Pinterest Brings Visual Search To Target

Retail makes for interesting bedfellows, and Pinterest and Target this week have announced news of their own plans to cozy up.

The new partnership will see Target integrate Pinterest’s visual search technology, Lens, into Target’s mobile app and desktop website (though the mobile rollout will precede the desktop rollout). This collaboration marks the first integration of Lens into a retailer’s mobile shopping app.

Going forward, Target shoppers, enabled by Lens, will be able to click a photo of any product and use visual search to find similar or matching items on sale at Target. Pinterest, through the legions of Target shoppers, will see Target’s ad spend on their site increase as part of a connected effort to drive more mobile shoppers to the company’s digital channels, such as the Target app.

Pinterest currently has 200 million worldwide users and has invested much of its recent efforts into utilizing the power of the visual search. The idea is that consumers who see a product in the real world often want to buy it, but have no idea how to find that product, or what it costs or even how to go about looking for it — short of asking a stranger about their personal style or using a keyword search.

With visual search, Pinterest not only answers all of those questions; the website also moves the consumer nearly instantly from the moment of desiring it to the transaction that will enable them to buy it.

Since its launch, Lens has improved its optics and is now able to do things like zoom in, tap to focus and search photos already saved to the user’s smartphone camera roll.

Target, for its part, is excited for the chance to make keyword and visual searches that much more direct for its customers.

“We’ve partnered with Pinterest for years — it’s a natural fit, thanks to our shared passion for creating inspiration and a sense of discovery,” said Kristi Argyilan, senior vice president, Media and Guest Engagement at Target, in a statement.

“Now, Target’s excited to take our partnership to the next level. We’ll be the first — and exclusive — U.S. retailer to bring Pinterest Lens directly into our apps and experiences, creating an incredibly rich and much easier way for our guests to explore, discover and buy millions of products at Target,” she added.

The companies have not disclosed the exact amounts around Target’s ad buy, but Pinterest did say that it’s “multi-year” and the company’s “largest ever.”