Melissa in the Wild Series: 001

Melissa in the Wild Series: 001

Two days. Hundreds of sunglasses. One purchase. And one question I couldn’t stop asking myself: why am I still guessing in 2026?

One of my latest purchases was a pair of sunglasses from a global fashion brand. Sounds simple, right? Summer is almost here, and I thought I would quickly go online, find one pair that fits my face, my style, and my vibe, click “buy,” and move on with my day.

Instead, I found myself scrolling through hundreds of frames, different shapes, colors, sizes, and styles, trying to figure out which pair would actually suit me. And while I was scrolling, one question kept coming back to me: How am I supposed to know if any of these glasses are actually going to fit me? Not just fit my face, but fit my skin tone, my personal style, the shape of my face, everything that actually matters when you buy something you’re going to wear on your face.

That’s when frustration kicked in, because after years of working inside tech, where the job is often to spot opportunities, challenge inefficiencies, and decide what’s worth investing in, I couldn’t understand why I, as a consumer, was still being asked to guess. And apparently I’m not the only one. According to research from Snap Inc. and Ipsos, 65% of consumers say AR makes shopping easier, faster, and more confident.

The Customer Problem and the Opportunity Brands Are Missing

What started as a simple online purchase turned into almost two days of comparing, opening tabs, closing tabs, zooming in on product photos, going back, second-guessing myself, and wondering if I was making the right choice.

And yes, some people might say, “Why didn’t you just go to the store?” The answer is simple: these specific sunglasses were only available online, so online was my only option. And that’s exactly where the problem becomes interesting. I had the patience to keep looking because I really wanted the sunglasses, but most customers don’t have that patience. Most customers leave after a few minutes when the experience creates too much uncertainty.

As I was sitting there, frustrated, I caught myself thinking: Why are we still doing this? We live in a world where we have AI, face tracking, augmented reality, and millions of people using face filters every single day on platforms like Snapchat, yet when it comes to buying something as personal as sunglasses online, many brands are still asking customers to imagine what something might look like instead of actually showing them.

That frustration pushed me to start researching, because I knew these tools already existed. There had to be brands already doing this well.

That’s when I came across Ray-Ban. I opened their website, first on my laptop and then on my phone because I assumed the mobile experience might be better for virtual try-on, and honestly, what I experienced was impressive. Within seconds, my camera turned on, my face was detected, and I could instantly see different frames on my face in real time.

It might sound simple, but as a customer, it completely changed the experience. I wasn’t guessing anymore. I wasn’t comparing static product photos or trying to imagine how something would fit me. I could actually see it. And the moment I experienced that, my customer brain immediately felt more confident, while my business brain immediately saw the opportunity.

If I, as someone willing to spend hours comparing products, felt that much relief, how many customers are brands losing every single day simply because they make the buying process harder than it needs to be?

The Market Already Exists. So What’s Holding Brands Back?

The deeper I researched, the more I realized this isn’t futuristic technology anymore. This market already exists, and it’s growing fast. Gartner officially added “Virtual Try-On Solutions” as a dedicated market on Gartner Peer Insights in late 2025, while Harvard Business Review has been discussing the impact of augmented reality on retail for years.

Independent academic research consistently shows the same pattern: when customers can virtually try products on, they experience more trust, less uncertainty, lower perceived risk, and stronger purchase intention. In other words, when customers can actually see, they stop guessing, and when they stop guessing, they’re more likely to buy.

And from a business perspective, that shift matters. According to Shopify, products featuring augmented reality experiences have shown conversion rates up to 94% higher compared with products without them, while brands implementing AR in selected categories have also reported return reductions of up to 22%.

The technology is already here through companies like Snap Inc, Perfect Corp, FittingBox, and Banuba, which means technology is no longer the barrier.

And look, I get it. If sunglasses aren’t your core business, if you’re a fashion retailer, a luxury house, or a lifestyle brand where eyewear is just one category and not the main revenue driver, building a fully custom AR platform probably isn’t sitting at the top of your priority list right now. I understand that. Priorities matter. Budgets matter. Roadmaps matter.

But maybe this doesn’t need to start with a massive transformation. Start with a test. Launch one seasonal collection. Partner with Snap Inc. or another existing platform. Put five frames into an AR experience. Measure engagement. Learn what your customers do. Iterate.

Because if online is already part of your customer journey, why leave friction there?

Awareness might be the blocker. Prioritization might be the blocker. Or maybe the opportunity has simply not made it onto the roadmap yet.

Whether you’re an eyewear brand, a luxury house, a fashion retailer, or any ecommerce business selling glasses, the real question isn’t whether the technology works. 

The question is: how much longer are we willing to let ‘guessing’ be the standard for our customers? 

From where I’m standing, the tools, the research, and the customer demand are already here. We just need to start building the bridge.

— Melissa Blokland, Founder of ZERANOVA —


 

 

Melissa in the Wild: The Series

Melissa in the Wild is an ongoing series where I bring real-world customer journey observations back to the strategy table. It’s where daily experiences turn into actionable business conversations.

Are you seeing friction in your customer journey? Let’s Start a Conversation


 

 

Sources & References

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