Is it possible to create a store where customers can walk in and find a collection of products that resonates with them? With millions of people visiting stores every day, both online and offline, this idea seems plausible. However, online fashion stores have failed to deliver on this promise, with shoppers jumping between multiple sites, apps, and social channels without any brand loyalty. While personalization has been primarily focused on increasing revenue, it’s crucial to consider the relevance and meaning behind it. As a fashion retailer, it’s essential to focus on relevance rather than just targeting to stand out in an overcrowded market. To achieve this, consider these questions: How can you understand the user’s intent before targeting? What are some ways to improve the relevance of the products seen? How can you reduce shopper bounce rates by enhancing relevance? Visually Similar products are an excellent starting point for answering these questions. Here are four ways in which Visually Similar Product recommendations can improve relevance, reveal intent, increase conversion, and reduce shopper abandonment.
Incorporate visually similar designs into the product page to enhance the rate at which visitors make purchases.
Understanding the intent of a customer’s first click is a crucial step in the shopper journey. For example, a black cocktail dress could indicate that the buyer is searching for an outfit for a specific occasion, with certain specifications such as color, length, pattern, or style. By incorporating visually similar product recommendations on the product page, customers are presented with all the possible black dresses that they could wear to their cocktail event.
Visually similar product algorithms have an advantage over traditional text searches because they can understand intent with just a click on a product. These algorithms analyze the visual attributes of a product and create a style profile for each shopper, which enables them to present visually similar products that are relevant to the shopper in a matter of seconds. This creates a shopper journey that is tailored around the shopper’s intent, making it easier for them to find exactly what they are looking for.
In an analytics study, it was found that visually similar product recommendations resulted in over 4% of all add-to-carts (ATCs) on a website. By presenting products that are highly relevant and match the shopper’s intent, customer satisfaction is increased, leading to higher conversion rates and more sales.
Stop the bounce due to inventory shortage
One of the most significant challenges faced by online fashion retailers is reducing bounce rates. When customers are unable to find the products they are looking for during their online session, bounce rates tend to increase. According to industry reports, the fashion industry’s average bounce rates are around 35-40%.
To address this challenge, recommendation engines today view every digital footprint of a shopper as a valuable asset to enhance their shopping experience. However, despite retailers’ investments in data collection and targeting, they often overlook the basics. Nothing dampens the shopping spirit like an ‘out of stock’ sign.
Although it may seem insignificant, tackling out of stock can lead to a significant loss in revenue. Displaying alternative products that are visually similar to the out-of-stock products can help reduce bounce rates and keep the shopper on the website. When shoppers see visually similar product recommendations personalized for them, the likelihood of them leaving the website is greatly reduced.
Retailers should not wait until a product click event, ATC event, or billing event to notify the shopper that the product is out of stock. A quick-view button on the product thumbnail in the category page can instantly provide them with a range of options similar to the product they clicked. Additionally, retailers can use this opportunity to display other products that complement the original choice, leading to increased sales and customer satisfaction.
Many online retailers face the challenge of high shopping cart abandonment rates, which can result in lost revenue. Studies show that over 75% of items added to a cart are not purchased. To address this issue, brands can leverage cart abandonment emails that include visually similar product recommendations.
Unlocking the Secret to Higher Sales: Using Visually Similar Products to Engage Shoppers
By incorporating visually similar product styles into cart abandonment emails, brands can increase engagement with shoppers and encourage them to return to the site for a potential sale. In fact, cart abandonment emails have an average open rate of 48% in 2018, making them a valuable tool to recover potentially lost sales.
To effectively utilize visually similar product recommendations in cart abandonment emails, retailers can send them out within minutes of the cart abandonment event. By showcasing items similar in style, across different brands, sellers, and price ranges, retailers can give shoppers the opportunity to find a suitable alternative to the abandoned product and potentially make up for any reason they initially bounced.
Moreover, integrating visually similar product recommendations into abandoned cart emails can improve the overall customer experience by providing personalized and relevant product options, increasing the chances of conversion and customer loyalty.
In the world of retail, it is a widely accepted fact that a significant chunk of a store’s product catalog goes unnoticed by shoppers. Reports suggest that 80% of customers end up discovering only 20% of the products on offer. This is where image recognition-powered algorithms come to the rescue. By recognizing visually similar products just as a human eye would, these algorithms can help engage shoppers better by enabling them to explore a variety of products that are similar to the styles they are interested in.
The benefits of visually similar products don’t stop there. In fact, integrating them into your product recommendations can help shoppers discover up to 12% more products every day. This is particularly useful for online marketplaces that have thousands of brands and sellers. With so many options available, it can be challenging to decide which sellers to surface and which products to recommend to your customers. But by showing visually similar styles from different brands and sellers at different prices, you can create a win-win situation for both your shoppers and your sellers.
To conclude
By providing relevant product recommendations, you assure your shoppers of a meaningful and personalized shopping experience on your site. This, in turn, leads to better customer retention and loyalty. And with a better ability to surface more products, your sellers and merchants are happy at the opportunity of better sales, making them more inclined to list on your site. So, incorporating visually similar product recommendations into your retail strategy can help you keep your shoppers engaged and your sellers satisfied.
Here at Knowdis we have honed visual recommendations using artificial intelligence and can offer state of the art solutions for your ecommerce to make it thrive. Take the first step to amplify your customer base and make your search engine top-notch by booking your dates at https://calendly.com/knowdis/30min
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