Google has this week announced it will be rolling out “shoppable ads” to the search results in Google Images – taking on other popular platforms in visual search.
Similar to ones already offered by Pinterest and Instagram, Google’s new ads are designed to enable brands and retailers to promote products via sponsored posts in Google Image results. Businesses will be able to highlight multiple products that are for sale within their sponsored ad, which will appear in targeted results with the price, brand and option to purchase.
"Google has always been a place where you can find a specific product or store, but it's also a place where people increasingly come to look for inspiration or discover new brands and products," Google president of global partnerships, Daniel Alegre, told Business Insider. "That's why we're investing in shopping solutions across more of our properties, to help retailers connect to more shoppers."
According to Alegre, a study revealed that 50 per cent of online shoppers were motivated to purchase a product after viewing images of it, making shoppable ads a smart and strategic move for Google.
“In 2019, understanding the future of retail really isn’t about wrapping your head around new innovations like 5G or AR, VR,” he said. “It really is about understanding how all these things are really fitting together and build helpful experiences to put your brand front and centre.”
Although the company is currently testing the ads on a small percentage of traffic with retailers on expansive search terms, such as “abstract art” and “home office ideas,” Google said it will continue to “roll this out to more categories across more retailers over the next few months."
