When you are looking to purchase a new product, it is very likely that at one stage in your research you will “Google it”. Whether that’s to discover places to buy the product, to compare your options (price or functionality) or work out what factors you should consider before you make your decision.
Because search engines answer queries for most search intents it is a great way to get your products in front of people interested in your category and either create demand for these goods, or convert existing demand for these goods.
66% of shoppers go directly to Google or Bing to discover new brands and products.
When people search for a specific product or term that signals they may be looking to make a purchase, Google will create a feed at the top of the search results with images, prices, reviews and store names for matching products, making it easier for shoppers to compare options and find what they’re looking for. These results can also be found on the “products” tab of Google.
Just like with search results for webpages and articles, the first results in the feed will be paid adverts, allowing businesses just like yours to showcase your products directly from this initial search. These are Google Shopping Ads. Take the below example of someone searching for “padel racket” in the UK. The first result is the Google Shopping feed showing 8 potential rackets that have been advertised by Decathlon UK, TennisNuts.com and Amazon.co.uk and are showing under a “Sponsored” title to show these are ads.
1. Create your product feed: This is your product catalogue and includes detailed information about the products you want to display including the name, description, price, image, availability, etc.
2. Upload to Merchant Center: This is where the product feed is managed. Google reviews the feed to ensure it complies with their guidelines.
3. Build Google Ads campaigns: Once the feed is approved, you can create Shopping campaigns in Google Ads to determine bidding strategies, budgets, and targeting options.
4. Ad Displays: Shopping ads appear in Google search results, alongside organic search results and other ads.
– Increased Visibility: Shopping ads appear prominently in search results, the number one source for product and brand discovery, increasing product visibility amongst high intent audiences.
– Improved Click-Through Rates (CTRs): Displaying an image of the product as well as the core points of comparison encourages more clicks than a text based result.
– Higher Conversion Rates: Shoppers are more likely to convert when they can see product images and prices before clicking.
– Better Qualified Traffic: Shopping ads target users actively searching for products, resulting in more qualified traffic.
– Measurable Results: Google Ads provides detailed performance metrics, allowing businesses to track ROI and optimise campaigns, to ensure you are spending your precious marketing budget where you get the best results.
– Lower cost per click than Google Search Ads: In some categories, Google Shopping cost 23% less than Google Search ads, proving far better value for money on the same channel.
You only pay for clicks, not impressions on Google Shopping Ads which means you can easily stay in control of your spending. On average, CPC (cost per click) for this type of ad is between 75p and £1.50 according to one source, however this will depend on the keywords and industry you are in, with electricals and apparel having the highest competition and therefore a high CPC.
Other factors that influence the cost and effectiveness of your Google Shopping ads are the quality and relevance of your ads, and the time of day/ day of the week, as during peak periods competition will increase, but Google will always want to display the most relevant and interesting ads to its users.
We spoke with agency specialists and experienced brands to collate their top tips for selling on Google.
Make sure the information in your product feed is accurate and optimised. Use the 150 characters for the title to highlight important features and include keywords people might use to search for your product. You can also create different titles for your Merchant Center compared to those on your online store.
Manufacturers often provide high-quality images of their products. However, consider using unique photos that show your product in a real-life setting to stand out from the competition. Differentiate your listings by using images other than the standard ones that many resellers use.
CSS (Comparison Shopping Service) Hosting: Using a CSS partner for Google Shopping can significantly reduce your advertising costs, often by up to 20%. CSS partners act as intermediaries between merchants and Google Shopping, listing products on multiple comparison shopping sites. They receive discounts from Google and pass these savings to merchants, leading to substantial cost reductions and more efficient ad spending.
Check your product listings regularly to ensure your ads aren’t showing for irrelevant keywords. For example, if your golf equipment ad is being triggered by a keyword related to Volkswagen, eliminate it using negative keywords. Don’t hesitate to exclude entire phrases with negative phrase match keywords.
Ratings and reviews are very valuable in the Google Shopping environment. Since Google Shopping ads are highly standardized, a five-star rating can help you stand out. Set up Google Reviews in the Merchant Center and encourage customers to review your products to gain these valuable stars.
Nothing is worse than selling a product that’s out of stock. Ensure your stock levels are updated regularly in the Google Merchant Center. Also, update your feed whenever there are price changes or new products. Consider using automatic item updates for more efficiency.
Google’s latest campaign type, Performance Max Campaigns, displays ads across the internet in various formats. These ads can appear as product images in banners or even as auto-generated videos on YouTube. This can be particularly effective for products with shorter customer decision cycles.
Google Shopping Ads drive traffic to your existing online store, whether that’s Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce or any other eCommerce platform. This means there are no additional set up costs, integrations or administration to get the orders to the end customer.
Get started with Google Shopping ads right away!
