The Ultimate Guide to Ranking Highly on Google for Shopping Ads

Ranking highly on Google Shopping is crucial for any business looking to succeed in the highly competitive world of ecommerce. With more and more consumers turning to Google as their go-to source for product research and purchases, securing a top spot on the search engine results page can mean the difference between success and failure in today's digital landscape. 

In this guide, we'll provide you with practical tips and strategies on how to optimize your product listings and improve your Google Shopping ranking. With our help, you'll be well on your way to increasing your online sales and achieving your ecommerce goals.

_{What is the "featured" shopping section on Google?}

Google has a wide variety of ways to show products to people. Due to this diversity, it has to be able to differentiate the good listings from the bad. So, it takes the search query and matches it as close as it can to product listings that have plenty of relevant information that Google thinks will benefit the shopper. The featured shopping section on Google is a page full of the most relevant or “best ranked” listings that have either paid for a spot on the front page or are filled with the most relevant information to the topic and are organic. 

What are the differences between paid and organic product listings?

Paid and organic listings have very different roles within Google, but they are both different ways to achieve the same result: the front page of Google. While organic listings are created through Google Merchant Center itself, Paid listings use Google ads to create campaigns for your listings. These use tools like bidding and quality score to rank your ads among your competitors, deciding when they will be shown and where. Organic listings require only the information you have already provided for your products. Google matches the keywords within your listings with search queries and provides the best match possible for the shopper. 

so how does it determine the best matches? Google uses an ingenious system that gathers all of the data from retailers and their products and gives them what is called a Quality Score. Basically, Google analyzes merchant's data and gives it a grade based upon the quality of the information. The result directly affects your ranking in Google.

The quality score can become scarily important over time. They are affected not only by the quality of your product information, but also by the reviews of your store. Meaning your Google shopping ranking can be in more trouble than you think if you’re not tracking the metrics that affect your rankings.

What actually affects Google Shopping rankings?

So, we’ve covered the basics of Google shopping, but we haven’t talked about what actually affects the rank of your product listings, paid or otherwise. Rankings are determined by multiple factors, each with their own requirements. We’re going to take you through them all. 

Product Feed Optimization 

To appear in Google Shopping, retailers must submit a product feed that meets Google's strict requirements. This includes providing detailed and accurate product information such as titles, descriptions, images, pricing, and availability. If your product feed is incomplete or contains errors, your products may not appear in Google Shopping. 

As with paid listings, the quality and completeness of the product data feed can impact the ranking of organic product listings on Google Shopping. Retailers should provide detailed and accurate product information, including titles, descriptions, images, pricing, and availability.

Product Relevance

The relevance of a product to a user's search query can impact its ranking in the product listings. Retailers should optimize their product listings to match the most relevant search queries. 

Product Availability

Products that are in stock and available for purchase are more likely to rank higher in product listings.

User Engagement

User engagement metrics, such as click-through rate (CTR), bounce rate, and time on site, can impact the ranking of product listings. Retailers should optimize their product listings to provide a good user experience that encourages engagement.

Reviews and Ratings

Reviews and ratings can impact the ranking of product listings on Google Shopping. Products with positive reviews and high ratings are more likely to rank higher.

Seller Ratings

Google also considers the seller's reputation when ranking product listings. Retailers with a good reputation and high seller ratings are more likely to rank higher.

Overall, ranking well in organic product listings on Google Shopping requires a comprehensive approach that involves providing detailed and accurate product information, optimizing product listings for relevance, availability, and user engagement, and building a strong reputation through positive reviews and high seller ratings. By optimizing these factors, retailers can increase their chances of success in Google Shopping's organic and paid product listings.

What can sellers do to improve search rankings on Google Shopping?

A multitude of factors affect where and when your products show up, or if they show up at all. Here are some ways you can control your quality and improve your rankings:

Optimize Product Data Feed

A complete and accurate product data feed is crucial for organic rankings. Sellers should ensure that their product data feed includes all the relevant information about their products, such as product title, description, images, pricing, and availability. Additionally, use high-quality images and ensure that the product information is up-to-date and consistent across all channels.

Use Relevant Keywords

Using relevant keywords can help improve the visibility of your products. Use relevant, specific and targeted keywords in the product title and description to make it easier for customers to find your products.

Optimize Product Landing Pages

Ensure that the product landing page is optimized for the product and the keyword. The landing page should have relevant product information, high-quality images, and a clear call-to-action.

Encourage Customer Reviews

Reviews and ratings can impact the ranking of product listings. Encourage customers to leave reviews and ratings on your product listings to improve the visibility and ranking of your products.

Offer Competitive Pricing

Pricing can be a factor in determining the ranking of product listings. Offer competitive pricing to improve the chances of your products ranking higher.

Monitor and Optimize Performance

Continuously monitor the performance of your product listings and adjust your strategy accordingly. Monitor metrics such as click-through rate (CTR), bounce rate, and time on site and make changes to your product listings to improve these metrics.

By following these tips, sellers can optimize their product listings to improve their chances of ranking well in product listings on Google Shopping, which can lead to increased visibility, more clicks, and higher sales.

Attributes that most affect feed optimization

Carefully evaluating and optimizing key attributes can improve the relevance and visibility of your products in search results, ultimately changing your ranking. Here are the key attributes that are affecting your feeds:

Product Category:

The product category is an essential attribute in the product data feed. Assigning the correct product category to your products can help improve their visibility and ranking on Google Shopping. Ensure that you choose the most relevant category for your product and use the full path of the category. 

Title

The product title is one of the most important attributes in the product data feed. It should be clear, concise and include relevant keywords. Use the product name, brand, and other relevant attributes in the title. Limit the title to 150 characters or less to ensure that it is fully visible on Google Shopping.

Image Link and Additional Image Link

Images are critical in helping customers make purchase decisions. Use high-quality images that are at least 800 x 800 pixels and include multiple angles and zoom features. Use descriptive file names for the images and ensure that the image links are working correctly.

Description

The product description should be detailed, accurate and include all the essential features and benefits of the product. Use bullet points to make it easier to read and highlight the most important information. Limit the description to 5,000 characters or less.

Price

The price of the product is an essential attribute in the product data feed. Ensure that the price is accurate, up-to-date and competitive. If you offer any discounts or promotions, include them in the feed.

By optimizing these feed attributes, sellers can provide detailed and accurate product information to Google, which can help improve the visibility and ranking of their products in organic product listings on Google Shopping. Additionally, ensure that the product data feed is up-to-date and consistent across all channels to avoid any issues that can impact the ranking of your products.

Wrap-up

Ranking high on Google Shopping can provide a variety of benefits to sellers. It can increase visibility, drive more traffic to their website, and ultimately increase sales and revenue. By investing time and effort into improving their product data attributes, inserting keywords, improving landing pages, and optimizing their website for Google Shopping, sellers can increase their chances of ranking higher in product listings. Leading to higher click-through rates, increased brand recognition, and improved sales performance.

The true power of paid and organic listings is that they can break through the noise, either through bidding or product optimizations. So, whether you choose to focus on organic listings, paid listings, or a combination of both, remember that with the right strategy and execution, you can achieve your goals and take your business to the next level.