How to Make a VR App that Will Contribute to Your Business?

Let’s see more VR applications in different spheres.

Healthcare

Surgeons use VR solutions before performing an operation to walk through the organs or view 3D models of challenging surgical cases. What is more, such 3D organ models can serve illustrative purposes in the learning process or explain to patients the whole surgery process. According to a Harvard Business Review study, surgeons that trained with VR solutions had a 230% boost in their performance in comparison to their traditionally trained colleagues.

Education

Multiple VR applications are developed to enhance the learning process and make it more interactive. For instance, Titans of Space presents users with a short guided tour of our planets and stars in virtual reality with perfect visual effects and music. In the app, planets are reduced to one-millionth of the actual size to make it easy to compare sizes while listening to the optional tour guide.

Retail

Almost every big and renowned retailer now leverages VR & AR technologies to improve the online shopping experience and increase revenue. With the help of technologies, retailers allow their customers to digitally project furniture into their homes, try on shoes, clothes, glasses, make-up, and more. IKEA has developed The Place App that allows users to place furniture items in their homes so they can visualize  exactly how it will look in their settings. In physical Nike stores, customers can scan clothes or shoes to view information about them or set off on a VR trip to discover the Nike supply chain.

One who considers creating a VR app for their business might think that it requires loads of money, an enormous development team, extreme skill, and a great amount of time. So what of the abovementioned is truths and what’s a myth?

Things You Need To Create a VR App For Business

For flawless and inexpensive development of a VR application, you will need the following tools:

1. The VR SDK. The VR SDK contains a set of software tools and programs used for specific platforms. The choice of it will determine the hardware your users will need, so it’s important to carefully research the options. Some of the most popular SDKs for VR development are OpenVR SDK, StreamVR SDK, and VRTK for HTC Vive; PSVR Dev Kit for Sony Playstation; Oculus SDK for Oculus Rift and Oculus Mobile SDK for Samsung GearVR; Google VR SDK for Google Cardboard VR headset and Amazon Sumerian for popular platforms such as Google DayDream, HTC Vive/Vive Pro, Oculus Go/Rift, and Lenovo Mirage.
2. A game development engine. A game development engine is vital in the process of VR development. They help you bring all the assets together and give a sturdy editor for 3D elements. The best game development engines include Unity, Unreal Engine 4, and CRYENGINE.
3. Content creation. The essential element of design visualization and interactive creation is 3D modeling and rendering software like Maya and 3ds Max.
4. Data management. The development of VR software requires a tool to manage all types of digital assets. One of the most commonly used tools for this purpose is version control. 
5. Hardware. When developing a VR application, one should also pay special attention to hardware. There are some great choices, including two versions of Oculus Rift VR headsets and HTC Vive that come with sensor units. Besides, you will also need:

• Console;
• Premium, light, and standalone mobile VR headsets;
• VR haptic feedback units;
• VR headsets that connect to external PCs.

How To Create a VR App: Main Steps

Is it a standalone experience, a game, or a multi-story platform? It might seem obvious but a big share of business owners neglect such basics as determining their target audience, defining business and customer values, key performance indicators, and conducting proper market research at a pre-development stage. Therefore it’s important to prepare the development roadmap:

• Identify your business goals and objectives;
•  List all the features that you want to be in your application in the first release, and features to be released later;
•  Set clear time frames for each phase of development;
• Continuously check KPIs and metrics and update them;
• Set up a clear mechanism to collect feedback from customers and incorporate it into your application.

#2 Choose the Platforms

During the next development stage, you have to decide what device you are building the VR application for, is it mobile or for VR headset, and if mobile, then iOS/Android, or both. Will your application function inside VR providers or stand-alone? A piece of advice is to choose HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, or other popular VR providers if your aim is to reach the biggest amount of people.

#3 Hire a Professional Development Team

When choosing the development model, business owners always face three main options: to hire in-house or freelance teams of developers or to outsource software development.

#4 Design the Interface

The process of designing a VR application significantly differs from designing a regular mobile app. Contrary to designing for a 2D environment limited by the mobile phone screen, you have to design space for 360°, providing your consumers with the best user experience. VR applications design is a relatively new and not fully discovered field, so spend some time testing and discovering other VR applications, especially related to your business industry and similar target audience. 

#5 Deployment and Support

Even when the application has been released, it doesn’t mean you are “all set”. VR apps are not stagnant and require continuous updates, interface improvements, and adding new features to keep your application interactive enough. Keep an eye on the users’ feedback, they will become your main critics and will help to push it better. Constantly ask yourself: how to make a VR app more engaging, user-friendly, and popular. Once you’ve put your time, soul, and money into it, it would be short-sighted not to market it properly.

To Conclude

Virtual Reality blurs the boundaries between physical and digital worlds, giving consumers a sense of being present in a virtual environment. Such industries as retail, healthcare, aerospace, military, and gaming are actively investing in the technology to get all the benefits it brings. Solely in the US, there are 951 VR startups operating in different industry verticals. Now as never before companies understand the need to jump into a VR wagon.