The concept of Google Shopping begun as Froogle in 2002 as introduced by Craig Nevill-Manning. Basically a price comparison service for all-purpose products sought after by the general population, it was distinctive in its method as it used Google’s web crawler to extract product data from vendor websites. The service was promoted as Google Shopping 10 years later and brought changes in its working model. With the advent of Google Shopping, merchants have to pay (through Product Listing Ads) to have their products listed for the service.
Today, Google shopping can be described as an integration of two Google tools – Google Merchant Center and Google AdWords. It functions just as before – to allow users to search and compare prices of products from different vendors. The search results include an image, title, description, business name and other fields to describe the product in a way that exactly suits the buyer audience. Through Google Shopping, your products are displayed on Google, other sites and also mobile interfaces. A simple process that occurs in two major sections allows for smooth enrolment and you are only charged once your product is clicked.
The first step is to create a Google Merchant Center Account. Google Merchant center is a complimentary tool to AdWords where you upload your inventory to permit is availability on other Google tools. Before setting up an account in Merchant center, you need to have a working website that represents your online store as this is where your customers will be redirected. You may use the link: google.com/merchants or set it through Google AdWords by selecting Merchant Center under the Tools section. By default, Google allows one store per merchant center account. You may run multiple stores in one account by contacting Google through a designed process. Each store is given a unique ID by Google which is known as the Merchant identifier. The account set up includes fields such as business location, store name, website and contact details. Before you complete the process, you will be required to verify your website.
Image source: docs.magento.com
Once the Merchant center account is set up, you may now set up the Google Shopping campaign in AdWords. Once you login to your AdWords account, click the campaign drop down menu (in the campaigns tab) and select Shopping. You will be prompted to set up your campaign by giving it a name, selecting your merchant identifier ID, country of sale and locations of target. Once this is done, set up an Adgroup that will contain the product group. This product group will contain all the products that you wish to display. You may set up the bids according to your business insights. Variations can be done in the AdWords settings so that you have multiple product groups with varying bids.
Image source: support.google.com
Google Shopping set up is as simple as that! But its benefits are great as they allow you as a vendor and your products to be broadcasted widely to an appropriate set of audience which drives in relevant results for your business. For any further information on Google AdWords, Merchant center or Google Shopping, please contact us on info@bmconsulting.in. You may also visit our website www.bmconsulting.in to get further insights.