If you are an Amazon seller, there is a great chance that you are already familiar with sales optimization techniques and strategies. You may deem Amazon and Google as competitors. But in reality, you may also use Google Shopping to your advantage to optimize your Amazon sales.
Google Shopping is a service provided by Google to customers. Consumers can use it to search, view, and compare various products. The product that the consumers search for appears on the main search page, or under the shopping tab on Google.
It is important to note that Google shopping is not another marketplace but rather an advertising platform. Google shopping combines the features of two of Google’s platforms: Google Ads and Google Merchant Center.
While Google Ads is an entirely different thing, Google Merchant Center is where the real action takes place. Google Merchant Center is your product feed. The product feed contains the list and details of your products. This includes the title, price, product description, category, and product type.
Benefits of Google Shopping for Amazon Sellers
1. Communication with Customers
Brands have claimed that they were better connected with customers when they used Google Shopping campaigns. They were also able to launch new hot, favorite products on demand and have gained a huge number of customers.
2. Data Analysis
Google Analytics helps you better understand your customers and their needs.
3. Successful Upsell Offers
Some sellers have experienced huge successful upsell sales. They were able to convert break-even paid traffic to profitable traffic and earn from it.
4. Email Marketing
Sellers can utilize Google Shopping Ads to obtain an email list of prospects. These can be used in email marketing especially when launching a new product.
5. Eye-Catching Ads
Google Shopping provides consumers a prominent preview of the product search results to help them make purchase decisions. For example, instead of searching on Google for shopping tips, the image and valuable information regarding the product helps consumers decide as they see the ads.
What is Google Shopping Feed?
Google Shopping feed is the product feed. As mentioned earlier, it is a spreadsheet that holds all the information regarding your product. It describes and organizes your product catalog in a way that Google can easily crawl and interpret.
Shopping campaigns work slightly differently than standard search engines. Instead of bidding on keywords like search advertisers, Google systematically visits advertisers’ websites and feeds on the data. It then decides which ads are relevant to the search queries, based on the strength and details of your Google shopping feed.
Ways to Optimize Google Shopping Feed
1. Product Title
If you could only optimize one thing in your product listing, it should be your title. The product title is hyperlinked text at the top of your shopping ad.
When Google searches for relevant products, titles are the first things it compares the search queries with. However, this does not mean that you bombard the product title with all the relevant keywords. You should rather focus on one keyword and use it efficiently in the title.
The title should be detailed. This point should especially be kept in mind because consumers tend to search long-tailed queries when they are ready to buy the product. Sellers need to ensure that their titles are convincing. If the titles are captivating enough, only then the consumer will proceed further.
Sellers can optimize titles by including important characteristics of the product such as brand, size, color, and your target keyword.
If you are a brick-and-mortar seller who has an online presence, make sure you are not using your store’s product title. Title optimization should be your first priority. A poor title throws your product into an endless abyss of lost impressions.
2. Attractive Image
Product image is the element that grabs the consumer’s attention. Customers are attracted to high-quality and professional images. Image optimization is important because this is what associates your brand with its quality.
Sellers can check off the following points when optimizing their product image:
It is not a stock/manufacturer photo
It has a high-resolution
It does not have any watermark, logo, or additional text
White background is preferred
Image should highlight your product’s best attributes
3. Complete Description
Google allows space for 5000 characters for product descriptions. However, this is way less than the user will ever read. The optimum character limit is considered from 500 to 1000.
After the title of your product, the product description is the second thing that google goes through when relating it with search inquiry. This is your chance to utilize the second-tier or less important keywords.
As mentioned earlier, do not force your keywords into the description, as it makes it look spammy. Rather make your descriptions more detailed and thorough. Try to use the secondary keywords as close to the beginning of the description as possible.
However, sellers need to keep in mind that lengthy product descriptions are often perceived as the shallow quality of the product by consumers. So, the bottom line is to keep product descriptions detailed, concise, and to the point. Include the information that your buyer would want to know and have concerns about.
4. Product Category
Product categories are very important when it comes to the relevancy of your product with search inquiries. Google takes your product category into consideration when it comes to populating shopping search results. It is a backend attribute. This means the category that you chose for your product is not displayed in the ad.
Assigning a category to your product makes it eligible for advertising. We advise you to include even the most specific sub-sub-sub category from Google Product Taxonomy (GPT) for better results. Narrowing it down is very important. It can be better understood by the following example:
If you are selling baby sock then instead of “Apparel & Accessories > Clothing”, categorize them as “Apparel & Accessories > Clothing > Baby & Toddler Clothing > Baby & Toddler Socks & Tights”
5. Product Type
Product type is not to be confused with Product Category. While the categories are defined by Google in the Product Category, Product Type is what the seller determines.
Although there are around 6000 categories and subcategories in GPT, as a seller, you will find yourself wishing to be more precise. This is where Product Type plays its role.
Product type is optional. But for maximum relevance, it should be considered seriously. Product Types lets you portray your product in an even better light.
If you sell niche products, this feature is especially crucial for you. Such products do not necessarily belong to a category, for example, a TV show merchandise. You are going to need to assign it a product type.
6. GTIN/Product ID
GTIN stands for Google Trade Item Number. GTIN are identification numbers assigned to trade items that Google uses globally.
We have established that your product is more likely to appear in the search result if you add more relevant information to your product listings. When you attach a GTIN number to your product, you provide another way for your product identification.
This additional data enables Google to compare your product to its catalog and make it more relevant.
7. Price, Condition, and Status
Mentioning the price of your product is a requirement on sellers’ Google Shopping Feed. It is important to be familiar with the cost of the product by other sellers. This will help you set a competitive price.
In addition to this, it is important that you keep the availability (in stock, out of stock, or available for preorder) and condition (new or old) of your product up-to-date.
Use of Negative Keywords in eCommerce Sales
A negative keyword is a keyword that prevents your ad from showing up when that word is searched for.
As we have discussed earlier, shopping campaigns do not run by comparing keywords, but rather they match the search queries with product data.
Therefore, it is for Google to decide which product is relevant to the search query. This can also result in some wrong decisions. This is where the negative keywords come in. Shoppers could be looking for something barely related to a term relevant to your product. Google may pull up your product, which the shopper will obviously ignore.
Let’s take an example:
Let’s say your business sells exclusively formal footwear. Someone is searching for a pair of walking shoes. They should not be shown your listings, because it is completely unnecessary and irrelevant to them. Since Google is not perfect, it shows them your ad and they accidentally click on it. Now, you have to pay for a click that is not even close to conversion.
This is not even the worst case. Not only can you end up losing money if this happens repeatedly, but because of poor conversion rates, Google may decide that your product doesn’t deserve a high-quality score.
Now is the time for negative keywords to play their role. In the same example, using ‘walking shoes’ or ‘gym footwear’ etc. can be used as negative keywords so that the consumer does not land on your product.
It is important that you frequently revisit this section of your product listing and keep it updated to optimize your sales.
Final Thoughts
Google Shopping Campaign is not something you set and forget. It requires constant touch-ups and improvement for a smooth performance. By optimizing product listings consistently, you can optimize your sales on Amazon as well. Using the two biggest search engines efficiently will not only generate revenue but will also drive profit.
Looking to scale your business on online marketplaces such as Amazon and Walmart? Contact us today for a free consultation.
How to Use Google Shopping to Optimize Sales
If you are an Amazon seller, there is a great chance that you are already familiar with sales optimization techniques and strategies. You may deem Amazon and Google as competitors. But in reality, you may also use Google Shopping to your advantage to optimize your Amazon sales.
Amazon Shopping vs. Google Shopping
Google and Amazon have always been neck-to-neck when it comes to people’s favorite search engine. Google had always emerged as the dominant search engine, until recently when Amazon surpassed Google. Statistics show that 47% of consumers start their product search from Amazon, while 35% start off from Google.
While as important as Amazon is, Google is just as important to sellers. Around 300 million Americans use the internet, now out of them, nearly 100 million turn to google to look for a product. This shows the significance of Google as a search engine.
What is Google Shopping?
Google Shopping is a service provided by Google to customers. Consumers can use it to search, view, and compare various products. The product that the consumers search for appears on the main search page, or under the shopping tab on Google.
It is important to note that Google shopping is not another marketplace but rather an advertising platform. Google shopping combines the features of two of Google’s platforms: Google Ads and Google Merchant Center.
While Google Ads is an entirely different thing, Google Merchant Center is where the real action takes place. Google Merchant Center is your product feed. The product feed contains the list and details of your products. This includes the title, price, product description, category, and product type.
Benefits of Google Shopping for Amazon Sellers
1. Communication with Customers
Brands have claimed that they were better connected with customers when they used Google Shopping campaigns. They were also able to launch new hot, favorite products on demand and have gained a huge number of customers.
2. Data Analysis
Google Analytics helps you better understand your customers and their needs.
3. Successful Upsell Offers
Some sellers have experienced huge successful upsell sales. They were able to convert break-even paid traffic to profitable traffic and earn from it.
4. Email Marketing
Sellers can utilize Google Shopping Ads to obtain an email list of prospects. These can be used in email marketing especially when launching a new product.
5. Eye-Catching Ads
Google Shopping provides consumers a prominent preview of the product search results to help them make purchase decisions. For example, instead of searching on Google for shopping tips, the image and valuable information regarding the product helps consumers decide as they see the ads.
What is Google Shopping Feed?
Google Shopping feed is the product feed. As mentioned earlier, it is a spreadsheet that holds all the information regarding your product. It describes and organizes your product catalog in a way that Google can easily crawl and interpret.
Shopping campaigns work slightly differently than standard search engines. Instead of bidding on keywords like search advertisers, Google systematically visits advertisers’ websites and feeds on the data. It then decides which ads are relevant to the search queries, based on the strength and details of your Google shopping feed.
Ways to Optimize Google Shopping Feed
1. Product Title
If you could only optimize one thing in your product listing, it should be your title. The product title is hyperlinked text at the top of your shopping ad.
When Google searches for relevant products, titles are the first things it compares the search queries with. However, this does not mean that you bombard the product title with all the relevant keywords. You should rather focus on one keyword and use it efficiently in the title.
The title should be detailed. This point should especially be kept in mind because consumers tend to search long-tailed queries when they are ready to buy the product. Sellers need to ensure that their titles are convincing. If the titles are captivating enough, only then the consumer will proceed further.
Sellers can optimize titles by including important characteristics of the product such as brand, size, color, and your target keyword.
If you are a brick-and-mortar seller who has an online presence, make sure you are not using your store’s product title. Title optimization should be your first priority. A poor title throws your product into an endless abyss of lost impressions.
2. Attractive Image
Product image is the element that grabs the consumer’s attention. Customers are attracted to high-quality and professional images. Image optimization is important because this is what associates your brand with its quality.
Sellers can check off the following points when optimizing their product image:
3. Complete Description
Google allows space for 5000 characters for product descriptions. However, this is way less than the user will ever read. The optimum character limit is considered from 500 to 1000.
After the title of your product, the product description is the second thing that google goes through when relating it with search inquiry. This is your chance to utilize the second-tier or less important keywords.
As mentioned earlier, do not force your keywords into the description, as it makes it look spammy. Rather make your descriptions more detailed and thorough. Try to use the secondary keywords as close to the beginning of the description as possible.
However, sellers need to keep in mind that lengthy product descriptions are often perceived as the shallow quality of the product by consumers. So, the bottom line is to keep product descriptions detailed, concise, and to the point. Include the information that your buyer would want to know and have concerns about.
4. Product Category
Product categories are very important when it comes to the relevancy of your product with search inquiries. Google takes your product category into consideration when it comes to populating shopping search results. It is a backend attribute. This means the category that you chose for your product is not displayed in the ad.
Assigning a category to your product makes it eligible for advertising. We advise you to include even the most specific sub-sub-sub category from Google Product Taxonomy (GPT) for better results. Narrowing it down is very important. It can be better understood by the following example:
If you are selling baby sock then instead of “Apparel & Accessories > Clothing”, categorize them as “Apparel & Accessories > Clothing > Baby & Toddler Clothing > Baby & Toddler Socks & Tights”
5. Product Type
Product type is not to be confused with Product Category. While the categories are defined by Google in the Product Category, Product Type is what the seller determines.
Although there are around 6000 categories and subcategories in GPT, as a seller, you will find yourself wishing to be more precise. This is where Product Type plays its role.
Product type is optional. But for maximum relevance, it should be considered seriously. Product Types lets you portray your product in an even better light.
If you sell niche products, this feature is especially crucial for you. Such products do not necessarily belong to a category, for example, a TV show merchandise. You are going to need to assign it a product type.
6. GTIN/Product ID
GTIN stands for Google Trade Item Number. GTIN are identification numbers assigned to trade items that Google uses globally.
We have established that your product is more likely to appear in the search result if you add more relevant information to your product listings. When you attach a GTIN number to your product, you provide another way for your product identification.
This additional data enables Google to compare your product to its catalog and make it more relevant.
7. Price, Condition, and Status
Mentioning the price of your product is a requirement on sellers’ Google Shopping Feed. It is important to be familiar with the cost of the product by other sellers. This will help you set a competitive price.
In addition to this, it is important that you keep the availability (in stock, out of stock, or available for preorder) and condition (new or old) of your product up-to-date.
Use of Negative Keywords in eCommerce Sales
A negative keyword is a keyword that prevents your ad from showing up when that word is searched for.
As we have discussed earlier, shopping campaigns do not run by comparing keywords, but rather they match the search queries with product data.
Therefore, it is for Google to decide which product is relevant to the search query. This can also result in some wrong decisions. This is where the negative keywords come in. Shoppers could be looking for something barely related to a term relevant to your product. Google may pull up your product, which the shopper will obviously ignore.
Let’s take an example:
Let’s say your business sells exclusively formal footwear. Someone is searching for a pair of walking shoes. They should not be shown your listings, because it is completely unnecessary and irrelevant to them. Since Google is not perfect, it shows them your ad and they accidentally click on it. Now, you have to pay for a click that is not even close to conversion.
This is not even the worst case. Not only can you end up losing money if this happens repeatedly, but because of poor conversion rates, Google may decide that your product doesn’t deserve a high-quality score.
Now is the time for negative keywords to play their role. In the same example, using ‘walking shoes’ or ‘gym footwear’ etc. can be used as negative keywords so that the consumer does not land on your product.
It is important that you frequently revisit this section of your product listing and keep it updated to optimize your sales.
Final Thoughts
Google Shopping Campaign is not something you set and forget. It requires constant touch-ups and improvement for a smooth performance. By optimizing product listings consistently, you can optimize your sales on Amazon as well. Using the two biggest search engines efficiently will not only generate revenue but will also drive profit.
Looking to scale your business on online marketplaces such as Amazon and Walmart? Contact us today for a free consultation.
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