Google Shopping: Free & Paid Listings, Ads – Sell More!

These days, having a good product (or products) isn’t enough. Visibility is the need of the hour. Once your products catch the target audience’s attention online, selling them can become easy. 

You can showcase your products for free on various Google platforms such as Google Search, Images, Maps, Lens and YouTube. All you have to do is add your product to Google’s free listing, providing all the necessary details about them. 

However, only certain types of products qualify for free listing. If your products fall under that category, they will be listed for free at different places on Google. Read on to learn more.

Free Google Shopping Listings: An Introduction

Free Shopping Listings are a useful feature for selling products online. With this feature, you can showcase your offerings in the Google Shopping tab for free. You do not need to pay for advertising your product here. 

Free product listings by Google are displayed along with the paid ads in Google Shopping results. In addition, your products are also featured on Google Images, Search, Maps, Lens and YouTube free of cost. It helps increase your product’s visibility, drives organic traffic to your portal, and promotes your business. 

When you list your products on Google product listing, you must also add high-quality product images, complete product descriptions and prices. Store details must also be provided. Your product may not necessarily be showcased on Google when you use the free listing option. Google assesses the quality of your product data and some search terms.

Listing Products for Free: Who Can Participate?

The Google shopping listing feature was introduced towards the end of 2020 to benefit retailers. Anyone who sells goods online can use the free listing option to display their products on Google for free. To do so, they must create a merchant center account and follow simple steps.

Your product feed in the Google Merchant Center (GMC) automatically appears in front of the users on Google Images, Google Shopping Tab, YouTube and Google Search.

Where to Find Unpaid Product Ads on Google Shopping?

On the Google Shopping tab, you can find unpaid product ads below the paid ads, which appear at the top.

The Appearance of Free Product Listings on Google

Free Google shopping listings are like paid ads displayed on the search engine giant. They display the product title, image, price, and certain other details, such as the product’s rating.

Distinctions Between Free Product Listings and Paid Google Ads

Free Product Listings	Paid Google Ads
The free product listings feature can be used free of charge.	Paid Google ads are chargeable. Their rate varies depending on the competition.
They are not specifically targeted.	They are highly targeted.
They appear under the paid Google ads panels on the Google Shopping tab.	They appear at the top of the Google Shopping tab at a prominent place to ensure greater visibility.
Though they drive organic traffic towards retailer sites, it is limited.	They drive greater traffic as the retailers have better control over them.

Analysing Traffic and Conversion Rates for Free Google Listings

One of the best ways to analyse traffic for free Google shopping listings and assess your conversion rates is to connect your Google Analytics to your merchant account. This helps track the conversions on your Google product listings. 

It is recommended to set specific parameters to monitor the performance of your Google Shopping feed and consistently apply them to all related links.

In Merchant Center, click, “Set up” under “Send tracking data via tags on your website to set up conversion tracking. Merchant Center shows your performance over time. 

You may use a date selector to view your report for different periods. Once you have the data handy, compare it with the industry benchmark to analyse your position.

Steps to List Your Products on Free Google Shopping Listings (How it Works)

Follow these steps to get free Google product listings to promote your product:

• Create a Merchant Center Account by visiting the Google Merchant Center sign-in page.
• Select free listings while creating the account.
• Follow Google’s policies to showcase your products in free listings.
• Share your return policy for your products in your Merchant Center Account. The policy must also be clearly mentioned on your website.
• Give the link to your shipping policy in your account.

Eligibility Criteria for Free Listings

You need to fulfill the following criteria to be eligible for a Google shopping listing:

1. You must adhere to Google’s guidelines for displaying your products in free listings. In no scenario should you upload content that Google prohibits or restricts. Google provides a list of prohibited practices and certain site requirements that you must follow.

2. Mention your return and refund policy on your Merchant Center Account. You can do the same while submitting your product description for your free Google shopping listing. Sharing this information enhances your product’s performance, as customers appreciate transparency. Lack of it may not even qualify you for listing.

3. Your Merchant Center Account must also include a link to your shipping policy. Shoppers want to know about shipping charges and other related details, so providing this information is essential.

4. It is important to ensure that your listings are clear and professional. Your potential clients must get all the relevant information about your products through your listings. A high-quality product image covering all angles is recommended. Your Google shopping listing should link to the landing page on your website.

5. To avoid rejection, do not add any content promoting discrimination or hatred.

6. It is also recommended to provide unique product identifiers, correct product titles, and indicate if an item is out of stock. 

Best Practices for Effective Free Listings

Here are a few best practices for effective free Google product listing:

Enter Your Product Information

As mentioned above, add complete details about your product’s features, unique selling point and utility for your target audience. The information should be accurate and up-to-date. 

Provide Key Product Attributes

It is recommended that important product attributes such as size, colour, and material be highlighted. These attributes help buyers make informed decisions and help your product appear in filtered search results. 

Monitoring Your Results

Track the performance of your listing regularly. It is necessary to understand its effectiveness. You may use Google Analytics or other tracking tools to monitor your views, clicks, and conversions. This will help you understand the scope of improvement.

Promote Free Listings

Promote your Google shopping listing on social media platforms, online forums, and groups. This is necessary to increase visibility and drive more traffic.

Retailer’s Guide: Four Steps to Leverage Free Product Ads

Here are four simple steps to leverage your free product ads:

1. Keyword Optimisation

Adding relevant keywords to your product title and description can help improve your reach. However, keywords should be stuffed appropriately at relevant places. They should go with the flow of your content. Also, remember to add relevant hashtags.

2. Update Pricing Regularly

To stay competitive, you must review and adjust the price of your product regularly. This will increase the number of clicks and the chances of conversion.

3. Update Your Listings

Updating your Google product listing regularly is important to ensure it remains relevant and maintains a good position in search engine results. You can also do so by adding new images, revising the product description, or sharing any new offers or discounts.

4. Monitor Your Product Feed

Using insights from the Merchant Center is recommended to determine how your products perform in the free listings. Accordingly, take action to make improvisations and enhance their performance.

Tips for Optimising Your Product Feed for Free Google Ads

Here are a few quick tips:

• Optimise product title with the use of relevant keywords and avoid the use of promotional words.
• Write informative product descriptions that cover all the essential features of your products and incorporate relevant keywords.
• Make use of visually appealing product images of appropriate sizes.
• Share the availability of the items and their pricing which should be competitive.
• Ensure the pricing, product description, and other details mentioned on your listings match those on your website.
• Use Google’s recommended categories to help your potential buyers easily find your products.
• Track your performance regularly and update your Google shopping listing accordingly.

Evaluating the Impact of Your Free Product Listings

Here’s how to evaluate the impact of your free product listings on Google:

1. Start by checking Google Merchant Center metrics to review each product’s impressions, clicks and click-through rates. This will help identify top-performing items​ and those not witnessing much demand.
2. Next, track traffic with Google Analytics. To track traffic sources from free listings, use UTM tags on product URLs.
3. Analysing the data to find the conversions linked to free product listings is also recommended.

Google’s Interest in Investing in Product Listings

Google invests in product listing because it benefits it as much as it benefits online retailers. These listings help Google increase the range of products it shows to its users. 

It helps meet different shopping queries. This enhances user experience and makes Google a preferred choice for product searches. As users find relevant products on Google, they are more likely to stay on the platform for shopping. This strengthens its position.

Moreover, it also increases the search engine’s data on shopping behaviours and trends. This helps refine the search algorithm and improve user experience across various Google platforms.

The Impact of Free Shopping Ads on eCommerce

Free shopping ads enhance the visibility of eCommerce businesses. They help their products appear in various places on Google, such as Google Images, Search, Shopping tab, Lens, and YouTube. 

This helps drive traffic to eCommerce portals and increases their chances of conversion. However, with more and more businesses using Google’s free shopping ads feature, the competition for visibility is rising.

Conclusion

Free Google shopping listings are helping retailer increase their online visibility and improve their return on investment. Products added to these listings are displayed on various Google platforms which help generate traffic to online stores. 

You must create a Merchant Center Account to start using this special feature. You must write detailed and accurate product descriptions and mention your return policy to ensure that your listings are approved. You must also provide a link to your shipping policy and refrain from posting prohibited or restricted content. Once listed, track your performance regularly to stay competent.