Announced on October 25, Google is bringing the AR beauty features that were formerly only available on its app to its mobile browsing and web experiences. And for the first time, Google is letting customers try on hair color and foundation through augmented reality, and giving beauty brands the opportunity to advertise using ads that include AR. Previously, the app’s AR beauty features were restricted to colored makeup. Most of the changes are set for later this year, with dates still to be determined.
Google first launched AR try-on in 2020. There’s now less competition in the space, with Snap closing its AR enterprise department in September. The focus for Google is now on growing its market share quickly, according to Lilian Rincon, senior director of consumer shopping products at Google.
After launching in 2002, Google Shopping now has fashion and beauty brands competing to be within its sponsored suggestions. Google’s monopoly on search and ads has led to issues for the company, with it being the subject of an E.U. antitrust fine for $2.6 billion and a U.S. antitrust case, as well. Google made a range of shopping changes in June to help streamline customer purchases. At the same time, it moved away from “buy on Google” which allowed retailers to sell on the platform without commission fees.
“With [the new AR] change, we expect to see more adoption of this technology from shoppers and therefore an enhanced experience for brands, too,” said Rincon.
According to Google’s data, shoppers interact with beauty products 10% more when AR is present. “Users spend more time on brands’ sites after engaging with AR, and we continue to see momentum with more brands making their products available to try-on,” said Rincon.
For makeup, Google already offers AR try-on for around 50 brands, which facilitates the service for free. In the last six months alone, brands including Covergirl, Dior Beauty, Fenty Beauty, Laura Mercier and Makeup by Mario have been added to the mix. For its part, Pat McGrath Labs launched a pop-up in New York last weekend where customers could try on the brand’s latest collection in AR, in partnership with Google, which supplied the technology. More than 3,500 people came through and tried the experience.
Google’s new AR hair-color try-on debuted on Wednesday. Customers can now try at-home hair color via augmented reality in Google’s search. They will be able to choose from a selection of shades from L’Oréal Paris to try on through their front-facing mobile camera or through a video of a model who looks like them.
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“It is all about offering beauty tech services when and where they are needed by our consumers,” said Beatrice Dautzenberg, global director of beauty tech services at L’Oréal. “By bringing guidance and our brand expertise in the hair-color experience through tech, we are helping each consumer decipher color accuracy and the level of coverage provided.”
In the coming months, other brands including Splat and Revlon will also be available to try-on via AR.
The foundation try-on, meanwhile, is now being offered for products by Clinique, Charlotte Tilbury and Bobbi Brown. Along with being able to see a foundation shade on pictures of models in 148 skin tones, they can now view it on themselves.
“It’s absolutely crucial for beauty brands to embrace AR now as the next iteration of the internet is going to be immersive,” said Anne-Liese Prem, brand strategist and web3 educator. “We are on the cusp of all e-commerce turning 3D, and Google is giving brands the opportunity to get on board.”
She added, “Spatial storytelling is the future of retail, and it’s perfect for beauty brands.” Spatial storytelling allows brands to tell a single story across multiple platforms and mediums like AR.
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“Customers are already using filters on social media to augment their digital appearances and are thus familiar with the technology. Now they will be able to shop even more products for the real-life look,” said Prem.
