MSI’s multi-surface visualizer allows users to envision updates to their floors, walls or countertops all at once.

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The ability to actually see what a product looks like in the consumers’ home can instill confidence in the buyer, helping them decide and encouraging them to trust the dealer with their purchase.

“Visualizers can help the consumer see the end result, instead of all being overwhelmed by the plethora of samples in the store, to help them focus on what their new floor will look like in their home,” offered Lori Keith, vice president, residential marketing, Mannington. “A picture says a thousand words, a picture of your room with your new floor is almost priceless.”

Frank F. Chiera, senior vice president — marketing and advertising for CCA Global Partners, said visualizers allow the consumer to “try the room on” before making their final choice. “Visualizers help to accelerate the sales process cutting down the time it takes to make the final decision. According to our research, tools like room visualizers help increase customer confidence that the retailer is an expert and moreover cuts the decision and time to buy substantially.”

Pawel Rajszel, CEO of Leap Tools, maker of the Roomvo room visualizer, shared, “Incorporating a visualizer into the sales cycle shifts the conversation away from price and towards the value that a retailer brings to the table. By instilling confidence and adding more value to the consumer, visualizers shorten the sales cycle and give RSAs an opportunity to push higher margin items that consumers may not have initially considered.”

Todd Skidmore, senior director of eCommerce for Mohawk, explained that visualizers take any fear out of the shopping process as consumers are given a solid, realistic visual to make a decision from rather than relying on a swatch or using their imagination. “With things like wood and laminate type products, you have variation and you want to be able to see that across the floor, versus a six by six inch sample. That’s a critical point,” he told FCW. “There are significantly higher engagement rates with sites that have visualizer tools. Consumers will spend more time shopping for products they can visualize versus those that they can’t.”

Offered Jenne Ross, director of marketing, Karndean Designflooring, the use of visualizers can “show layout design possibilities beyond the sample board by using a photo of the homeowner’s space, allowing the RSA to sell a job with higher margin.”

Tools of the Trade

Suppliers and tech companies alike have invested in creating their own visualizers with unique features and abilities. For example, Teresa Tran, vice president of Shaw Floors retail channel, spoke to Shaw’s Floorvana+ tool. “Seeing is believing, and with Floorvana+ at their fingertips, RSA’s can take customer inspiration to the next level.”

Stanton’s visualizer envisions hard surface, soft surface and stair runners, which means users can view LVT installations with area rugs on top. “We know that research proves that a hard surface purchase is usually followed by a rug purchase to soften the space, so it was very important for Stanton to be able to showcase that solution on our visualization tool,” said Christine Zampaglione, senior director of marketing, Stanton.

Mike Sanderson, Engineered Floors’ vice president of marketing, pointed to the company’s room visualizer called EF-Eye to see what a variety of EF products would look like in the consumer’s own home. Available on the company’s website, “This technology is also available as an enhancement for any retail or builder partner’s website,” Sanderson shared.