A new rumor has surfaced about a possible collaboration between Snapchat and Amazon. An app researcher gave Tech Crunch the tip, uncovering code within Snapchat’s Android app for a visual product search feature. The project is currently dubbed Eagle, and, based on the discovered code, would direct users to Amazon’s product listings. The official name of the visual tool, according to the code, would be Camera Search.
Users would be able to scan an object or barcode through the Snapchat camera to see associated search results on Amazon. It could be a revolutionary step for Snapchat.
An Information Partnership
Project Eagle could make Snapchat a more useful app. It may draw older users in to the presently teen-dominated platform, as it would offer beneficial information about something of interest. And let’s not forget that everyone loves Amazon.
If the rumors are true, if Snap Inc. is partnering with Amazon, Snap Inc. may be able to look forward to better revenue outcomes. However, it is possible that Amazon would only serve as a destination for search results rather than an active partner. Neither company has been vocal about the rumors, so we’ll have to wait and see.
Tech Crunch speculates that project Eagle builds on Snapchat’s partnership with Shazam, which allows Snapchatters to identify and share songs playing nearby. Both serve as information tools, making it possible to learn new things about the world.
Additionally, Camera Search may serve as an expansion of Snapchat’s Context Cards. Context Cards provide basic information on local businesses, driving customers to physical brick-and-mortar stores or restaurants nearby. They too serve as an information tool for the average user. It appears that this information angle is the latest niche Snapchat is pursuing.
Snapchat wouldn’t be the first to implement a camera feature that identifies objects and provides users with related information. Pinterest Lens works similarly, as does the camera in the Google Pixel 2 phone. It makes sense that such a capability would interest Amazon as well. A Snapchat-Amazon collaboration may give those other guys a run for their money, as well as up the ante once again for Snapchat’s biggest rival, Instagram Stories.
For advertisers, Camera Search could be a huge marketing boost. The key will be to have products available on Amazon and a successful Amazon product page. It will be even more important to make products appear higher in Amazon’s search results.
Additionally, advertisers will need to have products located in physical places for Snapchatters to come across. The better and more successful the product, the more users will come across it through friends, family, and even strangers who’ve already purchased it. So whenever someone sees something of interest to them, they can scan it through Snapchat and find it on Amazon.
Social networks like Snapchat are getting smarter. And through products like Camera Search, they intend to bring users along for the ride.
