You might be surprised to learn that virtual reality is not just good for gamers, but that’s exactly true. There are actually a surprising number of uses for the technology that can enhance business activities in ways that potentially reduce costs while simultaneously boosting revenue and improving the customer experience.

That’s because virtual reality has the power to put staff and customers into virtual environments that can be customised to do just about anything, from training to showing off products and services.

And this isn’t idle conjecture on our part; we know for sure that several huge companies are this very second working on bringing virtual reality into their businesses, for the good of their staff, their customers and, of course, their bottom lines.

Wondering what virtual reality could do for your business? While we can’t answer that directly because we don’t know what you do, exactly, we’ve put together a fun list of ways in which existing business types can benefit from the tech. Hopefully that’ll give you some food for thought.

Training

Imagine being able to take someone through a training programme where they are placed in a realistic but virtual setting that closely resembles the real-world situation they are training for.

That’s exactly what VR allows for. A company called Plextek has been creating training simulations for the British military since the 1980s, specialising in preparing field medics for their dangerous jobs in a safe yet realistic environment. Today, their simulations are more detailed than ever thanks to modern VR.

VR is especially good at training people to drive: people can be taught to use a fork lift, an earth mover and any other industrial vehicle you care to name by showing them the controls and simulating a live environment to develop and test their driving skills.

By placing people in a safe, controlled environment, they can learn as they go without risk to life, limb or property.

Product Demos

Showing off new products can be quite a challenge, but by turning them into 3D objects that exactly mimic the functionality of their real-world counterpart, you can show them off to a much larger audience, far quicker than any live event could.

At car dealerships, VR could be used to show people what specific customisations would look like on the vehicles they’re interested in buying with the touch of a button.

https://youtu.be/x56qKRarFRw

Clothing manufacturers could show off their latest lines through their VR apps, shoe makers could show off all of the possible design variants of their products, all customisable with the press of a button or the swish of a hand holding a VR controller.

Dutch airline KLM is using the tech to give prospective customers the opportunity to tour its Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane with the help of virtual reality, and show off some of the plane’s newest features in the process. People simply fire up the app, strap their Google Cardboard headsets to their faces and boom, they’re right there, in a 1:1 representation of the plane’s insides.

VR means no need to transport people to the actual location, no need to beef up security and, of course, increased product visibility because it can reach more people, far faster than a real-life demo can.

Home tours

VR could revolutionise home and business premises sales with detailed, 360-degree photos that can be explored by prospective buyers at their leisure. Instead of looking at static images of each room, interested buyers could explore those rooms almost as if they were physically standing in them.

And with 360-degree videos, that sense of immersion and “being there” would only deepen, as might the emotional connection to the location and a desire to buy.

Medicine

VR is already enhancing the world of medicine, by allowing surgeons to simulate high-risk surgeries that help to hone their skills and train them on what to expect. What safer way to perfect a risky surgery technique than on a virtual patient?

Or how about VR that can help to train surgeons on what to expect? The range of possibilities is truly enormous.

Travel

Some travel agencies are already using VR to show off the locales they are attempting to sell vacationers on. By strapping on a VR headset and taking a virtual look around, prospective travellers can get a sense of the holiday they’re interested in before committing. Contiki Tours is already doing this.

Construction/Renovations

Instead of firing up The Sims and building your home in the game as you’d like it to look in real life, VR can help you see what your home or business premises would look like with the changes you want already made.

A company in the US is already doing this. McCarthy Building Companies has been using VR since 2012 to show its customers what their 2D plans look like in 3D, which allows those customers to make any changes before a single brick has been laid. It prevents frustration at a potentially disappointing final result, and cuts down on the expense of making changes after the fact.

Up to you

How VR can be applied your business is ultimately up to you. With the right idea and a great development team, you can expect it to take your business in new and exciting directions, from new ways to interact with your customers to new ways to demonstrate what you have to offer. Thanks to VR, not even the sky’s the limit anymore.