Google has announced that product listings and shopping ads will soon be free to merchants in the United States.
These services will be placed on the same footing as Google Search, where all eligible sites appear free of charge. The changes will be active for all Google users in the U.S. before the end of April.
What Are Google Product Shopping Ads? Product Shopping ads allow you to include an image, title, price, and your store or business name inside your ads, without the need for you to create unique ads for each product you sell. The information in your ad comes from the product data you provide via your Merchant Center account. You can also opt into other Google services, like Merchant Promotions and Trusted Stores, to enhance your ads in other ways. Here’s what Product Shopping ads might look like on different screens:
The benefits are clear:
1.Benefits for Shoppers
Shoppers already perform hundreds of millions of product searches on Google every single day. With that in mind, shoppers will have access to a wider variety of quality products and can make a more informed purchase decision.
2.Benefits for Retailers
Retailers will have the chance to enhance digital commerce as a share of their revenue. This offers them huge opportunities at a time when most physical retail locations are closed and their customers are unable to support them.
3.Benefits for Advertisers
Advertisers who are interested in optimizing their performance across Google will retain all of the features and opportunities of the platform. They will still be able to access detailed analytics on all of their product listings and shopping ads.
How to Opt In For Important Merchant Changes on the Google Network
If you’re an existing user of Merchant Center or Shopping ads, you don’t have to do anything to benefit from the new features. They will be rolled out automatically to all users. New Merchant Center users who sign up in the last week of April will be presented with fresh onboarding resources for the updated merchant experience.
In short, you don’t have to do anything differently to benefit from all Google has to offer its merchants. All merchants in the United States will have access within a few days.
Global expansion of the program is slated to happen before the end of 2020. More details on the countries affected will be available over time.
Google Introduces New Partnership With PayPal
Google will be accelerating the Merchant Center onboarding process through a new partnership with leading digital payment processor PayPal.
By linking Merchant Center to a PayPal account, businesses will enjoy a more seamless payment collection experience. This is expected to make Merchant Center even more accessible for smaller businesses and the self-employed.
We are continuing to monitor Google’s new product announcements and updated user experience.
To find out more direct from our digital marketing experts, contact AIMG.