Spring Air offers new pressure-mapping system
By David Perry -- Furniture Today, February 1, 2010
LAS VEGAS —
Spring Air is introducing a proprietary new pressure-mapping system designed to help retailers increase their close rates and boost their margins.
The producer has partnered with Xsensor, a Canadian pressure-mapping technology company, to develop the Comfort Silhouette Imaging system. It was adapted for retail use from a system initially used by hospitals to detect areas of high pressure, Spring Air said.
The new system, successfully tested at mattress stores in Australia and New Zealand, will debut in a Spring Air showroom here and will be shown on an invitation-only basis. The showroom, World Market Center B-1125, is across the hall from Spring Air's original showroom, B-1126, which the company also is using.
Spring Air officials said the new system will help consumers find the beds that are best for them.
“Today's consumers have so many different choices and so much product information available to them in stores and online that it's nearly impossible for them to make a qualitative choice about the right premium mattress,” said Rick Robinson, Spring Air's president. “CSI is designed to eliminate the confusion and frustration they feel when confronted by all of the mattress brands and product claims in the marketplace.”
The new system is different from competitors' products because it is based on physiological science and offers multi-brand credibility, according to Stephen Antsey, director of market development at Xsensor.
“CSI uses a 'sensor blanket' embodying more than 1,600 sensors on a single test bed,” he said. “Connected to a computer, the sensors perform a number of real-time body scans that calculate the customer's weight, body mass index, critical areas of body pressure and mattress/base support needs.”
Other factors, such as the customer's gender and preferred sleep positions, are captured in the three- to five-minute input and measurement process. Three beds are recommended based on the value of the BMI measurements and the correlation of pressure relief to better sleep, Spring Air said.
The system enables the retailer to include up to six bedding brands representing as many as 40 mattresses.
“Interviews with hundreds of consumers and retail salespeople clearly showed that there was a higher comfort level with the CSI process when they knew they wouldn't be steered specifically to any one brand,” Robinson said.
He said the system immediately enhances a salesperson's credibility as a sleep specialist, because the salesperson can present facts and medical science, and not talk just about price, feel and product.
“Consequently,” he said, “the likelihood of making a higher-end mattress sale is increased, regardless of the consumer's final product decision. CSI's credibility can also improve closing rates and reduce customer returns based on comfort.”
Robinson also said that the system enables retailers to develop a consumer data base that can help them establish long-term relationships with its customers. And it can also give the retailers other information that can help them better understand and document the mattress purchase process in their stores, Spring Air said.
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