The virtual showroom is a new way of showing and selling products and services to buyers and businesses, and while it comes from the world of B2C fashion, it’s promising to revolutionise B2B too. This is according to digital eCommerce solutions specialist, Kooomo, which has employed this modern technology to overcome the limitations of Coronavirus - which continues to impose itself on retail sales both on and offline.

Recent sector research illustrates how a coordinated image between B2C, B2B, and in-store experience improves the sales performance of a brand. "When we talk about the virtual showroom, we don't mean the virtual copy of physical stores, but a technological interface that is now necessary for those who want to enhance the sales capacity of their buyer network," says Ciaran Bollard, CEO at Kooomo. " The virtual showrooms improve the "traditional B2B sales experience thanks to the tools provided by digital transformation.

“The Kooomo platform runs on the very latest in eCommerce technology, which makes it possible to develop virtual showrooms which can be integrated into our customers’ websites - we already integrate with numerous technological partners who cater to the need of our customers," says Bollard. "When creating the virtual showroom, we can install features that allow you to manage multiple sales paths at the same time by following the specific needs of each one thanks to customer clustering processes.”

It also supports assistance, by phone, virtual or by chatbot during the entire purchase process and can create marketing actions aimed at a specific target or a specific country.

Bollard adds, “one of the characteristics most sought after by SMEs that need to improve their performance is a simplification, especially from the point of view of technological management. For example, thanks to a single back-end, Kooomo allows brands and companies to manage up to three front-ends simultaneously: that of B2B, B2C and virtual showrooms.

"The buyer and the customer can connect to the virtual showroom via video call and thus view the collection, utilising the assisted sale and completing the order. High definition, 3D images, augmented reality, and virtual reality environments are all now accessible thanks to specific technological partners. Each product page is optimised to ensure a unique and customised experience for each customer," says Bollard. The platform can support open price lists and can apply different discounts for user groups and product groups, even multiple for B2B, to facilitate restocking and replacement of the goods.

"The challenge today for those who work in the field of eCommerce is to manage B2B with the same care as B2C, ensuring the same attention to usability for both companies and buyers," concludes Bollard.