Credit: https://blog.pinterest.com/en/search-and-lens-move-front-and-center
Pinterest is forging ahead with plans to make it easier for you to search and discover your favorite pins. The world’s catalogue of ideas on Monday added Lens to its home field.
By adding Lens, a search and visual discovery tool to home field, you can now search for pins through the new search bar at the top of your home feeds or tap the Lens camera to launch visual field.
For now, the update is only available to iOS users, but there are plans to extend it to Android phones as well, Adweek reports.
“Now, instead of having to open the Explore tab to search for ideas to try, you simply type what you’re looking for into the new search bar at the top of your home feed. You also have the Lens camera right there at the ready, so when you spot something out in the world that looks interesting, you can quickly tap open Lens to snap a photo and find related ideas,” Product manager for home feed Audrey Tsang wrote on the company’s official blog.
The changes made will ensure that recommendations in your home feeds are fresher than they used to be. By adding Lens to your home feed Pinterest will also be able to eliminate duplicate pins.
Painting a clearer picture of what the changes are all about, Tsang said:
“Not only are search and Lens now right up top, but we’ve also made some improvements behind the scenes, so your home feed is more useful than ever.
“Now the recommendations you find in your home feed are fresher than ever, updating instantly based on what you’re saving and searching on Pinterest.”
Pinterest notes with interest that more and more people are now searching for more ideas via mobile. Tsang said “nearly 85 percent of all searches on Pinterest now happen on people’s phones.”
Pinterest positioned itself as one of many social media websites now using machine learning to enhance users’ experience when it launched Lens last February. Lens is a feature that lets you snap a photo or use an existing image on your camera roll to find pins and themes related to the photo on your phone. The tool, which is a strong statement of intent on the part of Pinterest, is now available to users in the US.
Lens doesn’t require a special skill to get used to; but first, you must update your app to the latest version, then tap the search bar, followed by the red camera icon. Point Lens to any object of interest via the Pinterest app on your phone, and the tool [Lens] will help you find something similar shared by other users on Pinterest. Objects that can be pointed at using Lens could include shoes, bags, accessories, and many more. It is interesting to add that you will also be provided with information on brands that sell items of your interest that have been pointed at when using the tool.
The good thing about Lens is that, it works in two ways; you can use the tool to find a product of your choice, and people too can use it to find your product [if you own a business or a brand].
