Cool Real World Use of OpenSim on a Stick: Retail Store Layout and Salesperson Training

Here's a simple but effective-looking application of OpenSim for real world business use: For retail store layout design and sales representative training.

In his real life, SLer Zarkinfrood Miami helps his company manage mattress retail stores. He designs the layout in OpenSim, and puts it on a USB stick, so he can transport the layout from store to store. Above is what the layout looks like -- "This is the layout of the retail store I am currently working in," he e-mailed me recently. "I have done this for quite a few stores in our company." This version is on his SL sim, so you can visit it directly: Click here to teleport.

Mr. Miami, who's also known as Cardboard_Cricket on Reddit, explains what he does next:

"I start with a basic layout (to scale), figure out how many mattresses of differing sizes I can fit in a particular floor plan, and then pick mattresses based on cost, material and brand," he tells me. "Training is simply roleplaying and explaining the optimized store layouts and how salespeople can use them to their advantage both in increasing sales and increasing customer confidence in our product knowledge."

I love it. Elegant, no-frills, low-budget, probably more cost-effective and efficient than most other alternatives, it's probably one of the most viable practical uses of OpenSim I've seen so far.

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Comments

[Iggy]

Mattress stores can be stressful. At a distance, all the dang things look alike.

There's this science to designing them, I found after visiting several recently. I needed two full sets, and I ended up talking to a Mattress dude who reads Pynchon in his spare moments. I think he, in particular, would appreciate this post. It's a great Pynchon moment and an excellent use of sim-on-a-stick tech.

Odd that when I opened NWN today and saw this picture, I said "another Mattress store!" without reading even a single word.

[foneco zuzu]

http://iliveisl.com/
A useful link to any who wants to know more:)

[David Miller]

In addition to iliveisl, http://simonastick.com