If you have already heard about it and are used to using tools such as Mercado Libre, Bondfaro and Zoom, you will have no difficulty understanding what Google Shopping is about.
The price shopper market became very popular, especially because of the organization, practicality, and intelligence that the platforms offer for shopping searches made by the public.
Also Read: Give your business a boost with Google Ads
With an eye to this trend, Google launched Google Shopping in 2011. The company’s entry into this segment added even more value to the consumer experience of its users.
In the end, for the consumer it was not only improved by comparing prices and analyzing products by Google’s search results, but also because the competition had to improve resources a lot to attract clicks from the public.
But, in this text, our focus is Google Shopping. Therefore, in the next few lines, you will understand more about the operation and advantages of this platform. Join us!
What is Google Shopping?
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Google Shopping is nothing more than a virtual showcase of products from registered stores. It is as if it were an online shopping.
It executes functions similar to Zoom. The difference is that it integrates directly into Google, that is, depending on the search performed, Google Shopping products appear in the sponsored search results.
In addition to that, Google Shopping also has its own page . There, people can search for products by category, brand, or use the bar to do a more specific search.
For now, Google Shopping is available for:
- Germany
- Argentina
- Australia
- Austria
- Belgium
- Brazil
- Chile
- Denmark
- Spain
- U.S
- France
- Japan
- Italy
- Mexico
- Norway
- Netherlands
- Poland
- UK
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- Turkey
How does it work?
To understand how it works, we go to Google and search for “digital camera” (it can be another product too):
You perceive that Google Shopping results appear before sponsored links. These highlight a photo, title or price of the product, in addition to the store you are advertising.
If you click on “Google Shopping Results for …”, a more complete Google Shopping page will open and the results will appear with more information
On the side tab of the page, consumers will be able to specify their searches according to price, brands, technical characteristics of products and stores.
Advertisers who want to see their products being displayed in these spaces, must pay Google.
To enroll, you will need to create an account in the Google Merchant Center and integrate it into your Google Adwords registration .
In fact, it is through Adwords itself that you configure your campaign and establish the amounts, offers and budget.
What should be highlighted is that in the development of the campaign, your ads are not displayed based on keywords . The determining variables are the attributes of the registered products.
Therefore, the more detailed the product information provided by Google Shopping, the more the search engine will be able to (even more) create a closer match with the searches made by the public.
But what is this information?
Below, you will find a list with the main data to be attributed to the products:
- Unique product identifiers (Can be SKUs);
- Product names;
- Description of the products;
- Landing pages in the store;
- URLs for main and additional images;
- Product availability;
- Product display deadline;
- Promotional prices;
- Dues;
- Measurements and dimensions;
- Product categories defined by Google and by you;
- Brand name, etc.
The other data and attribution models for this information can be found in the Google Merchant Center help center .
Those data must be sent in an XML file, which is a format that can be created from an Excel spreadsheet, for example. The information needs to be updated in a maximum of 30 days.
What are the benefits of Google Shopping for companies?
To understand how retailers can bill more using this ad platform, let’s briefly delve into the benefits.
For that, we select 5 benefits of Google Shopping for you to look at:
1. Increased traffic in the virtual store
Since Google Shopping results are the first to be displayed in search results, it is natural that they will attract more interest from the public.
The click-through rate tends to be higher than for text ads.
Also Read What is an anchor text?
Users have access, at first glance, to data with prices and product images, two of the factors that weigh most when choosing what to click and buy.
2. Top rated leads
People who search for a product on Google and analyze the options that Shopping promotes are because they are already in more advanced sales funnel practices .
In this phase, they need little information to continue with the intention of buying.
For example, the consumer who searches for “digital camera” has, at least, a purchase interest, right?
By having access to the price, photo, store, fees and even the evaluations of other clients, they will be able to decide whether or not the product corresponds to their expectations.
And that brings us to the next benefit:
3. More conversions
Sales will be higher because the visitors who come to your store, through Google Shopping, will already be in an even more advanced phase compared to when they started the search a few seconds or minutes before.
This is because it has already filtered and considered the conditions of the product. Therefore, the consumer will be much closer to converting that desire into a purchase.
Only the most typical characteristics of the store, such as the usability of the site, the means of payment and the check-out steps can make it difficult to acquire new customers.
4. Greater presence in searches
One of the coolest things about Google Shopping is that your ads can divide space with your company’s sponsored links.
If the two campaigns are relevant, with tight offers and well-defined settings, the ads can appear at the same time.
With that, the site would gain more exposure and attract more clicks.
5. Detailed monitoring of the performance of your products
Another very cool Google Shopping resource is the performance analysis reports.
These are so efficient and detailed that they can show, for example, the product categories, the technical characteristics or the brands that most generate clicks and conversions.
In short, all the attribution parameters of the products also serve as an analysis category.
In addition to that, it is possible to collect information on the performance of the competition to make market comparisons.
From these analyzes, groups composed only of products that convert the most can be created.
That attitude, for example, optimizes your investment, since a higher offer value would be destined for products that, in fact, generate high profitability for your business.
Google Shopping emerged as an interesting alternative for both consumers and businesses. For users, price comparison and product search is easier.
For advertisers, this is a great opportunity to promote your offerings in the noblest space of Google results.
If you still doubt the efficiency of that platform, just do a product search and look at how many other stores and companies are already advertising their offers.
If the service is already working as a reference in the market, it will undoubtedly be a sure way to follow in your marketing plan .
Since the use of Google Shopping is linked to Adwords, there is nothing more appropriate than knowing a little about the Google ad platform.
