Product feed structure is a key consideration when advertising on Google Shopping . Feed rules are a powerful Google Merchant Center tool, which unfortunately, few people still use. Feed rules allow us to use parameters available in Google Merchant Center to set fixed values for other parameters. The tool can only be fully utilized if the initial, raw feed is properly prepared and our strategy for implementing the changes we want to implement is well-thought-out.
Correctly prepared product file
The first question should be: what does a properly prepared product feed look like? The answer won't be clear-cut for all stores, as each requires an individual approach. However, some rules for preparing a product feed are the same for all retailers:
- The structure of the product file should correspond to the structure of the website to which it relates.
- The product file should contain information about the attributes we use, product categories, etc.
- The more parameters we use, the better, but remember that we should not clutter the product file with parameters that are unnecessary for us (e.g. a large number of custom labels).
- The products we introduce should be closely related to the categories in the store – the better the match, the easier it will be for us to use the data feed rules.
- At the stage of preparing the file, it is worth taking care of the parameters that we enter into the file, because there are elements that cannot be corrected by the rules themselves (e.g. the description parameter - product description).
The above rules apply to all online stores , and proper and thorough file preparation is the basis for effective management of an uploaded feed. Once we have a properly prepared file, we can begin making changes. Data feed rules can be found in the "Products" tab, in the "Data Files" section.
After clicking the "create rule" button, we select the attribute we want to modify. After selecting the attribute of interest, we can include multiple conditions that would determine the assignment of a specific value to that parameter.
(The rest of the article can be found below the form)
Thanks to Google Merchant Center, we can modify any parameter in our product feed. I think the principle is best illustrated by two examples:
1. Substituting existing values to create new parameters
The seller has several hundred products with long and complex descriptions in their titles. They want to organize their product feed so that the title matches the most frequently searched phrases. At the same time, they don't want to change the titles in the store itself – this would create confusion in their database, as product titles are marked with the original and official manufacturer's signature, which allows for product identification. Take flooring panels as an example. The seller has approximately 10,000 products in the "flooring" category. Examples of their product titles include:
- K321 Floor Panels [manufacturer name] [collection name] Dark Brown
- [name of manufacturer] [name of collection] K321 Light Oak
- Y554 Panels [manufacturer name] [collection name] Mahogany
The lack of consistency in product titles stems from the information provided by manufacturers. Most online stores are unable to modify every product, so they use pre-defined information provided by distributors. Perhaps the seller uses dropshipping services – in this case, their store is connected to an online wholesaler from which product information is retrieved on an ongoing basis. The seller can use the information in their product feed to improve the quality of their product feed. To do this, they select the "set as" option and choose values already included in their product feed. With a well-thought-out product feed structure, the advertiser uses the following parameters:
- product_type [product_type]
- color [color]
- Italian and international brands [mark]
Thanks to three attributes, the seller can dynamically set the following [title] path for products: [title] = [product_type] [brand] – [color] -> Floor Panels [brand] – Machoń. To do this, select the information source – in this case, the primary product file. Then, enter the parameter you want to appear.
This ensures that the seller's products are displayed in the appropriate format. As a result, the seller doesn't display unnecessary information in the title, only what the search engine user can enter. The title is displayed in its entirety and isn't truncated by Google because it doesn't contain unnecessary elements. This means that their products are displayed higher within the same bid due to the higher quality of the product feed and the title attribute. Thanks to the standardized format, the advertiser also stands out from the competition, as the layout of their product titles is unique and consistent across all products in their feed.
2. Using filters to modify existing values
A filter allows you to find the value of a specific parameter, ensuring that a new element value is assigned only when a specific condition is met. Let's create conditions for our product to assign unique values to products. For example, we can modify the title attribute by searching for a specific phrase in the product description. We create a condition that assumes that if the word "blouse" appears in the "description" attribute, the word "orange" appears in the "color" attribute, and the phrase "with print" appears in the product type, the title changes to "Orange Printed Blouse."
Conditional editing of a product file can be done both thanks to the “AND” and “OR” conditional formatting – of course, depending on this, we will get extremely different results.
3. Using variables to standardize the structure of the product file
The seller offers a wide range of products, ranging in price from those priced at 100 PLN to those priced at 5,000 PLN. A workshop tools store is an example of this type of seller. The seller is very keen to promote all of their products. However, they realize that the cost per click for expensive products will be significantly higher than for those priced much lower.
Of course, Google AdWords can independently enter lower bid amounts for products it deems lower value in a campaign. However, this isn't an easy task, considering that Google AdWords only displays the product ID, not the product name. Another option is to use a platform for advanced click bid optimization. Our proprietary VCM system is one such platform . However, this solution takes time (the platform will only "reach" the appropriate level once it has collected the appropriate amount of data). To speed up this process, we can use product feed rules. For this reason, the advertiser decides to use the price [price] attribute to create an additional custom label. It looks like this:
- The seller uses the price attribute as a filter to search for products within a specific range. So, they set the price attribute to "if the attribute value is between PLN 0 and PLN 600, set custom label 0" to "low price.".
The same procedure is followed for the ranges from PLN 600 – PLN 2,000 and from PLN 2,000 and above, marking them with custom label 0 as “average price” and “high price” respectively.
- Filtering data from the product feed allows for more effective use of price ranges. After returning to Google Ads The salesperson finds new opportunities. They break down their product feed based on the new data – this creates the first three subgroups, which are then further broken down into product category, manufacturer, etc. The path looks like this:
All products -> low price, medium price, high price -> product type -> brand ->… This campaign structure allows advertisers to conveniently set bids from the outset. This allows the seller to single out high-value products and set the default bid for that product at a level they believe is appropriate. This setting also enables more detailed analysis of the collected data. This allows advertisers to see, at the product group level, where the cost of acquiring a transaction is highest and lowest, and can estimate the effectiveness and profitability of advertising for individual product categories.
Summary
The above examples, of course, don't fully exhaust the potential of product feed rules – there are many ways to leverage this tool to achieve your goals. The ability to modify any parameter based on existing dependencies allows retailers to customize the feed without having to make changes to their own store structures. The tool can be fully utilized by both a specialist working on product campaign optimization and a retailer who wants to ensure the quality of their product feed.
Google Merchant Center Product Feed FAQs
This is a tool built into GMC that allows you to edit, transform and optimize product data (product feed) without having to make any changes to the online store code or the source XML file.
Rules are extremely useful when a file exported from a store contains errors, is missing required attributes (e.g., brand, color, gender), or when you simply want to optimize data for better visibility in Google Shopping campaigns (e.g., by improving product titles).
The most common and useful actions include:
- Completing missing attributes (e.g. permanently assigning the "state" attribute to "new").
- Title attribute optimization – e.g. adding the brand name, color or size to the product name.
- Creating custom labels (custom_label) for better product segmentation in Google Ads (e.g., marking high-margin products).
- Excluding specific products from your campaign based on specific keywords.
They operate based on "If-Then" conditional logic. You can define a condition, such as "If the product price is less than 50 PLN," followed by an action, such as "Set custom label 0 to: Cheap." The tool allows you to extract, add, replace, and delete text fragments.
No. Changes configured through product feed rules only affect the data sent to Google and used in advertising campaigns. Prices, descriptions, and product names on your website will remain unchanged.
Summary
The above article covers the following topics:
- How to prepare a product file?
- The most important information about the product feed.
