Beyond Google: Innovative Search Tools Gen Z Actually Uses

If you’re over 30, “search” still probably means typing into a box on Google.

If you’re under 30, search is visual, social, and personalized—and half the time it doesn’t start on a traditional search engine at all.

Younger users want tools that look like the rest of their digital life: swipable, visual, interactive, and tuned to their tastes without a lot of typing. That’s why “What are some innovative search tools that offer a personalized and visual approach?” is becoming a real question for marketers, not just a fun tech thought experiment.

Let’s walk through the tools that are quietly becoming the real search layer for younger demographics—and what that means for your brand.

1. Pinterest: The original visual search engine

Pinterest has been calling itself a visual search engine for years, and it’s earned that label.

• Users can search with images instead of text using Pinterest Lens, which lets them snap or upload a photo and find visually similar products and ideas.

• Pinterest’s own business messaging now leans into that “a-ha” moment: visual search that helps people define their unique taste and feel confident in their choices.

  
  

For younger users, Pinterest is less “mood board” and more idea engine: outfits, room decor, niche aesthetics, DIY, recipes, and gift ideas all found visually rather than keyword-first.

Takeaway for brands: Treat Pinterest like a search channel, not just a place to repost Insta graphics. High-quality vertical images, keyworded descriptions, and shoppable pins give you a shot at being the answer when someone searches with their eyes instead of their keyboard.

2. TikTok, Instagram & social search

Search is increasingly social.

About two-thirds of US consumers now use social search—typing queries directly into T

TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and other platforms—across the entire customer journey.

For Gen Z, it’s normal to search:

• “best mascara for sensitive eyes tiktok”

• “what to wear to a fall wedding”

• “best cities for remote workers”

• “what is visual search marketing”

They’re not just looking for answers; they’re looking for faces, experiences, and social proof in a format that feels native to them: short video, comments, and saves.

Takeaway for brands: Think in searchable hooks (“how to…”, “3 mistakes…”, “before you buy…”) in your social content. Use captions, on-screen text, and hashtags that someone would actually search. Treat TikTok/IG Reels as mini landing pages: strong opening, proof, and a clear next step.

3. Camera-based search: Google Lens, Pinterest Lens, CamFind

Visual search isn’t just inside social apps; it’s built right into the camera.

Tools like Google Lens, Pinterest Lens, and apps such as CamFind let users point their phone at an object and instantly get product matches, price comparisons, or related content. Visual search uses AI to understand the image and return results—no keywords required.

Younger demographics are especially comfortable with this “see → tap → find” flow, whether they’re:

• Snapping someone’s shoes to find similar options

• Pointing the camera at an ingredient to get recipes

• Using visual search to track down furniture, decor, or earrings they spot in the wild

Takeaway for brands: Make sure your product images are clear, high-res, and consistent so visual search engines can recognize them. Use structured product data and alt text so your catalog is machine-readable behind the scenes. Think about how your products look in context—lifestyle photos often perform better in visual search than sterile pack shots.

Read more here: Why You Can’t Ignore Visual Search: 62% of Millennials Prefer It Over Text-Based Search

4. AI answer engines: Perplexity & friends

The other big shift is AI-native search.

Tools like Perplexity sit in between classic search and a chatbot. Instead of a list of links, they synthesize an answer from multiple sources, with citations you can click into.

Why younger users like them:

• They’re conversational (“what should I wear to a winter wedding if I hate heels?”).

• They’re personalizable over time (history, follow-up questions, preferences).

• They cut through clutter with a single, summarized answer—but still let you dig deeper.

Right now, AI search feels more like a research assistant than a shopping engine, but that line is blurring. Being mentioned in AI answers will become its own form of visibility.

Takeaway for brands: Write clear, structured content that directly answers questions in natural language. Use headings that look like queries (“How does X work?”, “Is Y safe for Z?”). Make your expertise obvious: FAQs, explainers, and how-to guides are exactly what AI search tools like to quote.

5. Shuffles & collage-style discovery

Younger audiences don’t just want visual search; they want visual play.

Pinterest’s standalone app Shuffles lets users cut out objects from photos, layer them into collages, add animations, and link products inside those collages. It’s been particularly popular with Gen Z users sharing creations on TikTok and other social platforms.

Shuffles is less about “search” in the traditional sense and more about visual remixing—but underneath it, there’s still a discovery engine. Every product tagged inside a collage is another way for someone to stumble across your brand visually.

Takeaway for brands: Think beyond static product images—how could your product be cut, layered, or remixed into a collage? Make sure your products are shoppable and recognizable inside Pinterest, so they’re eligible to be pulled into these visual journeys.

6. So… which of these matter most for younger demographics?

If we oversimplify:

• Pinterest & visual search → “Show me a look or a vibe.”

• TikTok/Instagram social search → “Show me real people using this and telling me the truth.”

• Camera-based search → “Show me this exact thing (or something just like it).”

• AI answer engines → “Give me a smart friend who can explain this and pull in the best sources.”

They’re all search tools, but they map to different intent states and content formats.

What this means for your marketing strategy

If younger buyers matter to you, “being good at Google” is now table stakes, not the whole game. A few practical moves:

1. Audit where younger users are actually searching in your category.

   • Are they saving ideas on Pinterest?

   • Watching TikTok reviews?

   • Asking AI tools for “best options for X”?

2. Make your brand visually searchable.

   • High-quality, on-brand imagery in multiple aspect ratios

   • Lifestyle shots that show context, not just product

   • Consistent naming and tagging across platforms

3. Answer their questions in plain language.

   • Blog posts, FAQs, and social scripts that sound like how they talk

   • Clear explanations for complex products (especially in healthcare or tech)

4. Treat social and AI search as part of the same strategy.

   • Content that performs on TikTok or Instagram often makes great fodder for AI tools and visual search engines as well.

   • Reuse the same core stories and proof points across all these surfaces.

If your product is great but your story isn’t built for how younger customers search, let’s fix that.

Get in touch and we’ll turn your brand into something AI, social, and visual search can actually find.