By CIOReview | Monday, September 30, 2024

As the industry faces current economic pressures in the coming years, retailers must be ahead of the technology curve. The best retailing technologies are those that limit any barriers to the customer experience, making shopping easier for customers.

Fremont, CA: In today's scenario, retailers and their manufacturing partners are utilizing metaverses and digital twins to enhance their operational efficiencies in several ways.

The term metaverse generally describes the collective virtual shared space made possible by increasing technological advancements in physical and virtual reality. This digital universe enables real-time interaction with computer-generated settings and other users.

A digital twin is an online replica or copy of some real-world entity or system. These could be an object, a process, or even a human being, such as a virtual product on sale in a retail store. Digital twins are formed based on the data from sensors, IoT devices, and others from real-life observation and imitation to track the performance and behavior of their corresponding real-life entities.

There are many opportunities in 2024 for retailers. Digital twins can achieve real-time inventory, production, and distribution visibility in supply chain processes. This could identify bottlenecks within the supply chains and optimize the logistics system to reduce lead times.

The metaverse can expedite the design and development process using virtual prototyping and product testing. Faster time-to-market and reduced expenses associated with physical prototypes are some of the reasons that may change everything in the business world.

A modern-day retailer can easily realize the potential of building virtual stores and showrooms in the metaverse, where a customer could virtually navigate and engage with his products. All of these aspects improve the customer experience, thus driving sales online.

Retailers and their manufacturing partners use the metaverse to provide employee training simulations, particularly in complex machinery manufacturing. This improves employees' capabilities and safety. The metaverse also offers opportunities to provide virtual workplaces for dispersed teams, which fosters collaboration and communication among team members.

The metaverse also uses customer interaction data to support marketing teams in personalizing recommendations and marketing strategies, ultimately elevating customer engagement and loyalty.

In addition, through these digital twins, companies can monitor and control manufacturing processes and equipment from a distance. This is particularly beneficial when the actual presence cannot be achieved.