Manufacturers of complicated and customizable products are under increasing pressure from the buyers to keep delivering a number of personalized options than ever before. Industry 4.0 technologies are gradually making their way to make mass customization an economically viable activity.
But here's the problem: when you have thousands, even hundreds of thousands options in parts and products, each with their own set of assembly and pricing rules, how can sales reps be expected to perfectly come up with optimized configurations for every individual customer, every single time?
If two sales reps somehow manage to perfect the knowledge that’s required to perform the above task efficiently, then you have got a big risk on your hands. Then there’s also the topic of new hires as well. How long will it take for them to achieve trusted advisor status when mistakes have become so costly, and the overall customer loyalty is at an all-time low?
For the manufacturers of engineer-to-order products, implementing the right technology results in quick and very easy configuration. And the right technology is a 3D configurator. Shorter sales cycles, better conversion rates, and enhanced win rates can be achieved while creating a superlative customer value.
3D Configurator- What Is It?
A 3D configurator is a piece of software that’s used to build products virtually by selecting options within a highly interactive 3D interface. Users can then drag and drop to modify a 3D image with these changes dynamically appearing on-screen.
Users can move their things around, change the components, their dimensions and also upgrade the parts - it's a highly intuitive process where the configuration possibilities are endless. All this while, the rules engine incorporated into the backend ensures that every configured product is perfectly optimized from both- a commercial as well as an engineering perspective.
A basic 3D configurator software displays products from a limited number of fixed viewing positions. Better and more advanced solutions let the users spin their products around, zoom in and zoom out, and then inspect them from each and every angle. The most technologically advanced 3D configurators of all also incorporate the VR and AR technology, that allows users to have a direct interaction with their customized products inside many hyper-realistic simulations.
Assimilating information visually is 60,000 times quicker than text.
The better the visuals, the more engaged are your buyers, and also the more monetary value they will be assigning to your products. KBMax's 3D product configurator software has been proven to increase the average deal size by 105%.
Spending thousands of dollars on a product you have never even witnessed is outright crazy. What if the finished article does not match the image you had in your mind? What if you forgot to specify crucial details that your product won't work after all? Buyers are already working under a lot of stress, so why add to this pressure? 3D configurators reduce their pre-purchase anxiety, build the trust, and bring in better decision-making.
The most lifelike 3D configurators, especially with the VR and AR elements provide a highly interactive buying experience that establishes a bond between the buyers to their brands on a more emotional level. It's a valuable differentiator in crowded, competitive markets. This creates the right impression for buyers who are shopping around.
Digital self-service will dominate the manufacture-to-order model in the near future.
For years now, buyers have shown a strong preference for self-serve over relationship selling, but COVID-19 has brought about a huge change in the trend. According to a recent survey, in an ideal post-COVID scenario, just 20-30% of B2B decision-makers ever want to interact with these reps in person ever again, which is just insane.
Self-serve is seen as particularly critical for the Millennials - the largest generation in the entire US labor force. 70% of Millennials define their own needs independently by their laptops, tablets, or phones before even engaging with a sales rep if a need for the same arises.
Sales reps, over the years, have used visual product configurators as a gated tool. But these 3D configurators creating the most value can be easily embedded into customer-facing, B2B eCommerce websites. Buyers can then access and operate them pretty independently, through any device, wherever they are located all over the world.
3D configurators bring sales to just fractions of industrial averages.
Quick and very easy to use, 3D configurators reduce the effort involved in the sales process. Buyers can then assemble very complicated products within minutes with product rules, eliminating any miscommunication, human error, and suboptimal configurations. This means less hassle with the customer and much fewer amends.
3D configurators often get rolled up into a CPQ (configure, price, quote) solution that cuts the length of time required in the generation of a proposal down from several weeks to less than a minute. The software also calculates the prices and then generates quotes, once a configuration has been finalized.
KBMax takes the "Q" in CPQ to new levels with its cutting-edge design automation capabilities. In addition to the quotes, KBMax users can generate technical documents like CAD drawings, BOMs, and even CNC cut sheets. These can be automatically enhanced to proposals or instantly dispatched to engineering or the shop floor.
Manufacturers create loads of new products without working machinery.
Buyers want to actually see the products before making a purchase, which is pretty obvious. Traditionally, manufacturers that sell a limited range of standardized products can leverage visual samples or product photography. But as companies scale and start offering a number of customised options, photography is not only cost-prohibitive but literally impossible.
As mass customization has developed into a more dominant market strategy, product rendering costs have significantly dropped while the quality has massively improved.
Many companies now find that mixing product renderings with 3D configurators provides a much better customer experience, leading to better deals. Manufacturers can then create unlimited number of product options without even having to physically manufacture the products. This brings in huge savings.
Choose an open source 3D product configurator For Your Business
The argument to include a free open source product configurator is a highly influential one. Open-source software is mostly inexpensive (although the cost of add-ons and custom programming isn't); it is highly flexible as you can get access to the code without the risk of predatory lock-in. Users of LibreOffice, GIMP, and Blender know perfectly how good open-source software can be. For now though, there's simply no serious open-source 3D product configurator in the market.
While there may be no 3D product configurator open source, manufacturers will get several excellent SaaS options providing an almost instant access to highly powerful tools. Unlike the traditional solutions on the premises, the SaaS cost structures are not front-loaded, giving users the freedom to switch over to a competitor solution if they are left unsatisfied.
So, which 3D product configurator is the best? The reality is: it actually differs on a case-by-case basis. KBMax's 3D product configurator has been specifically designed for B2B manufacturers. It proves amazing in defining the utility of its Snap rules engine for all non-technical operators and its CAD and design automation functionality. But there's no substitute for a physical demo. So if you are of the opinion that KBMax might be right for you and your business, then do reach out to us without hesitation. We will definitely love to show you its working.