Neiman Marcus App Preloader

In 2014, one of the first major luxury retailers, Neiman Marcus, introduced state-of-the-art image recognition technology utilizing AI that provided a feature for visual search created by Slyce.

The implementation of visual search was 95% accurate with the returned search results. This removed the barrier of customers guessing what search terms to input within the search field. Instead, a customer can select a photo within their image library or snapping a photo of an object using the mobile camera.

Visual search as a mobile discovery experience has the power to change the way people discover, interact and shop for products. Neiman Marcus was one of the first retailers to implement Slyce's technology to visually search for products, and during implementation major latency issues were identified by the development team while waiting for matching results to be displayed by the customer.

Our internal developers and BAs approached me with concerns that visual search results took up to 35-40 seconds to display results. Utilizing the generic preloader spinner would increase customer abandonment with the assumption that the visual search feature caused the app to freeze and sought my attention to provide solutions for the internal team to review for tech feasibility prior to seeking approval from the client.

Creating a custom animation where objects seamlessly transition along with custom copy that took Neiman Marcus' brand into consideration. The animation implemented when the feature went live, customers felt as though steps are being taken in the background to return results from utilizing visual search.

Case Study: https://slyce.it/case-studies/neiman-marcus/