Google Shopping in the Service of E-commerce
PLA campaigns, considering their specificity, are used in e-commerce and allow for thinking about increasing sales. Both large stores and entrepreneurs just starting in e-business benefit from Google Shopping. Google Shopping, operating on principles similar to price comparison websites, is an effective way to acquire potential customers who don’t yet know your store but are looking for products you offer. Take advantage of the many years of experience of PPC specialists at Upseo.net Agency in running effective PLA campaigns and successfully increase your online sales!
At the core of Google Shopping’s operation is the need to reach potential customers as quickly as possible with the specific product they are looking for. Regardless of the size of the online store, PLA campaigns have a good chance of increasing valuable traffic to the e-commerce site, and more importantly, they increase the possibility of purchases by potential customers. PLA ads allow displaying the online store’s offer directly in search results as a response to the user’s query entered into the search engine. As a result, there is a constantly growing interest in Google Shopping among entrepreneurs. Moreover, using various PPC campaigns and SEO for the online store as part of promotion allows simultaneous display in search results of:
- organic results,
- text ads,
- PLA graphic ads.
This means optimal filling of the search results page with the e-store’s offer and the possibility of increasing sales levels. Google Shopping has many advantages. In addition to the possibility of simultaneously displaying one entrepreneur’s offer in several places on the search results page, we can also mention:
- precise information for the customer – PLA campaigns are based on the so-called product feed, which contains the most important information for potential buyers – product image, name, and price;
- shortening the purchase path – clicking on a product ad takes the user directly to the product card on the seller’s website, where they can make a purchase – the risk of distraction or getting lost on the site is eliminated;
- attractive product presentation – using graphics presented in the online store facilitates and accelerates the process of creating ads – ads look attractive and readable for the customer;
- visibility in many places – PLA ads are displayed in search results, the advertising network, partner sites, YouTube, or Google Images – huge possibilities thanks to one creation;
- ease of campaign management – billing the campaign in the CPC (Cost Per Click) system allows for effective management of advertising expenditure and conversion cost.
Google Shopping, being a relatively young form of advertising within Google Ads, thanks to its efficiency and effectiveness, is the object of growing interest from e-store owners. The ability to reach a potential customer with a product they are currently looking for, in an attractive form, and minimizing the purchasing process, has an undeniable positive impact on increasing e-commerce sales levels. If you’re interested in including PLA campaigns in your marketing strategy for your online store, contact us and start your journey towards success in online commerce.
Google Shopping - How Does It Work?
To achieve its intended goal of increasing sales, a Google Shopping campaign should be conducted based on a precisely outlined marketing strategy. When preparing an advertising strategy, the following elements should not be forgotten:
- Quality and price of promoted products,
- Market competition,
- Target group – customers.
Precisely defining the above strategy elements allows you to proceed with creating, configuring, and optimizing PLA campaigns. It’s not a complicated process, but it requires attention and an appropriate level of detail. Preparing a Google Shopping advertising campaign must be based on the following actions:
- Properly prepared online store – this is the basic element that affects the effectiveness of PLA campaigns. The website should be fully functional, readable, easy to navigate and search for products, as well as adapted for use on mobile devices. The functionality and quality of the online store should be continuously monitored and necessary changes that may affect the reduction of these features should be introduced.
- Installation of SSL (Secure Socket Layer) certificate on the website – the requirement to install an SSL certificate is due to the need to guarantee complete privacy and protection of data transmitted by users. It’s important that the installed certificate guarantees encryption of both the main page and individual subdomains in the service. Also, don’t forget to secure the online transaction system for card payments, transfers, or external systems, such as PayPal.
- Setting up and configuring a Google Merchant Center account – campaigns within Google Shopping are conducted through Google Merchant Center, which should be linked to a Google Ads account.
Preparing an up-to-date product list – displaying store products to potentially interested users requires creating a detailed database containing necessary information. This is the so-called product list or file.
Product Feed in Google Shopping - Basic Database for Advertising Activities
A product file or product list is a compilation of all promoted products, containing detailed information in the form of mandatory and additional (optional) attributes. The structure of the product file is specifically defined by Google Shopping and should contain the following basic data:
- Product identification number – each product must have an unchanging, individually assigned number,
- Product title – maximum 150 characters; the product title should correspond to the title of the product subpage,
- Product description – maximum 5000 characters; individual product description consistent with its description on the product subpage,
- Link to the product – precise indication of the target product page,
- High-quality product image – more precisely, a link directing to the product image (you can add additional product images and links to images optimized for display on mobile devices), number,
- Availability – information must be consistent with the store’s inventory status,
- Price – precise information regarding the purchase price; must be consistent with the information on the product’s target page,
- Product category – detailed group to which the product is classified
- Product brand marking – precise indication of the manufacturer of the sold product,
- GTIN number – Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) of the product,
- MPN number – assigned by the manufacturer,
- Product condition – actual, current condition of the product; value required when selling new and used products,
- Shipping – necessary to enter the total cost of delivering the product to the buyer.
Full specification of product data, along with defining their formats and summarizing minimum requirements, is available in the Google Merchant Center help system.
The product list can be prepared in various ways:
- In the form of a spreadsheet generated by Google,
- Manually by filling in all data in the file,
- Generating the file directly from the online store.
Regardless of how the product file is generated, remember to update it cyclically.
Cooperation with the Upseo.net SEO/SEM Internet Marketing Agency ensures the highest level of service within PLA campaigns. Our services are characterized by comprehensive cooperation, which includes, among others:
- setting up and configuring a Google Merchant Center account and connecting it to Google Ads,
- creating and optimizing the product file,
- precise configuration of PLA campaigns, including budget determination and bid optimization,
- ongoing management, analysis, and optimization of campaigns.
If you’re looking for a professional partner to collaborate with on Google Ads campaigns, contact us. Cooperation with PPC specialists from the Upseo.net SEO/SEM Internet Marketing Agency ensures an effective PLA campaign for your online store.
