X-Rite Color-Eye ®

Color-Eye ®, a smartphone application and calibration card that helps end consumers find paint swatch colors that match and coordinate with items in their homes at paint retail points of sale. This is a unique product.

The following research results were conducted with 430 participants.

• 70% of consumers stated that at least once every four months, it is difficult to match the appropriate color in the store with items at home. • Consumers lack confidence in purchasing color-critical products online due to poor past experiences. • 72% of participants stated they believe a solution like Color-Eye ® would increase confidence in purchasing color-critical products online. • Consumers especially use available tools (for example, paint chips or color samples) when making color decisions related to home decoration. However, even with these tools, color decisions can be difficult, because existing tools are not accurate, too expensive or not available. In general; consumers take a photo of the product they want to match with their phones and go to the store to select the appropriate paint for it. When the following parameters are evaluated, we see that this method does not truly serve the purpose.

Calibration

Photography capture settings and lighting create critical color differences. The two sample photographs on the side show how different lighting dramatically changes the perception of color on the same plastic samples. Additionally, you can see how flash settings make a difference in the matte and glossy areas of the samples.

Shadows

Due to shadows created during photography, you can see how the same color on an iPad is identified as two different colors.

Flash Glare

Using flash eliminates shadows, but causes glare and color brightening on rough surfaces.

Lighting

The spectral distribution of light affects the observed color. Lighting conditions directly affect our color perception differently. Incorrect color matching creates the following problems. • Vastly different color matching results obtained from three different photographs of the same product, • Due to failure to achieve correct matching; dissatisfied customer, product returns, additional costs, • Customers do not trust purchasing color-critical products online, which results in a missed sales opportunity, • Forces the need to source expensive color swatches as a solution. With consistent color matching results from Color-Eye®; • The effect of lighting types is minimal or nonexistent, • Correct color matching even with different types of samples such as glossy, matte, and textured, • Consistent results on Android and iOS devices that we all own and use, without needing an additional swatch or device.

Performance Study on NCS Swatch Containing 1,950 Colors

• 98.38% of measured colors matched the top three results. • 96.77% of measured colors matched the first or second result. • 85.48% of measured colors achieved correct matching. The test was conducted under typical office conditions using an Android Nexus 5, taking one measurement from each sample over 129 colors representing the color gamut.

Increase Consumer Color Confidence and Reduce Returns...

Consumers typically do not trust purchasing products where color is important from the internet. Statistics show that one-third of online purchases are returned, and 22% of returns are due to dissatisfaction with the product's appearance. Color-Eye ® provides consumers with the necessary assurance to shop online for color-critical products. This confidence increases purchase satisfaction and sales while reducing the likelihood of returns. Color-Eye ® allows shoppers to use their smartphones and a color calibration card to measure the color of any item they want to match. These color readings communicate with a paint company's mobile shopping application and display matching and coordinating colors from the paint company's color swatch. Thus; • Consumer purchase satisfaction and sales increase while the likelihood of returns decreases. • Through integration with retail mobile shopping applications, it drives consumers to download the application, increasing integration and brand loyalty. • While measuring gloss and texture, it provides precise and accurate matches by maintaining measurement accuracy across all surface types and lighting conditions. • By collecting live demographic color trend data, it facilitates future product planning and improves the effectiveness of direct-to-consumer marketing. Color-Eye ® is based on X-Rite's more than 60 years of color and imaging expertise and work over the last 40 years developing color targets for photography and video that have become the de facto industry standard. It is a solution that provides retailers with the opportunity to develop consumer confidence and loyalty by giving greater assurance in color-critical purchases both online and in-store. Ayla Çuhadaroğlu - General Manager - Odak Kimya Ltd. Şti.