Advanced Google Shopping Strategies

If you want to succeed as a retailer a successful strategy is essential, especially when you consider the fact that 56% of Google PPC budget is spent on shopping. That’s right: In the USA, Shopping is more popular than search.

To help you get the most out of Google Shopping, here I have put together a few tips outlining some advanced techniques that advertisers can leverage to find success in the highly competitive world of eCommerce.

Segment campaigns based on intention

Create several campaigns with different bidding strategies: Branded Campaign, Non-Branded Campaign, Low Impression Share Campaign etc.

Keep pricing competitive

Use the data that Adwords provides in dimensions and test bids extensively

bid more on high performing Item IDs and less on low performing shopping Item Ids
segment bi Item IDs
create specific campaign for Item IDs which are not showing at all in the general campaigns

Optimize the title in the merchant feed

Titles should be keyword-rich, descriptive, and under 70 characters. For example, for apparel products you would want to include the brand, style, and gender (if applicable) of the product.
A strong title that will fit nicely in the limited space provided by ads(currently 70 characters) might be “Patagonia Women’s Down Jacket.” If you need to have a longer title, be wary of truncation, and front-load any key terms so that if the title is truncated the critical item details show.
Avoid using overly descriptive or editorial language such as “High quality & Gorgeous Patagonia down jacket”. Your products will serve best when using simple and product focused language.

Use The Correct Google Product Category

Download the Google Product Taxonomy and make sure that every product has been given the most specific product category available. Products will still be approved with general categorizations, such as Apparel & Accessories > Clothing, but using the most specific category will allow Google to better group your product with other similar products.

The Google Product Categories are similar to UPIs in that you and your competitors should be submitting the same values for each product — giving Google another form of grouping your product with other competing products. Google updates the product taxonomy every three months so it’s a good idea to check back periodically and make sure that Google didn’t add a new category that is more specific or a better fit for your products.