It is not enough to just have an amazing product anymore. Customers are demanding an experience-based connection with brands.
Hence, successful companies are re-evaluating every customer touchpoint to deliver better and personalized experiences.
Your Magento store needs to look beyond the traditional ways to attract and engage customers and offer more personalized experiences to create a loyal customer base.
A Magento product configurator can enable you to deliver great experiences that your customers feel are worth the price of your product. Interactive configurators can entice shoppers to your store and help them make informed purchase decisions.
So how to build a product configurator, and what benefits will your store reap? Here’s a detailed guide to help you begin. We will discuss the following topics:
- What Exactly Does a Product Configurator Do?
- Why are Product Configurators a Huge Deal?
- Deciding the Type of Product Configurator
- Seamless Shopping Experience at the Heart of Magento Configurator
- How to Build a Product Configurator in Magento
What Exactly Does a Product Configurator Do?
First, let’s see what it means to configure. To configure means designing or adapting to form a specific combination of features for a specific purpose. A product is configurable if one can customize or re-arrange it post-production.
In the most basic sense, a configurator allows your users to build a product the way they want. It could be as simple as a consumer changing the color of sleeves on a T-shirt to choosing the interiors of a car.
Going by the technical definition, a product configurator is software that supports the configuration of products based on components. These components include parts, combinable individual products, options, or even services.
A product configurator visualizes the product rules that need user input to finish before the order moves further to the production team.
This means product configuration is an interactive process. Here’s how the process of configuration looks:
A user chooses the features. If one is ordering a watch, the choices will be for the strap, dial, date wheel, etc. After selecting the features, the configuration engine validates that decision, and the user can move on to the next step.
Build a custom product configurator with PrintXpand to improve the overall shopping experience.
Why are Product Configurators a Huge Deal?
This section covers how a Magento product configurator can be beneficial to both customers and your business.
Customers Demand Personalized Experiences
Your customers are seeking products that reflect who they are and the way they live. They no longer want off-the-shelf products but instead, demand personalized products that reflect their style.
So, what makes personalized products so effective?
“The reason is simple,” says Jerad Zoghby, global lead for personalization at Accenture Interactive in Austin, Texas. “Customers like to feel unique. They appreciate a company that recognizes and remembers them and wants to make their experience enjoyable.”
Laura Bright, associate professor at Texas Christian University, has a similar opinion – “Personalized products and experiences make us feel unique in a sea of sameness.”
(The growing importance of delivering personalized experiences)
The keyword here is unique. Customers can put their stamp on a typical mass-produced product. The best example is Dell. It allows consumers to combine off-the-shelf modules to create their ideal personal computers. Tommy Hilfiger is another example enabling the design of a perfect pair of jeans.
The second reason is the need to feel in control. “Consumers don’t want brands to define or dictate their experience,” Accenture Interactive’s Zoghby said. “They want to feel as though they have a level of control and autonomy.”
Instead of predicting what shoppers want and influencing their choice, successful companies empower customers to pick products or services tailored to their needs through product configuration.
Product Configurator Benefits Your Business Enjoys
For both B2B and B2C companies, here are a few product configurator benefits:
1. Shorten Sales Cycle
If you are a business owner selling complex products, you would agree that your sales are time-consuming and challenging. A Magento 2 product configurator can shorten the sales cycle. Engaging your customers and answering their queries reduces back-and-forth communication between customers and your sales team.
Customers no longer have to wait for callbacks or quotations. They get everything in real-time. This way, rapid response to customer needs also reduces their chances of seeking products from other providers.
A shorter sales cycle can help grow revenue and eliminate redundancies and errors in the manual process.
2. Save More
Shoppers demand more personalization, which means businesses have to expand their product offerings to keep up with the demands. Holding too much inventory on hand can create cash-flow problems, and you do not want that. It places financial strain and creates storage problems.
Having a Magento 2 product configurator enables you to respond as per product request. You no longer need to stock a warehouse with your products. Overall, it helps reduce storage, production, and logistics costs.
Below is a glimpse of the PrintXpand product configurator that comes with a variety of configurable options.
See for yourself how a PrintXpand product configurator can completely transform your online store.
3. Reduce Product Returns
Online returns are a major challenge for retailers. While shoppers return only 10% of what they buy in stores, they send back up to 50% of what they buy online.
The reason eCommerce returns are higher than brick and mortar is because of a lack of visualization. When you build a Magento 2 product configurator, you can significantly reduce product returns.
Shoppers can visualize products with the help of either static images, 3D models, zoom-in capabilities, etc. They will be able to inspect specific features and make an informed decision. Moreover, as customers themselves create their products, they are less likely to return. In fact, according to Forbes, brands using configurators reduced their online return rates by 80%.
4. Win Over Millennials
It’s high time that business owners start taking this demographic seriously. Millennials now make more than 54% of their purchases online.
And this set of shoppers no longer prefer mass-produced goods. They look for products and services that reflect their taste. Since they consist of a major part of the online shopping landscape, it becomes crucial for businesses to cater to them.
And they are even willing to pay a premium for personalized products. According to Deloitte, 57% of millennials are willing to pay more for better experiences. With a product configurator, you can allow them to express their individuality and tailor products to their preferences.
If implemented correctly, a Magento 2 product configurator can do wonders for your business. It will not only enhance the shopping experience for your customers but rescue the sales cycle, purchase returns, and improve conversions.
Deciding the Type of Product Configurator
Every business is different, and hence, the purpose of a product configurator differs too. Before you decide to build a Magento 2 product configurator, it is good to define your objectives and target demographics. That will enable you to choose the best solution for your store.
If you want to know how to build a product configurator in Magento, the first thing is to decide on a type. Based on the current landscape of configurators in the market, there are four different types of customizable products.
1. Variation and Options
When it comes to configurable products, this is the least complex category. Most eCommerce stores enable creating variations and options.
Variation is a technical term for a product that a user can customize. For instance, a sweatshirt available in 5 sizes and 10 different colors. The total number of variations is usually less and depends on the eCommerce platform. For instance, Magento recommends not to have more than 50 variations for better site performance.
On the other hand, options refer to the on-demand features that a user can use to add a personal touch to their product. For example, an image on a t-shirt, text on a phone case, etc.
An example of a product configurator for this category is the number one planner brand in the US – Blue Sky. Through their product configurator, shoppers can add images, customize frame style, font, color, and more.
Want to get started with Magento configurator? PrintXpand has everything you need to make it possible.
2. Configurable Products
Configurable products are now becoming more popular on eCommerce websites. A configurable product is not limited to variations. It further includes several components that a shopper can personalize.
For instance, Eoniq is a US-based watch brand. With its product configurator, users can design every component, including strap, hands, crown, case, etc.
3. Made-to-order Products
Made-to-order products like tables and sofas are a subcategory of bespoke products – manufactured after a buyer places an order. So, if you are into selling such products, the make-to-order configurator is for you.
Shopping for a sofa is just like shopping for a car. For customers, the model they choose matters a lot. But shopping for furniture online is risky. Shoppers are unsure about the fabric of the sofa or how it would look in reality. With a product configurator, you can enable customers to configure a tailor-made solution.
For business owners, having a configurator makes the sales process easier. Without a configurator, different variants of made to order furniture can result in a challenging shopping experience owing to back and forth calls with a sales representative.
4. Assemble-to-order Products
Assemble-to-order is basically a combination of standard components assembled or configured to a customer’s specification. This includes server cabinets, computers, and automobiles. Here, the component part remains the same, but users can create a new product using a configurator.
An example is the Dell computer. With Dell’s online configurator, customers can get exactly the computer they want instead of choosing from pre-built frameworks.
How to Successfully Implement Magento Configurator on Your Store
The key to successfully implementing Magento configurator is providing a flawless shopping experience. Right from the user hitting the ‘create my product’ button to selecting various options, you need to ensure that the entire process is seamless.
You want your shoppers to get the product exactly the way they want without any disruptions. Hence, the interface should be intuitive and straightforward. It’s a good idea to display the configuration option on your homepage for visitors to try. You would also want to provide enough design space to buyers to add or change features easily. Here are some best practices:
1. Simple Process of Configuring
One of the best ways to successfully implement a Magento configurator is to help your customers simplify the configuring process.
Especially when you are offering complex products like a car or bicycle, you would want your customers to understand better what they are doing with the Magento configurator. A simplified process will offer more clarity and ease decision-making.
Bespoke Cycling is a well-known brand that enables bike enthusiasts to build their cycles in real-time. Creating a best bike for triathlon starts with selecting different components like framesets, wheels, tires, etc.
(Bespoke Cycling’s simplified configuration process – Image Source)
There are in total eight steps, and each step has options of color, shape, etc. As you move further with each step, the price gets updated. This helps the shopper to keep an eye on what they are spending. It’s a good thing to have one step at a time along with an option to reset or enquire now.
2. High-Quality Product Visuals
During offline shopping, the first thing a buyer does is look at a product from all angles. Using high-quality visuals like zoom capabilities or a 3D view, you can bridge the online and offline shopping experience gap. Moreover, visual content is the best way to improve engagement and help users make informed decisions.
Choiss does a good job at enabling a 360-degree view. Choiss is an outerwear brand giving you complete freedom to make jackets that perfectly fit your size.
(Choiss 360 Degree View)
3. Allow Users to Save Configuration
The ‘Save your design’ feature works just like a Wishlist on your store. If a buyer can not commit to a purchase at that moment, this feature creates an opportunity to save their configurations for the future.
By creating such a feature to allow users to pick up from where they left, you create a better customer experience and serve as a reminder to continue shopping. You can later send personalized emails reminding a buyer about their configuration.
Pukka Hat is a brand designing and delivering truly custom headwear at the lowest minimums in the industry. Their hat configurator supports the save option giving buyers a second chance if they are not willing to order yet.
(Pukka Hat Brand Enabling Customers to Get Back to Their Configuration by Saving Designs – Image Source)
4. Detailed Information to Ease the Buying Process
Not every shopper landing on your website will have the same amount of knowledge about your product or how the Magento product configurator works. Hence, it is important to provide information during the process.
For instance, Tesla provides detailed information in its design model. After you choose a car model, the configurator gives details on the car performance. This includes range, acceleration, speed etc.
(Tesla’s Product Configurator With Detailed Information)
Further, when you click on the interior design, it shows a pop-up giving useful details. While you are customizing your car, the configurator shares details about sub-total, available inventory, and estimated delivery.
Enhance your brand’s experience by offering product configuration in your store.
How to Build a Product Configurator in Magento
At PrintXpand, we build configurators that make it easier for any Magento store owner to integrate. We have a team of seasoned experts with extensive industry knowledge and technological expertise to build a configurator system customized as per your business logic. Here’s how you can quickly implement the Magento product configurator.
- Decide on the products that you want your customers to configure. It could be anything – apparel, home accessories, electronics, gifts, toys, and more because our configurator works with all.
- You need not worry about setting up the products. Our team will develop 3D models that your customers can see different attributes of the product, including size, texture, color, etc. Shoppers can interact with the product to see every detail using the zoom in and out capabilities.
- Next, we help you upload these products to your storefront in industry-standard file format. At every stage, we assist you thoroughly so that your store is ready with a great 3D configurator.
Leverage the power of an interactive configurator and improve the shopping experience on your Magento store.
PrintXpand Product Configurator in Magento
PrintXpand is a reliable tech partner that you need to get started with Product Configurator in Magento. We can recommend ready 3D libraries that you can use to get started with product configuration.
Our team takes the entire technical load like building 3D models on your behalf. Our product configurator gives the flexibility and affordability that every business needs. And you get expert guidance and support at every stage, from onboarding to maintenance or problem-solving.
PrintXpand has more than a decade of experience in the industry. We have helped businesses across all verticals to level up their online store with our product configurators and product design tool. Our team is ready to make your Magento store more enticing.
Let’s get in touch to see how we can help you build a product configurator for your store.
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