As technology expands the limits of visual communication, the way products are presented onscreen—and beyond—is becoming more important than ever. For B2B furniture manufacturers, this shift is particularly urgent. From 3D product visualization to augmented reality (AR) and real-time configurators, visual tools are raising the bar on how buyers discover, explore, and customize furniture pieces—and shifting expectations in the process.
These technologies are reshaping how furniture is marketed and sold. They offer a way to close the gap between online research and real-world decision-making—and to stand out in an increasingly crowded, competitive landscape. Leading B2B furniture brands like Haworth, Vitra, and Herman Miller have already integrated advanced visual tools across their platforms, offering 3D product exploration, configurable assets, and immersive AR experiences that not only showcase their collections in detail but also support specifiers and procurement teams with seamless integration into digital workflows. US-based Rowe Furniture recently reported it had more than doubled its B2B online sales since launching 3D product visualization on its web product pages.
High quality visuals have long been key to the furniture profit margin puzzle—boosting sales, accelerating inventory velocity, and engaging stakeholders right across the value chain. As visuals evolve, here are five reasons B2B furniture brands are investing in the most innovative, engaging, and effective formats.
“For any custom upholstery company, your biggest adversary is incomplete orders because there are so many different aspects to get an order correct. The beauty of [3D product visualization] is that it helps eliminate the incomplete order issue that we all suffer from. It’s been a long-term vision to be where we are today.”
- David Shilesky, senior vice president of marketing, Rowe Furniture, via Furniture Today
1. Maximizing buyer understanding is key
Visuals are a foundational component of selling any product, especially in the furniture sector. In today’s commerce landscape, no B2B furniture brand would bring an item to market without images, while 96% of B2B firms already incorporate video in their marketing efforts. This reflects the centrality of visuals in helping both consumer and professional buyers form a clear understanding of what they’re purchasing.
The advent of lifelike digital 3D models and AR enables products to be showcased in greater levels of detail and realism than ever before. In the consumer space, this has already shifted expectations: according to Ipsos, 77% of buyers say they want to use 3D and AR to interact with products before buying. That mindset is now filtering into the B2B sector, spurred by professional buyers who want the same transparency and clarity they experience in their personal lives.
Just as earlier tech developments led brands to adopt high-definition images and videos, 3D and AR tools are the next step—a new baseline in visual quality that improves buying confidence and drives higher conversion rates
2. End customers still influence B2B product decisions
Whether you're targeting distributors, retailers, or specifiers, the end customer is always a critical part of the supply chain. Product visuals inevitably reach these end users—directly or indirectly—making them a crucial factor in the success of your product line.
According to research, 93% of consumers cite visual appearance as the key factor in purchasing decisions. By investing in advanced visuals like 3D configurators and AR tools, B2B furniture manufacturers can ensure their products are presented in the best possible light. These technologies enable:
- Live product personalization
- Try-before-you-buy capabilities
- Consistent, high-quality visual experiences across channels
Together, these features offer a clear competitive advantage, helping brands win trust and grow market share through a superior end-user experience.
3. Product visuals impact every level of the B2B supply chain
Beyond end customers, visual content also influences architects, designers, and other professional specifiers. According to industry studies, 88% of specifiers begin product research online, and 83% go directly to manufacturer websites. This makes the quality of the digital visual experience an essential differentiator, even for a professional audience.
Advanced 3D and AR tools enable manufacturers to:
- Offer configurable product models that professionals can adapt to their project requirements.
- Provide downloadable 3D assets that integrate seamlessly into architectural plans.
- Enhance the efficiency of specification, reducing back-and-forth and speeding up procurement.
Haworth, for example, offers a 3D configurator that allows customers to explore finishes and layouts before ordering. Vitra and Herman Miller provide similar tools that support product visualization and personalization at scale, helping buyers better understand how products will look and fit in real environments and enabling them to customize them to their requirements in real time. These benefits translate into a more streamlined buyer journey—one that’s easier, faster and more aligned with how modern professionals work.
4. Showcase every variant with 3D product configurators
Traditional product marketing strategies can be restrictive. Photoshoots and physical samples are expensive and logistically complex, particularly for manufacturers with large, highly customizable catalogues. Photographing and uploading every product, variant, and configuration option can be impractical or even impossible.
3D configurators address these challenges by allowing brands to:
- Showcase every variant of a product digitally.
- Avoid the cost and time delays of physical photography.
- Deliver interactive, real-time product experiences online and in print via QR codes.
Because materials, finishes and options are rendered digitally, brands can adapt and expand their offering with agility. This helps ensure product pages are kept up to date, while also reducing the risk of displaying out-of-stock items. This represents a cost-effective, scalable, and high-fidelity product visualization strategy, that ensures every piece and variant is shown in its best light.
5. The B2B landscape is changing fast
According to Shopify, the line between B2B and B2C is becoming increasingly blurred, with many furniture companies recognizing the benefits of serving both markets simultaneously. This trend is accelerating competition—not only among traditional B2B brands but also from consumer-facing companies entering the trade space.
“The furniture retail landscape is undergoing a significant transformation across all customer segments. Traditional silos separating B2B and DTC operations are dissolving, paving the way for a more interconnected ecosystem. Home furnishings retailers are recognizing the value in bridging these channels, creating a unified experience that caters to wholesale and individual customers as well as interior designers or consultants, who may serve as intermediaries.”
– Shopify ‘Furnishing the Future’ Report
Led by major brands such as IKEA, Home Depot, and DFS, home-furnishings retail has increasingly incorporated immersive product experiences in recent years. This is due to the impressive results the technology has delivered in terms of boosting conversion rates, improving the customer experience, and reducing returns. With B2B industry leaders following suit, brands in this space need to adapt in order to:
- Meet evolving buyer expectations.
- Future-proof their commercial strategy.
- Expand into new markets more efficiently.
By moving swiftly to integrate the best of these immersive commerce strategies, B2B firms can put in place the strategic infrastructure that is increasingly necessary for long-term success. This enables them to achieve standout and remain competitive as the lines between industry segments increasingly disappear—while also giving them the potential to expand their customer base. That all starts with visuals.
Ready to future-proof your B2B furniture brand? Contact Enhance XR today for a free consultation on implementing high-performance visual solutions.
