide consumers with inventive and distinctive buying experiences. The increasing affordability of immersive technologies, technological breakthroughs, and shifting customer expectations toward more immersive and engaging online experiences drive the expanding acceptance of VR and AR in the marketplace (Kamoonpuri & Sengar, 2023). As a result, VR and AR are changing how customers shop online and the marketplace landscape, which presents new opportunities and problems for businesses in the digital age.
AR and VR applications can enhance e-commerce in areas like: