A Brief Guide To Google Shopping
Uploaded by
Gyan Swaroop TripathiA Brief Guide To Google Shopping
Uploaded by
Gyan Swaroop TripathiA brief guide to
Google Shopping
2
What is Google Shopping?
Google Shopping is a service used by online retailers to promote their products.
Google Shopping results appear on Google Search results pages and on
selected Google Search Partner websites such as YouTube and Amazon.com.
Once a free-to-list service, Google Shopping now operates a pay-per-click
model, with retailers advertising their products on Google Shopping via
Google’s AdWords advertising platform.
A brief guide to Google Shopping 3
A quick history
2002 2007
Google releases Froogle, a Froogle is renamed Google Product Search, and product listings
standalone product search start appearing alongside regular Google search results. Retailers
engine which allows retailers gain the ability to promote their product listings via Google
to list their products for free. AdWords on a pay-per-click basis
2016 2012
Google Shopping is now used by over 25,000 Google Product Search is rebranded as
businesses worldwide. With over 1 billion Google Shopping, and transitions to a pay-
products listed, it is considered a must-have to-play model; retailers must now pay per
element of any eCommerce marketing strategy. click in order to list their products.
A brief guide to Google Shopping 4
Key Google Shopping facts
1 2 3
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4 5 6
15% of daily Google Shopping More than
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on link
searches are new is now utilised in quality
billiondiffer from
products
searches 23 countries person
are to person
listed
and tend to be
globally based on gut feel
A brief guide to Google Shopping 5
Understanding the jargon
Google Shopping Generally used as an over-arching term to describe all elements of the Google Shopping service,
including campaigns, product feeds, and ads. Also used to refer to the Google Shopping search page.
Google Merchant Center All products are added to Google Shopping via a Google Merchant Center account. The Google
Merchant Center account is then linked with Google AdWords, where Google Shopping advertising
campaigns are managed.
Product Feed Products can be added to Google Merchant Center via automated feeds or manual spreadsheet
uploads. For simplicity, we refer to both of these as product feeds.
Google AdWords & Google AdWords is Google’s online advertising platform. All Google Shopping advertising campaigns are
managed within Google AdWords. An AdWords Google Shopping campaign is required to promote
Shopping Campaigns products on Google Shopping.
Google Shopping Ad The actual advert in Google AdWords. Google Shopping Ads are technically referred to as Product
Listing Ads in the AdWords interface, but we refer to them colloquially as Google Shopping Ads. A
(Product Listing Ad) Product Listing Ad can include a promotional text snippet, and can be applied to multiple products.
Search Term The actual text that the user searched for on Google. Search Term reports contain search terms that an
ad appeared for, and can be found in the keywords section of Google AdWords.
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Why online retailers should use Google Shopping
1. Higher click quality – maximise sales Only pay for ad clicks
from users who have:
Ads contain more product information than a traditional search ad, are
displayed alongside similar products from other retailers and operate on a cost- • Shown intent to buy
per-click basis. They are therefore much more likely to convert into sales than • Seen the price
traditional Google Search text ads. No other Google Search ad format provides • Seen a product image
• Compared your product
this type of highly-qualified ad click. with other retailers
2. Dynamic targeting – advertise entire catalogue effectively
Google Shopping campaigns do not require keywords. Instead, the system automatically serves an ad
when it determines that a user’s search is relevant to a listed product. This allows you to easily advertise
your entire product range, maximising reach and visibility.
3. Powerful reporting and competitive data – track profitability
See how your products are performing at any level of granularity eg. how many clicks were achieved for
a product category, a specific brand, or even a specific product. When used in conjunction with Google
Analytics eCommerce tracking, you can measure return on ad spend to ensure that your Google
Shopping ad campaigns are profitable.
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3 tips for Google
Shopping campaigns
A brief guide to Google Shopping 8
Optimise your product feed
Google Shopping products are added and managed via the Google Merchant
Center. Products can either be uploaded manually via a spreadsheet, or
automatically from your website via a feed.
To ensure success, keep your feed up to date and always address errors and
optimisation suggestions which can be found in the Data Quality tab in the
Merchant Center.
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Add promo text
Google Shopping ads appear in Google AdWords as product listing ads. Each product
listing ad has an optional field for ‘promotion’, in which you can highlight your
unique offerings and key selling points. This is a feature that is often overlooked by
Google Shopping advertisers, and can help set your ads apart from the rest.
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Audit your search terms
Google’s systems automatically decide when to serve an ad, and can sometimes
serve ads for search terms that are irrelevant or low quality. Regularly check your
search term reports and add negative keywords to prevent your products from
showing for irrelevant or poorly performing searches.
Maximise your Google Shopping
If you’re new to Google Shopping or want to get more from your campaigns,
speak to our experts today on 0845 123 2753 or email [email protected]
