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Photo: "Various water heaters to be purchased by virtual consultation in the future." / Photo credit & Source: © Rheem Manufacturing Company
[Press release]
Virtual consulting at the POS in Chile
Advice is now virtual by using artificial intelligence in Chilean hardware stores.
Rheem, the world's largest manufacturer of water heaters and air conditioning systems, is launching a pilot project in Chile with the German company Sensape to digitize advice on the right water heater at retail. The advice is to be given without staff via an installation with a large, interactive display on the shelf at 10 hardware stores.
Anyone who wants to buy a new water heater is initially overwhelmed by the wide range of products on offer. In addition, there is uncertainty about the size and strength of the product required. In order to improve and digitize the consultation process, the manufacturer Rheem is launching a pilot project in 10 Chilean hardware stores with interactive screens from the German company Sensape, which develops interactive solutions with augmented reality and artificial intelligence.
A built-in artificial intelligence recognizes customers in front of the screen via camera and starts a virtual advising program. The program will now find out which product best suits the customer's needs. When customers stand in front of the shelf with the screen, they see themselves on the display. To increase curiosity and attention, the customers are decorated with funny bubbles above their heads on the display. The so-called virtual advisor then asks yes/no questions that customers can answer via gesture control. Based on the answers, the Artificial Intelligence crosses in the results and then recommends a suitable product. If desired, a real specialized advisor is added via video and the purchase can be completed directly. "With the virtual advisor, we want to innovatively complement and digitize the sales process. The unique aspect is that our artificial intelligence is simply hidden and completely integrated in the shelf. Together with our partner Pled in Chile, we provide the devices directly on site in Chile.", says Michael Lehnert of Sensape.
