Online Off-the-Rack: Zugara's Social Shopper App

I'm a big fan of online shopping. You can find anything at anytime. And more than likely, that thing is a bargain. The Internet is great for snagging books, cute tops or collector's items you're too embarrassed to purchase in person. But other items are risky business. Like jeans. Jeans are something I like to try on before buying. Only now with Zugara's Social Shopper, you can turn any room into a virtual dressing room!

I am truly wowed by this technology! Positively floored. Yet before I get too excited about it's retail marketing potential, I wonder does it really make sense? Maybe if you're a Colorform. Only real people have varied bulges and curves (or lack thereof). That's why people try clothing on: to determine how styles and cuts best fit their unique body. Zugara's Social Shopper doesn't live up to this reality.

What exactly is this person evaluating via her monitor? Does this denim wash work with my hair, my eyes? Do you really need augmented, utilitarian technology to formulate this? Speaking of augmented, does the virtual hourglass figure come with he tee shirt?

I think before making a serious investment into your website or shopping cart, you need to be sure that the "utility" bit is actually there. So that the experience you're creating is an experience worth having. Does it fit with basic human behavior? 

Comments

[Jack]

Thanks for taking the time to write about our application. There are two things I’d like to point out in response to your post:

· We aren’t trying to replicate that moment when you walk out of a dressing room, but rather that moment when you find an article of clothing on a rack and you hold it up to yourself. It’s that moment of turning to a friend (or the mirror) and saying something to the effect of: “What do you think?” With our application, you can then connect to Facebook and ask your friends for their thoughts, just like you would offline.
· This is a prototype. It works, and is fully functional, but we aren’t a retailer so our assets (ie the clothes we used) were limited. As we work with partners to integrate this application within their sites, we will include options that allow for more “personalized” sizing based on that specific retailer, and we will be able to create assets that are more textured and “real looking”.

Our main goal for the video was to showcase what is possible today, and to “connect the dots” for the traditional business executive who may not live and breath this tech like we do over here. Well, that was our goal anyways.

Thanks again, and should you be interested you can find more information about the application (including a video) and our thinking here: http://weareorganizedchaos.com/index.php/2009/06/23/zugara-launches-online-shopping-app-utilizing-augmented-reality-and-motion-capture/