Dive Brief:
- Joining other companies in creating visual search tools, Walmart has launched TrendGetter, an image recognition tool that helps shoppers find discounts on the items they're searching for, the company announced Thursday in a press release.
- To use the technology, customers can go to the TrendGetter website, take a picture of the item they're searching for or upload an image from their device, and pick the item or a similar product that the tool found, the company said.
- On its FAQ page, the retailer said it will delete photos after the tool searches for the item in its product catalog. While shoppers can look for everything from apparel and tech to toys and home decor, the tool can only look for one item at a time.
Dive Insight:
The company launched the tool during the holiday shopping season to help customers find their desired items or similar products while looking for lower prices, per the press release.
The rollout of TrendGetter follows Walmart's previous experiments with image recognition technology. In 2017, its subsidiary Hayneedle debuted its first iOS mobile app with visual search. Within the app, shoppers could save their favorite items and buy them using Apple Pay.
Other retailers using visual search technology have reported success. Forever 21, for example, said the company saw a rise in sales conversions and an uptick in average purchase value following its 2018 launch of a visual search and navigation function for its website.
Meanwhile, other companies have been introducing visual search to their platforms. In October 2021, Fast Simon launched multiple AI visual search tools for sellers' e-commerce sites. For customers, the technology helps them find products using images from Instagram, their smartphones or store catalogs.
In a similar move, Etsy debuted visual image search functionality last month. Within the app, Etsy users can tap the camera icon in the search bar, upload or take an image and search for similar items on the site. Other tech platforms, including Shnap, Pinterest and Google, have also added visual search features to help connect shoppers with merchants selling the products they're seeking.
