6 Ways Image Search Capability is Changing How Customers Purchase Online (2022)
Image Credit: Unsplash
We have been going on about how SEO, good content, and sharp website copy can significantly impact a company’s sales and customer retention capability. But do we know how an image can make a difference? Tools like visual chatbots, app technology, and alt texts can help boost your business more than a good SEO strategy.
Visual search enables customers to get a convenient way to research a particular product. If your prospects can find things they are searching for with a snap, why would they look for any other website? There is more than one reason you should include an image search on your website. Scroll down to find six ways image search is changing the eCommerce industry.
6 Ways Image Search Capability is Changing How Customers Purchase Online
- Elevate Customer Experience (CX)
Your customers want instant results, and if they search for something online and don’t get what they are looking for, they are most likely to skip through your website. Moreover, you can’t describe what you need in words and get exact results. Image search changes this experience for your users. It also helps reduce the number of steps your customers must go through. Through image search, they can upload a picture of what they want and get recommendations for that product on your website.
- Manage Out-of-Stock Inventory
Visual search helps your website in retaining customers. If your customer is looking for something that is out-of-stock, their instant reaction would be finding a site with that particular thing. Although the item they were looking for is out of stock, they can explore similar options.
Using images for search also helps you to boost your sales. For instance, a user wants to buy checked trousers, but the model is wearing a shirt that looks aesthetically pleasing, and the handbag he carries goes well with the look. Image search encourages the user that they can buy the whole look.
- Conversion Rate Optimization
Many users are trying to find something similar to things they already have, and you can use visual search to provide them with an opportunity to do so. A customer who has clicked or saved a picture of something they like implies they have a strong desire to purchase it. When you enable visual search, you encourage such customers to buy from your website, so, in short, you get the opportunity to convert your prospects into customers.
Image Credit: Unsplash
- Personalized Search Results
What makes you different? There may be many stores providing the same products as yours. When a user inputs an image to search for a product, giving personalized recommendations to your user helps in increasing the retention rate. Personalizing the search according to the user makes you different.
For instance, if a user is looking for a rug with a particular pattern and uploads an image, your website can recommend matching sofa covers, table mats, and other living room decor. It can act as if their favorite decor shop shows them a personalized collection of living room decorations. You can do this by knowing what is a vector database.
- Information Convenience
Searching “I want a little pink dress, but not fully pink, a little peach on the sides” will not deliver desired results for your customers. And they will move on to a different website. Image search makes it convenient for your user to get the same step in just one simple step. Visual search is five times faster than the standard text-based search due to the vector database they use.
If you want the same pair of high trousers you got as a gift from your friend because you can’t find them, you have two options. One is to spend hours scrolling through a website and searching for trousers; the second is to upload a photo of those trousers and find recommendations. Which one seems easy for you? The second one doesn’t involve a dozen steps. The same goes for your customers; they would like an easy experience.
- Positive Customer Interactions
No one likes to scroll on a site that doesn’t have static elements like animation and images. Interacting with your customers through popups, animation, and image search makes them stay on your website for extended periods. Shop the look option also acts as an opportunity to sell prospective buyers precisely what they like or prefer. The image search feature helps customers buy every little item that a particular model is wearing.
Endnote
Image search makes your website highly attractive to users because they can skip several steps to reach their desired product. There are many options through which you can add visual search to your website. However, along with implementing changes to improve customer experience, it’s equally important to understand the necessity of looking for outcomes. A Pinterest survey noted that more than half of the participants’ visual search is more important than text search.
6 Ways Image Search Capability is Changing How Customers Purchase Online (2022)
