Beyond Browser Online Shopping: Experience Attitude Towards Online 3D Shopping with Conversational Agents

With the growing interest in recreating live and realistic outside experiences within the confines of our homes, the online shopping industry has also been impacted. However, traditional modes of interaction with online storefronts have remained mainly unchanged. This paper studies the factors influencing user experience and interaction in 3D virtual stores. We created a prototype that uses a 3D virtual environment for users to navigate, purchase items, and communicate with a conversational agent. The designed interface was tested by studying a set of variables, including the user's interaction medium with the conversational agent, the movement method within the store, the user's perception of the conversational agent, the conversational agent's usability, and the store items' visual representation. Through the user study, we gained insights into the factors that guide the user's experience in 3D virtual stores. We concluded that 80% of users preferred less intrusive conversational agents and 75% preferred agents that did not hide visual elements. Additionally, 80% of the participants favored combining 2D and 3D visualization techniques.