Google Shopping feed: the guide to create and import a quality product file

You just opened a Google Merchant Center account, the next step is to create and import a Google Shopping feed. It is a file of information about your products that helps Google understand what you are selling.

Contents:

• • The attributes of your Shopping feed
  • Import the product feed into Merchant Center
  • Tips and advice to optimize a Google Shopping feed

The attributes of your Shopping feed

The attributes are a set of information about the products you sell: picture, description, availability, delivery costs, price...

When they are well completed and optimized:

• • • • They enable Google to create effective ads and product listings
      • They make visitors want to buy the products
      • They facilitate their rise on search engines’ results

While some are considered mandatory, others remain optional. They mainly depend on the type of product you are selling. 

Here are the 8 attributes that you must fill in when creating a product feed in Google Shopping:

• • • • Id [identifier]: unique product identifier
      • Title [title]: product name
      • Description [description]: product description
      • Link [link]: product landing page
      • Image_link [image_link]: URL of the product’s main image
      • Availability [availability]: product availability
      • Availability_​date [availability_​date]: date on which a pre-ordered or restocked product can be shipped
      • Price [price]: product price

If you want to add more information, go to the product data specifications page product data specifications page and follow the instructions.

Import the product feed into Merchant Center

To create a first feed in Google Shopping, go to the left menu of the Google Merchant Center account, select the "Products" tab, then "Feeds".

Then, import the product feed using one of the following three options:

• • • • Through a spreadsheet
      • Through an XML file
      • Through the Google’s API

The first option is the easiest and the one recommended by Google. It is particularly suitable for traders who have a small catalog of products.

Image source: https://blog.octave.biz/google-shopping-comment-ca-marche/

Tips and advice to optimize a Google Shopping feed

If you want your Google Shopping ads to appear on the right search queries, make sure to optimize them like SEO.  

Product title

The product title is the first item to fill in the feed. So, it is very likely that Google considers it as important!

Make sure you observe the following points:

• • • • Fill in the most important information at the beginning of the title
      • Include strong keywords
      • Enter the brand name
      • Indicate the product’s characteristics: size, color, gender, age, fabric..

Product description

Google uses the product description to trigger the ad on Google Shopping. So, make it: 

• • • • Precise: work more on the long tail
      • Self-explanatory: think about the keywords the customers are using when they search online
      • Clear: explain how the product works
      • Concise: provide as much detail as possible within the limit of 5,000 characters.

And like Google's advice, use the same description for the products as the one on the landing page.

Product categories and subcategories

When you create a product in the Google Merchant Center, it is automatically assigned a category among the 6,000 offered by Google. 

Thus, the more precise titles and descriptions are, the more likely the products will appear correctly within the right category.

Images

The image is very often the first thing a potential customer sees. It is on this basis that he/she makes impulsive decisions. That’s why choosing a good image is essential:

• • • • Follow the size requirements provided by Google:
    • • • Non-clothing images: at least 100x100 pixels
        • Garment image: at least 250x250 pixels
        • No image over 64 megapixels
        • No image files larger than 16MB
    • • Offer an accurate and complete representation of the product
      • Provide an image of all the products in a bundle, in case you are selling a bundle
      • Use an image that clearly shows the product being sold
      • Add a unique image for each variant
      • Use the highest quality images possible
      • Frame the product correctly within the image
      • Use a plain white or transparent background

Creating and importing a feed into Google Merchant Center is quick and easy. Now you are ready to sell and make money with Google Shopping!

   Article written by Louis Chevant