My old shoes: a modern search journey with Google AI. (And ChatGPT Search.)

I’m not a big spender.

I tend to shop the discount rack at Marshall’s, and when I find something I like, I hold onto it for as long as it’ll last.

This was the case with my favorite pair of shoes: my white New Balances.

I have other shoes, Nikes, etc., but these are the most comfortable shoes I’ve ever had.

They’re also worn out.

Exhibit A:

What can I say? I like to walk around downtown Orlando. It’s picturesque! 🌴

Anyway …

This means I can’t read any of the tags to know the shoe’s details, other than faintly seeing they’re 28.5 cm. Not very helpful here in the U.S.

I was thinking it’s time to replace my old shoes …

So my first thought was to go to Google Search, type in “white New Balance shoes” and spend an afternoon looking for them.

That’s old school.

That’s also when it hit me … I’m an SEO professional, of sorts …

Why not use those skills for my own shopping benefit?!

Below, I’ll outline my search journey to find my replacement shoes.

This will be interesting to anyone involved in search marketing or interested in AI.

Or maybe it’s just interesting to me …

Either way, let’s boogie!

First, I recalled Google Labs now has video search with Google Lens and AI Overviews, where you can hold down the button to record a video and speak your query.

So, I did (ignore the other old shoes in the frame):

Guess what?

It found the model number of the shoes (purportedly, because they’re stylistically a little different now) and gave it to me as a dedicated AI Overview:

When I clicked and started viewing the results, however, I realized I had a problem …

I had no idea which size I needed …

So I went to the Gemini tab — no, this isn’t a Google sponsored blog post — and asked for sizing information:

Now I’m in business.

I know the model and the size.

So I clicked that “Popular picks for you” section to look at Google’s shopping graph.

But I still had one other problem. Ok, three problems …

First, my size is like totally sold out.

Second, these are more expensive than I want to pay. (Again, I’m a Marshall’s bargain hunter.)

And thirdly, these color combos aren’t befitting my style. (Red and grey? … I’m not a flashy runner or Ohio State Buckeyes trainer, but rather a low-key urban hiker. … White and gray, please.)

Feeling at a loss, it was around this time that I got the idea to write this blog post …

Since I’d be on my computer anyway, I decided to switch to Google Shopping on desktop — I remembered reading this week they got some new features:

I saw a pair of white and gray in the Sponsored section, but as an SEO, I dare not click there.

So I applied a few filters and …

Now they’re different models, and ugly! (No offense.)

So … I’m still in the process of looking for a cheap pair of my favorite shoes …

But I hope you found some of this interesting, like the video search or Gemini parts.

And, if I find the replacements and purchase them, I’ll update this post with that great news.

However …

Since I think my pair might be a few years old, I might restart the journey and look on eBay or the darker corners of Amazon.

Stay tuned!

SearchGPT update: 10/19.

In finalizing this week’s Hamsterdam, I came across an article that instructed me to insert “/” into the ChatGPT prompt to access SearchGPT. It worked!

For the fun of it, let’s see what it says about my desired shoes …

Ok, it looks like if you’re Dick’s Sporting Good’s, you’re happy.

Let’s check the link …

OMG! They’re perfect!

Almost … no 10.5 …

Now I just need to order extra socks to make an 11 work, or …

The search continues.

Tag update: 10/19.

It appears we may have been heading in the wrong direction.

Upon putting on the shoes to head to the gym this morning, I noticed a tag that says “Tempo”:

This changes the equation!

I tried to do another Google Lens visual search, but in the process of trying to take a photo of my screen recording, I muttered “funny shoes” instead of “find these shoes” …

Google still understood the assignment:

So, now that I have the original model, I’m heading back to SearchGPT because that’s where I found the best deal in the first place.

This time, we got three links to various retailers:

Dick’s Sporting Goods was a category page without the shoes.

Joe’s New Balance Outlet was a homepage.

But DSW nailed it! Almost …

They’re the right shoes! But they’re a hideous Halloween color (fitting), and still not in my size.

The original plan of searching eBay and Amazon continues, but now with the correct shoes in mind.

Stay tuned!

ChatGPT search update: 11/1.

ChatGPT has released ChatGPT search officially, just in time for us to continue our journey.

We saw how the Search feature worked previously. Let’s compare with the official version to see how our luck changes.

We now get a better selection of answers with pricing, including DSW (from before) but now also Amazon:

I find it interesting how it also mentions my location of Orlando, Florida.

In a typical journey, I’d next click on the Amazon link:

And boom! We’ve hit the right answer!

It’s interesting that I didn’t search for men’s but ChatGPT likely assumed that based on my user profile (or it was a lucky guess).

In short, ChatGPT search is the real deal. My feet will be thankful.

Until next time, enjoy the vibes (running music from a walker):

Thanks for reading. Happy marketing! 🤗