Weeding out Bad Apples with Virtual Reality Technology
- Andrea
- Feb 9, 2020
- 2 min read
Recently, I began using a mobile app to order groceries. I’ve used both the Food Lion to Go app and the Walmart Grocery app to place an order, pay online, and pick up at the store. It’s been very convenient and saved me a surprising amount of time. I've been happy with the service, that is until I ordered produce through the app.
Choosing produce, like strawberries and apples, is a skill that requires the engagement of multiple senses: seeing, smelling, and feeling. So how can companies like Walmart or Instacart train for this skill? I propose the use of new virtual reality headsets with smell technology. FeelReal and VAQSO are developing devices that combine the immersiveness of virtual reality with multi-sensory stimulation, specifically smell.
Picture a first day employee at Publix, a young high school student working part time. Ten years ago her new job would have consisted of running a register and bagging groceries, but now she may be expected to pick products for mobile orders. Like many typical high school age employees, it is unlikely she will have experience selecting fresh produce.
Now image a day-one training program that uses multi-sensory virtual reality masks to train this employee what to look for in color, appearance, size and smell when selecting produce. This multi-sensory VR-based training experience provides visual examples that she can view and smell. This is a more engaging approach to training for these skills and is also more easily scalable to the masses once developed.
What else could be on the horizon? Touch technologies are now being developed and incorporated into VR. Researchers at Northwestern University have created haptic skin devices that mimic the sense of touch. This technology combined with virtual reality is being tested in clinical medicine for things like treating stroke patients and amputees, plus there’s potential uses in gaming and entertainment. As the haptic skin technology becomes more affordable and accessible, employee training is also a potential application. Imagine that new Publix employee learning how to weed out an overripe soft apple from the good ones through a VR-based training with touch and smell technology.
Groceries are one of the key sectors driving mobile ecommerce spend (mCommerce) and it is expected to account for over half of total retail ecommerce spend by 2021 (up from 34.5% in 2017). As mobile grocery shopping services become more commonplace, the battle for the consumer will get more and more competitive. Those who provide the best service, consumer experience, and products will inevitably win out. Having skilled employees to pick shopping orders plays a key role in ensuring consumers are happy with what they get and come back for more. Employing a creative, tech-enabled, and scalable approach to employee training like what I’ve described here, will enable a superior consumer experience that increases both consumer satisfaction and sales.
Comments