Star Search: Shopping Site Uses Visuals By Michelle Megna
November 15, 2006
Star-struck shoppers will be happy to learn that the new site Like.com lets you find the stuff the celebrities wear and buy similar versions at different price points. E-tailers will be happy to know they can add their products to the database.
Calling itself the first visual search engine, Like.com lets you search for merchandise through images rather than just text. Don't know what model watch Brad Pitt wore to the latest premier? No worries. There are pictures of celebrities posted at the site, so you just click on the accessories they're sporting, in this case the watch. You get results for thousands of timepieces that look just Pitt's from the network of Web shops.
And, if you want to shop sans-celebs, you can. For example, to purchase a purse, you simply click on the picture to focus your search on what part of the bag you like the most. You can select the color or shape or both and the "likeness" search will give you results based on the appearance.
Shoppers can also use slider bars to weigh how important color, shape and pattern are in their hunt. The query is compared to other items in the database and the most similar results are displayed from e-tailers such as Land's End, Zappos, eLuxury and more.
Bloggers say the site currently features about two million different products, and is adding 30,000 different items a day. Right now handbags, jewelry, shoes and watches are listed, with clothing to be added in a few weeks.
The shopping site is run by the visual search engine company Riya, based in San Mateo, Calif., and though still in development, Like is accepting listings. If you want to include your products in their database visit this page for more information.
Michelle Megna is managing editor of ECommerce-Guide.com.
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