In today’s content-saturated landscape, speed and relevance win. Marketers and creatives are under increasing pressure to deliver personalized, high-converting content experiences without compromising brand consistency or compliance. One of the challenges enterprise businesses face is getting the most value out of the content housed in their expansive digital libraries. That’s where image similarity search in DAM comes into play.
Bynder’s AI-powered DAM platform features Similarity Search, a strategic capability that transforms how teams discover and repurpose assets, accelerating time to market and elevating campaign performance. In this blog, we explore the power of image similarity search in DAM to help you unlock the full potential of your creative assets to drive more measurable impact and experience more clicks, more conversions, and ultimately more time for strategic thinking.
Key Takeaways
- Similarity Search is an AI-powered solution that ranks an entire asset library to recommend images that are most visually similar to a target image picked by the user. This solution grants DAM users the ability to discover assets without relying on filenames, tags, or metadata, speeding up asset discovery.
- Teams using image similarity search in their DAM can increase ROI on existing content by improving asset reuse.
- This solution allows organizations to speed up the asset discovery process and boost inspiration to get campaigns to market faster to drive engagement, conversions, and brand loyalty.
What is image similarity search?
Image similarity search is a solution that finds and ranks images based on how visually similar they are to a selected reference image. When using Bynder’s Similarity Search solution in your DAM, you can easily find visually similar assets, providing an alternative way to search for the content you need. Instead of relying on filenames, tags, or metadata, image similarity search uses AI to analyze the actual visual content, such as colors, shapes, textures, and patterns, to quickly surface lookalike images across your DAM library, whether they’re tagged or not.
For example, if a marketer uploads or selects a product photo, image similarity search can instantly pull up other images with a matching aesthetic, such as those with a similar background or lighting. In turn, this saves time and allows users to use an image as an inspiration to find a similar image in their DAM that they are allowed to use. It also enables users to select from similar images for creative purposes without using the same image every time. Overall, image similarity search makes it easy to conduct complex searches for ambiguous topics through images.
How does image similarity search in DAM work?
Image similarity search is one of the top DAM features that can improve your workflow, but how does it work? Bynder’s Similarity Search is an AI-powered solution that uses machine learning and visual feature extraction comparison to find visually similar images. Let’s break down the process:
- Visual feature extraction: After an image is uploaded, our platform uses Vision Transformers, a state-of-the-art deep neural network, to analyze the image's visual characteristics, such as colors, textures, patterns, lighting, composition, and layout. These characteristics are then translated into a unique feature vector, which is like a visual fingerprint.
- Building a visual index: The DAM will store the feature vectors for every image in your library, creating an index that enables rapid retrieval and discovery across your entire image collection.
- Ranking similar images: When using Similarity Search to find a similar image, this solution computes the visual fingerprint of the selected or uploaded image and compares it against those available in the index. It will rank the results based on how visually similar the matches are, instantly displaying the top assets that match your search.
AI solutions for digital asset management, such as image similarity search, are making it easier than ever to improve workflows to drive meaningful impact.
Use cases of image similarity search
Image similarity search is a valuable solution for a wide range of enterprise teams, from marketers to designers and DAM admins. Marketers and creative teams can easily find on-brand visuals to speed up the asset discovery process and boost inspiration. Global marketing teams can use image similarity search to find approved and localized versions of a key visual to ensure consistency across regions.
Similarity Search is one of the many AI Search Experience capabilities that Bynder DAM users can use to drive more engaging content experiences that lead to more clicks, conversions, and better marketing campaign results. Take Molson Coors, for example. Molson Coors, one of the largest beverage companies in the world, with brands like Blue Moon, Miller Lite, and Staropramen, leveraged Bynder’s intuitive search experience to make finding assets easier and quicker. The Similarity Search solution proved crucial, allowing Molson Coors, with its vast product range, to shorten search times and increase asset reuse.
Discover how Molson Coors shortened search times and maximized content reuse with Bynder’s AI Search here
What are the benefits of image similarity search for enterprise businesses?
Bynder’s Similarity Search solution enables teams to find visually similar images to push relevant and consistent content to market faster. Enterprises with vast digital libraries can enjoy a range of benefits when leveraging image similarity search in their DAM. Take a look:
Improved asset discoverability
With Similarity Search, users can find visually related assets without relying solely on keywords or manual tags. Now, users can find content faster even when they don’t know the exact name or metadata of an image. Faster asset discovery leads to faster time to market, ensuring brands can meet today’s high demand for content and reach their audience.
Better asset reuse and content management
When visually similar assets are easier to find, teams are more likely to reuse existing content rather than recreate it from scratch. When using Similarity Search, teams can identify existing assets that meet current project needs. As a result, increasing asset reuse eliminates the need for purchasing or creating an image, maximizing the value of your asset library. Greater ROI on creative investments helps marketers scale campaigns more efficiently and ensure all assets are used to their full potential.
Learn how Siemens Healthineers saved an estimated €3.5M+ with Bynder’s AI-powered DAM here
Alternative way of search
The Similarity Search solution helps users surface relevant assets based solely on visual content, making it easy to find and manage assets without relying on detailed knowledge of the taxonomy structure or metadata. Similarity Search offers an alternative way of searching, ensuring all users with access can find the assets they need more easily.
Improve asset discovery with image similarity search
Image similarity search in DAM goes far beyond convenience. This AI-powered solution empowers teams to move faster, stay on brand, and deliver content that truly connects. By unlocking visual intelligence across your entire asset library, Bynder’s Similarity Search enables smarter asset reuse, drives more engaging and personalized experiences, and supports teams with intuitive discovery to streamline workflows and bolster business strategies.
As a result, organizations can launch campaigns faster and stay ahead of market trends, maximize the value of past investments in photoshoots and branded assets, and create tailored content to improve engagement and campaign performance. For businesses looking to scale content and improve campaign results, image similarity search isn’t a nice-to-have; it’s a must-have. Book a demo with Bynder today to see how our DAM platform’s AI-powered search capabilities, from Similarity Search to Face Recognition and more, can benefit your team.
