Insights on Branded & Non-Branded PLAs by Optimizing Your Google Product Listing Ad Campaigns.

Google Shopping Ads, also called Product Listings Ads (PLAs), which are an efficient and affordable way to drives sales for the businesses. It helps to capture customers moment of their shopping intent due to their prominent placement on search results pages and with their visual format. Google Shopping campaigns are often lumped in with traditionally paid search campaigns, but they’re actually quite different. Yes, they’re based on a cost per click pricing model. And yes, they can be managed within the AdWords interface. But that’s really where the similarities end. To be successful with Product Listing Ad campaigns, you need a unique strategy and specific tactics to complement the other marketing campaigns you undergo in your e-commerce platform.

Product listing Ads are targeted by products and product categories, not keywords. Advertisers set a bid on a product, and then Google decides which keywords are relevant such as product name, category, image, pricing, color, size, availability, brand, and description.

Here are some important tips for managing and optimizing your Google Shopping campaigns.

• Optimize Your Feed with  Tactics

SEO, the most important element in your campaigns (Title or a feed manager), including brand name, color, size and material in the product title make sure your title, as well as the description, should be clear, descriptive and useful for the customer.

• Product Images

Ensure that each product has a relevant and targeted image. Use photos that differentiate your product from others listed in Google Shopping ads, helping your ad stand out among the competition.

• Include Negative Keywords

Add negative keywords to indicate which should not be shown on. Start by adding known irrelevant terms, then continue to review your search terms report to identify low performing terms. Negative keywords can be used at the campaign level or added to specific ad groups. An easy place to start is borrowing some of the negative match tactics used in your Adwords ads.

• Eligible for Ratings & Review Count

Sometimes Google will show a star rating and review count under the product title in PLAs. These ratings can help to make your ad stand out, and showcase the quality of your product. The ratings and reviews are aggregated from multiple sources.

• Best Selling Products

You should focus on your best selling products. Consult your BigCommerce analytics or Google Analytics data to see which products are demanding more. Add these best sellers to a specific ad group and raise the bids to increase exposure of these popular and profitable products. If a product isn’t performing well in Google Shopping, remove it from its current category and place in a new ad group with a lower bid.

• Larger Feeds Get Better Exposure

If you have few items for your product catalog, then start with a single ad group, rather than breaking out the account into multiple ad groups or product categories. This will help you to determine the better track and optimize performance through this-single ad group.

• Send Your Feed to Google Every Day

Google will ensure that all information is current and accurate. This can help to increase the likelihood of placement, as Google favors merchants that provide consistent and clean data. It also creates a better experience for searchers, making sure that the information they see in the ad is the same information they see when they click-through to your site.

• Optimize Feed for Automated Extensions

Automated extensions use the information to submit Merchant Center and through your data feed to show free shipping or price drops. Ensuring these messages will increase the likelihood of extensions being added to your ads.

• Make Sure to Include GTINs

Google states that Global Trade Item Numbers (GTINs) help to determine about all new in-stock products which are advertised through Shopping campaigns to increase its exposure with more details on the product.

Google Product Listing Ads are a great complement for AdWords campaigns. A product feed is a simple file on your server, which Google looks for to quickly gather details on all your products. Think of it as an index in a book. Besides listing all of the products it tells Google everything it needs to know about each product from the location of the picture to the price.