Snapchat users can now buy MAC products through shoppable filters

Augmented reality technology allows consumers to ‘try on’ products through app

Snapchat’s new dynamic AR lenses allow users to ‘try on’ MAC makeup products and buy them through the app (Snap)

Snapchat users can now “try on” and buy MAC makeup products through a filter on the app.

Snap Inc, which owns Snapchat, launched the new feature in partnership with Estée Lauder Companies. MAC Cosmetics is the first brand in the Estée Lauder portfolio to launch the augmented reality (AR) technology on the platform.

The filter, known as dynamic shopping lenses, allows users to choose from four lenses to try on 20 different lip and eye makeup products from MAC.

If they like a particular look, they can tap through the lens to shop and purchase the product directly through Snapchat.

As well as makeup, users can also “try on” clothes virtually through the platform’s partnership with online luxury retailer FARFETCH.

“FARFETCH provides an immersive shopping experience using 3D Body Mesh and voice-enabled controls, so you can ask for items you’re looking to browse and try on instantly with AR,” said Snap.

The new technology comes after a survey commissioned by Snap found that demand for AR shopping has accelerated during the coronavirus pandemic, with 94 per cent of people expecting to use AR for shopping the same amount of more in 2022 compared to 2021.

On average, more than 200 million people engage with AR technology on Snapchat everyday, said the company in its survey report.

According to the report, over half of consumers want to use AR technology as a “risk-free, try before you buy experience”, with 56 per cent agreeing the technology gives them more confidence about product quality.

Salima Popatia, senior vice president of global consumer acquisition and retention at Estée Lauder, told Forbes that the new lenses are a “game-changer for social media and e-commerce”.

“It’s a complete reframing of consumer intent and the marketing funnel - driven by impulse, driven by the moment, driven by creative inspiration; the media becomes the store,” she said.

Snap’s head of global product marketing, Carolina Arguelles, added that the lenses give consumers a better sense of how a product looks on them, rather than on a model.

“Instead, Snapchatters can see products on themselves, determine if it’s the right style and fit, ask their friends for advice, and tap to purchase, all within Snapchat.”