Understanding Google Shopping Feed Requirements

Google Shopping offers merchants a powerful platform to showcase their products to a vast audience. However, it’s crucial to understand and adhere to Google Shopping feed requirements to maximize visibility and ensure your product listings (Google Shopping ads) show up for the relevant search queries.

This guide provides a comprehensive overview of the Google shopping feed specifications and different ways to submit the feed to Google Merchant Center. From data accuracy and attribute specifications to common mistakes and troubleshooting tips, you’ll find everything you need to optimize your product listings and drive more traffic to your online store. 

Following these requirements can enhance your online presence, improve your product visibility, and boost your sales. Let’s dive into the details to help you make the most of your Google Shopping feed.

What is a Google Shopping Feed?

Google Shopping Feed is a file that has a list of products you want to promote on Google Shopping, which is one of the most popular comparison shopping engines out there. It includes product information such as product id, description, price, availability, condition, and so on. The feed is structured and formatted in a way Google understands to show up your products in relevant search queries.

Merchants must provide relevant information about products to show their products to target customers.

You can submit products to the Google Merchant Centre either manually or using a third-party app that auto-generates the product information.

The product feed requirements change depending on the types of Google shopping ads you wish to run. So, let’s look at all kinds of product feeds on Google Shopping.

Types of Product Feeds on Google Shopping

Let’s understand all the kinds of product feeds.

Google Merchant Center Feed

The Google Merchant Center feed is the main feed that contains all the information about your products and is uploaded and submitted to Google Merchant Center. This is the feed we will be focusing on throughout the blog.

Google Merchant Center feed must contain the following attributes:

• id
• title 
• description
• link
• image_link
• price
• condition
• availability
• brand and 
• gtin. 

Dynamic Remarketing Feed

This feed includes the same attributes as the main feed, however you also can add additional attributes such as display_ads_id, display_ads_title, and ads_label. Using these details from the feed, Google creates responsive ads (dynamic remarketing ads) showing relevant products or information to users who have already visited the site.

Dynamic remarketing ads allow you to show relevant ads based on the products or services your potential customers have interacted previously on your website.

Google Local Inventory Ads Feed

The local product inventory feed is a list of the products you sell in your brick-and-mortar store. It has a set of required, optional and recommended attributes. The feed is in TXT or XML format.

The attributes you must include for the local product inventory feed is 

• ID [id]
• Store code [store_code]
• Availability [availability] and 
• Price [price] 

Local inventory ads are a type of Google Shopping ad that is targeted to bring local visitors to your physical store. 

There are a few steps to follow to create local inventory ads. But firstly, you should meet Google Shopping Ad policies,

These policies include:

• You must have a store with a physical location that shoppers can visit in the country you’re advertising in.
• You don’t require any kind of membership for the buyers to purchase.
• You must not collect any personally identifying information from customers.

Google Promotions Feed

Google Merchant Promotional feed is a structured data file called a promotions feed. It allows companies to highlight exclusive offers and promotions next to their Google Shopping product listings, enhancing visibility and attracting more clicks. This feature is part of Google Shopping promotions, which lets businesses showcase discounts, free gifts, or special pricing directly on their product ads. The feed file formats include XML, TXT, and Google spreadsheets, making it easy for businesses to manage and update their promotional data efficiently.

The types of promotions include:

Discounts, Free Gifts, Free Shipping, Bundle Deals, and Cashback Offers.

The promotions feed has 6 required fields: 

• promotion_id
• product_applicability
• offer_type
• long_title
• promotion_effective_dates and 
• redemption_channel

Optional attributes include: 

• promotions_display_dates 
• description (not shown to users),
• generic_redemption_code
• image_link
• fine_print and 
• promotion_price

NOTE: Complete the Merchant Promotions Interest form to use the promotions feed. After the form is approved, you can choose the extra feed type in your Google Merchant Center account.

Product Rating Feed

The Product Ratings program allows merchants to display aggregated product reviews to Google shoppers. These ratings appear as 1 to 5-star ratings in ads and free product listings.

You can submit the feed via Google Merchant Center or a third-party review integration apps such as eKomi, PowerReviews, Reviews.io, and more.

Google Manufacturer Center Feed

This feed is for manufacturers and brand owners. It allows them to present the product in their own way to shoppers, and for that, you require a Google Manufacturer Center account.

Required attributes:

• Id
• GTIN
• Title
• Description
• Image link and 
• Brand

Difference Between Google Merchant Center Feed and Manufacturer Center Feed:

A Google Merchant Center feed is available for any retailer who wants to promote and sell their products. This feed helps a merchant include product details such as sale price and shipping to sell the products. In contrast, a Manufacturer Center feed is only for branded manufacturers, brand owners, and brand licensors to share detailed and rich product information such as product titles, descriptions, images, key features, YouTube videos, and others not usually present in the Google Merchant Center feed.

This was a quick overview of the types of product feeds. Now, let’s examine the policies you must follow. 

Google Merchant Center Guidelines For Your Business

Before creating a Google Merchant Center account and product data, you must ensure that your business complies with the Merchant Center guidelines. 

These include:

• You must promote products that are available for direct purchase only.
• Use an official language.
• Inform customers about your return and refund policy.
• Collect user information responsibly and securely.
• You must follow the relevant policies.
• Verify and claim your website URL.
• Your website must meet the basic requirements.
• Make sure your data meets the product data specification.

For detailed information on Google Merchant Center policies and Guidelines, click here.

Now let’s go through the product feed specification for Google Shopping. Google Shopping product feed has required attributes and optional attributes. let’s look at all the attributes and their requirements that come under required and optional attributes.

Required Attributes

In this section, we will discuss the details of the attributes required in your Google product feed, including the format, definition, and requirements associated with each attribute. We have also segregated the attributes based on categories like product identification, information, etc.

Product Identification

Attribute & Format	Definition, Syntax, & Example	Minimum Requirements
ID[id]	It is the unique identifier of the product. Example: S1265 SKU, barcode, and unique ID generated by your e-commerce platform are commonly used as IDs. ID must be Below 50 characters.	Avoid special characters and use only valid Unicode characters. Don’t change the IDs when shifting to a new feed or feed tool. Do not reuse any ID.
Brand[brand]	This attribute is required for all new products, except movies, books, and musical recording brands. Allows a maximum of 70 characters Ex: Nike	Give the brand name that customers recognize. You must provide the correct brand name. Provide a brand name if you manufacture the product or if your product falls under a generic brand category. If you sell products that do not have a label or a brand, leave the field empty. Do not provide values such as “N/A,” “Generic,” “No brand,” or “Does not exist.” For compatible products: Provide the GTIN and brand name of the manufacturer (who built the product). Don’t provide the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) brand to indicate that your product is compatible with or a replica of the OEM brand’s product.
Identifier exists[identifier_exists]	This attribute is used to indicate if the product identifiers are available. Example: Yes	If you don’t submit the attribute, the default value is ‘yes.’ The category of your product determines which unique product identifiers (GTIN, MPN, brand) are required. Set the identifier_exists attribute to ‘No’ if: Your product is a media item, and the GTIN is unavailable (Note: ISBN and SBN codes are accepted as GTINs). Your product comes under the clothing category, and the brand is unavailable. In all other categories, your product doesn’t have a GTIN or a combination of MPN and brand. Do not submit the value as ‘No’ when there is a unique identifier; in that case, Google might disapprove the product.

Product Information

Look at the attributes below that fall under the product information category.

Attribute & Format	Definition, Syntax, & Example	Minimum Requirements
Title[title]	It represents the name of your product. Google allows only 150 chars. Shopping ads show only up to 70 chars. Example: Nike | Women’s T-Shirt, White, Size – M	Describe a product that matches the product on your landing page.  Avoid promotional texts, all capital letters, or any foreign characters. Create distinct product titles per variation – include color, size, and other relevant factors.
Description [description]	Description of your product. Google allows 5000 characters. You can talk about the brand, key features, how to use it, benefits, and highlights. Example: T-shirt is made from 100% cotton.	Create accurate and relevant descriptions. Focus on what is essential for customers and show the product’s USP. Avoid gimmicky characters or all capital words. Format the description to improve readability.
Link[link]	URL of product landing page Example: http://www.yourdomain.in/womentshirt	Always use the verified website link. The link should start with http or https.
Image Link [image_link]	This attribute holds the product’s main image link. Example: https://yourdomain.com/main_image	Choose unique images for product variations. Do not use promotional text, watermarks, or any other layover. Consider testing lifestyle images for your ads. Use an image of 100 x 100 pixels for non-apparel products. Use an image of at least 250 x 250 pixels for apparel products.
GTIN (Global Trade Item Number) [gtin] or MPN or Manufacturer Part Number [mpn]	GTIN is required for all the products that have a valid GTIN. And MPN is required when the product is not assigned a GTIN. Example of GTIN: 23786549087654 Commonly used for GTIN:  UPC (in North America; 12-digit number)EAN (in Europe; 13-digit number); JAN (in Japan; 8 or 13-digit number); ISBN (for books; 10 or 13-digit number); ITF (for multipacks; 14-digit number) Example of MPN:HSC0424PP	Do not use dashes and spaces. Submit only valid and correct GTIN and MPN. Use accurate GTIN and MPN. If the GTIN or MPN value is incorrect, Google might disapprove of the product.

Availability & Pricing

Attribute & Format	Definition, Syntax, & Example	Minimum Requirements
Price [price]	Example: 234 USD	Provide the currency code. For example, USD, and not the symbol ($). Ensure the currency submitted matches the currency of your target country. Exclude any free items, like free samples, from your feed (they will get disapproved). Provide total price with taxes (Exception: for US, don’t include taxes). Ensure that the product price matches the price on your landing page and checkout page.  Display the currency of the targeted territory prominently on the landing page and checkout page.   Ensure that the product is available online as per the price submitted. Ensure that customers can buy the product at the submitted price without any membership payment required.  Avoid submitting 0 prices. However, it’s allowed to sell mobile devices with a contract.  When the products are available to buy in bulk, bundles, or multipacks, submit the total price of the minimum purchasable quantity, bundle, or multipack.  Avoid including tax in the price for the USA and Canada. Add VAT or GST to the price for all other countries except the USA and Canada.  There are additional options to submit price-related information, such as: Unit pricing measure Unit pricing base measure Sale price Subscription cost Installment.
Availability[availability] Supported Values:  In stock [in_stock] Out of stock [out_of_stock] Preorder [preorder] Backorder [backorder]	Status of the product availability Example: In_Stock	Mention the product availability on the landing page. Ensure to ship the products to all the regions you support. Maintain a consistent availability date across the product data, landing page, and checkout pages. Provide accurate and up-to-date data. Provide the availability_date attribute if you submit a preorder as the availability value.
Availability date [availability_date]	This attribute conveys to your customers the availability date of a preordered or backordered product. Google allows 1 to 25 characters. Example: 2024-12-25T13:00-0800	Ensure to follow the formatting guidelines. Add availability_date to the landing page and provide clear information to your customers. If you can’t give the correct availability date, you can provide an estimated date, such as July 2024 instead of July 30, 2024.

These are all the attributes required in the product feed. Now, let’s understand the optional attributes.

Note: The product identifiers GTIN and UPC are different from each other.

Optional Attributes

This section will discuss optional attributes you can add to your product feed.

Product Information

Attribute & Format	Definition, Syntax, & Example	Minimum Requirements
Additional image link [additional_image_link]	This attribute is the URL of an additional image of your product. Allows a maximum of 2000 characters Example: https://yourdomain.com/image1.png	Make sure to follow the requirements specified for the image link [image_link] attribute along with these requirements: The image can include product staging and show the product in use. You can include graphics or illustrations.  You can add up to 10 additional product images by including this attribute multiple times. All AI-generated images must contain metadata indicating that the image was AI-generated.
Material [material]	Information like material specifications improves relevancy and appears in your ads for relevant search queries. Example: Cotton
Product Type [product_type]	It helps you to categorize products. Allows a maximum of 750 characters Example: Baby > Girls > Trousers	Product type is useful when creating shopping campaigns. You can apply bid adjustments to each product group separately.
Google Product Category [Google_product_category]	Google automatically assigns categories to your products.	Use only the official values/numbers of categories from Google’s taxonomy. Provide an in-depth category. Choose the most relevant category when the product matches a few different ones.
Mobile Link [mobile_link]	This attribute is the link to your product’s mobile-friendly landing page when you have different URLs for mobile and desktop. Allows a maximum of 2000 alphanumeric characters Example: https://yourdomain.com/womenshirts	Meet the requirements for the link [link] attribute.
Cost of goods sold[cost_of_goods_sold]	It includes the costs incurred for selling a particular product, such as material, labor, freight, or other overhead expenses. Example: 45.00 USD
Multipack [multipack] The value must be greater than 1	Required attribute for multiple products. This attribute tells Google the number of identical products sold within the multipack. Example: 6	Submit this attribute if you have defined a custom group of identical products and are selling them as a single unit.  For example, you’re selling 2 containers of shampoo together. Submit the number of products in your multipack.  If you don’t submit the attribute, the default is 0 Don’t submit this attribute if the product’s manufacturer assembled the multipack instead of you.
Is bundle [is_bundle] Supported Values YesNo	Example: Yes	Submit yes if you’re selling a custom bundle of different products that you created, including a primary product.  For example, a desktop combined with a CPU and a keyboard.  If you don’t submit the attribute, the default is ‘No.’ Only use this attribute for bundles with a clear main product.
Energy_Efficiency_Class [energy_efficiency_class] Supported Values: A+++A++ABCDEFG	This attribute tells your customers how the product rates on a given energy efficiency range. Merchants must specify the minimum and maximum energy efficiency classes when using this attribute. Example: A+	Include the legally required energy labelto be used in combination with min_energy_efficiency_class and max_energy_efficiency_class to create an energy efficiency label.

Product Variants

Attribute & Format	Definition, Syntax, & Example	Minimum Requirements
Age Group [age_group] Supported values NewbornInfantToddlerKidsAdult	This attribute is for the demographic your product is intended for. Example: Kids
Color [color]	This attribute indicates the color of your product. Allows a maximum of 40 characters and alphanumeric characters. Example: Orange	Don’t use numbers. Don’t use characters that aren’t alphanumeric, such as #fff000. Avoid using only one letter, such as R (For Chinese, Japanese, or Korean languages, you can include a single character such as 红). Do not show the reference for color as “see image.” Avoid providing multiple colors as one word, such as RedPinkBlue. Instead, separate them with a ‘/’ such as Red/Pink/Blue.  Don’t use a value that isn’t a color, such as multicolor, various, variety, men’s, women’s, or N/A. If the product has multiple colors, list the primary color first. For variants, include the same value for item_group_id and different values for color.
Gender [gender] Supported Values: MaleFemaleUnisex	Example: Female	For variants, provide the same value for item_group_id and different values for gender.
Pattern [pattern]	Use this attribute if you have different products in a set of variants. Example: Striped	For variants, include the same value for item_group_id and different values for the pattern.
Size [size]	Indicates the size of your product. Example: XS	For variants, include the same value for item_group_id and different values for size. If sizes contain multiple dimensions, put them as one value.  For example, “18/35 Tall” for neck size 18 inches, sleeve length 35 inches, and “Tall” fit. If your item is one size fits all or one size fits most, you can use one size (OS), one size fits all (OSFA), or one size fits most (OSFM).
Item Group ID [item_group_id]	This acts as an ID for a group of products that have different variants. Allows a maximum of alphanumeric characters. Example: TR67543	You must use a unique value for each group of variants.   You can make use of parent SKU where possible. Maintain the same value when updating product data. Use only valid Unicode characters. Use an item group ID for a set of products that differ by one or more of these attributes: Color Size Pattern Material Age group Gender Include the same attributes for each product in the item group.  For example, if a product like a T-shirt differs by size and color, submit the size and color attributes for every product with the same value for item_group_id. If your products vary by design elements that you cannot show by the attributes listed above, don’t use item_group_id.

Sale Pricing

This category includes some attributes you can add during sales.

Attribute & Format	Definition, Syntax, & Example	Minimum Requirements
Sale Price[sale_price]	This attribute signifies the discounted price of a product. Example: 49.99 USD	Include the currency code (USD), not the symbol ($). Make sure the currency submitted matches the currency of your target country. Exclude any free items, like free samples, from your feed (they will get disapproved) Provide total price with taxes (Exception: for US don’t include taxes)
Sale price effective date [sale_price_effective_date]	This attribute implies the date range when the sale price applies. Example: (For UTC+3)2024-03-23T10:08+0300 /2024-03-26T22:03+0300

Shipping and Tax Information

Attribute & Format	Definition, Syntax, & Example	Minimum Requirements
Shipping[shipping]	This attribute includes the product’s shipping cost, shipping location, and shipping speed. For the following countries, shipping costs are necessary for shopping ads and free listings. Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czechia, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, the UK, and the US. Example: US:CA:Overnight:18.00 USD:1:1:2:3	You can use this setting to override your GMC account’s shipping costs or speed or if Google Merchant Center did not define it for your product.
Shipping Label [shipping_label]	You can assign this label to a product in the GMC account settings to help you assign the correct shipping costs. Allows a maximum of 100 characters. Example: Free shipping	Try to assign a label that you can remember. Other values of shipping_label include  OversizedSame dayPerishable
Shipping Weight [shipping_weight] Supported units lb oz g kg	This attribute holds the weight of the product value that you can use to calculate the shipping cost. Example: 10 kgs	This value is helpful if you support carrier-calculated rates or weight-based shipping services.
Tax [tax] Supported Values: Yes or No	This attribute describes your product’s sale tax in percentage. Tax is a required attribute (For the US only) Example: US:CA:20:00:y	This attribute uses four sub-attributes: Rate [rate] (required) Country [country] (optional) Region [region] or postal code [postal_code] or location ID [location_id] (optional) Shipping tax [tax_ship] (optional) Specify if you charge tax on shipping.

Google Shopping Feed Specification Example

Here’s a sample of the product feed file for your reference.

As you can see, the Google Shopping product feed example above has required product attributes such as ID, brand, product description, and so on. 

Also, examine the values of these attributes closely. For example, Look at availability; it only contains values such as in stock, preorder, and out of stock, which are allowed by Google. 

You might face errors and warnings in your Google merchant center account if you submit values like ‘yes’ or ‘no’ for the availability attribute. Thus, submitting a valid Google Shopping feed ensures a smooth product approval process.

Feed Submission Methods

We will discuss the various methods to submit the product feed to the Google Merchant Center.

There are six methods to submit product feed:

Method 1: Content API

This method is suitable for companies with large inventories and store owners wishing to update product feeds frequently, as manually updating changes is time-consuming and tedious.

Method 2: Scheduled Fetch

This method involves getting a data feed URL from the product feed management tool and pasting it into a Google Merchant Center account. Store owners can use this method if they face any issues with the Content API method or if their chosen tool doesn’t support it.

Method 3: Manual Process

The manual method is ideal for companies that have a product or two. This method involves adding products one after another and requires merchants to manually update changes to the product feed.

Method 4: Using Spreadsheets or Upload Method

This method is ideal for store owners who know product feed specifications and can create an error-free feed. Store owners can use a template or other sources to create a Google Shopping product feed. 

Method 5: Using FTP/SFTP

For this method, you can use a third-party app or upload a feed using the command line. Using a third-party app is suitable for beginners, whereas using the command line requires expertise in commands.

Method 6: Google Cloud Storage

This method is ideal for developers with technical knowledge in programming.

Method 1: Content API

For demonstration purpose, we will be using AdNabu, a product feed management software for Shopify merchants. Therefore, the extact process might vary for other feed management tools.

The content API for shopping acts as an assistant that manages your Google Merchant Center account. It allows apps to interact directly with the Google Merchant Center, thus increasing the efficiency of managing large or complex Google Merchant Center accounts. 

The Content API for Shopping can automate Google Merchant Center account management.

Here’s what you can do with the Content API:

• Upload products
• Manage inventory
• Manage Google Merchant Center accounts
• Link your inventory to Google Ads
• Automate product feed management

NOTE: If you have many feeds or frequently update your product data, Google strongly recommends uploading it using the Content API.

Benefits of Using Content API in Google Merchant Center include:

1. Provides real-time updates and immediate feedback.

2. It is suitable for companies with growing inventories.

3. Automates product feed management through advanced integration.

4. You can experience customized control over product listings.

5. Gain access to detailed reporting and advanced insights.

AdNabu uses the Content API method. Hence, uploading or updating the feed and everything else is automated. This means you don’t have to perform any action manually.

Now, let’s look at the method through a product feed management tool, AdNabu. This process is only for Shopify merchants.

AdNabu 

AdNabu is product feed management software built for Shopify merchants. This tool uses AI product feed optimization to improve your product search rankings. It also carries the Built For Shopify badge, signifying the highest level of app excellence. 

This feed tool enables Shopify merchants to create error-free feeds across multiple marketplaces, such as Google Shopping, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Bing, Snapchat, Pinterest, and X. Apart from these, the app supports Shopify multi language and multi currency feeds to expand your markets globally.

Ratings: 4.8 ⭐(668)

Key Features

AI Feed Optimization: This feature uses the GPT 3.5 Turbo language model to optimize product titles, details, highlights, age groups, and gender. Thus, it helps you reduce optimization errors and avoid product disapprovals. Additionally, you can use it in marketplaces like Google Shopping, Bing, Facebook, and more. 

Keyword Suggestions: AdNabu provides Google keyword suggestions sourced from Keyword Planner to ensure that your product data includes the most relevant keywords for maximum reach.

Dashboard Analytics: Use performance metrics to measure and optimize ad campaigns. You can track metrics such as impressions and click-through rate (CTR) using dashboard analytics. Access analytics tools from your Shopify admin on a single dashboard.

Product Score: Product Score feature allows you to get scores for individual attributes like titles and descriptions and provides recommendations for improving your product listing.

Bulk Editing: Manage products and variants by adding, editing, or deleting attributes through one centralized location. Apply 20+ smart filters to find and modify product details or more.

Blocklist: Customize feeds according to your marketing needs. With a click, advertise only high-performing products and use the blocklist to exclude thousands of products.

Instant Shopify Sync: Always stay updated with precise data through Instant Shopify Sync. Maintain consistency between the store’s data and the feed in Google Merchant Center.

Product Review Integration: Integrate with product review apps like Loox, Judge.me, Automizely, and others to gain the trust of new customers with verified reviews. These reviews will be displayed on Google through a product review feed, enhancing visibility and credibility.

Pros

✅Improves ad performance and lets you avoid errors in product listings through AI feed optimization.

✅Tracks ad performance and helps you make data-driven decisions through analytical reports.

✅Minimizes the product disapprovals and improves the ad relevancy by fixing GTIN errors.

✅Improves productivity and performance by eradicating manual work using the Shopify bulk edit feature.

✅Make use of Shopify multi-currency and multi-language ads to expand your business globally.

✅Improves visibility and enables you to reach target audiences with high-volume keyword suggestions.

✅ The Adnabu app instantly syncs product information across your store and in the Google Merchant Center.

✅Display verified ratings from your customers and build trust.

Cons

❌Only On Shopify: The app currently supports Shopify merchants and is unavailable on other e-commerce platforms. 

❌Basic Analytics: The app provides impressions, clicks, click-through rates, and key performance metrics. However, you can’t expect in-depth or advanced analytics.

Pricing

AdNabu offers a free plan and a 14-day free trial. The paid plans range from $29 to $249 per month.

Reviews

Users highly appreciate the app for its AI optimization and bulk editing features. They immensely praise the customer support team for their quick turnaround time. Most users find the app easy to use and have an intuitive interface. 

Users also find that after optimizing the products, they saw an increase in in-store visits. Overall, users are satisfied with the app’s AI tools and customer support team and highly recommend it for Shopify merchants.

Please note that AdNabu is an app made for Shopify merchants. You can submit the product feed using AdNabu if you’re a Shopify user.

Bonus: Sales Channel For Shopify Merchants 

In addition to AdNabu, you can use a channel like Google and YouTube app to sync your products to Google Merchant Center.

Google & YouTube app is a sales channel available on Shopify. Launched in 2017, it helps you connect your store to Google Merchant Center to display your products across the Google network. You can also update your Google product listings directly from your Shopify admin. This app is free to install and offers tools like Google Analytics and AI-powered Google Product Studio.

In any case, if you’re having trouble automatically setting up the feed in your GMC account, there’s another way: method 2.

Method 2: Scheduled Fetch

You can use any product feed management app like AdNabu or DataFeedWatch to submit a product feed using the scheduled fetch method. 

STEP 1: 

• Go to your chosen feed management app.
• Select ‘Google Feed’ 
• Locate the ‘Data Feed URL’ section.
• Click on ‘Copy to Clipboard.’ The URL is now copied.

STEP 2: Log into your Google Merchant Center account.

Go to Products > Data Files > Click on the + button.

Select your country of sale & language.

STEP 3: Choose where to show your products in this step. You can choose from:

• Display ads
• Free Listings
• Shopping ads

In the next step, give a name to your feed. 

STEP 4: Select ‘scheduled fetch’ as the linking method.

Click ‘Continue.’

STEP 5: Provide a file name and select the daily update time (pick a time slightly after your daily feed update with AdNabu).

NOTE: Google Merchant Center requires e-commerce merchants to update product data every 24 hours.

STEP 6: Paste the feed URL copied from the app in the ‘file URL’ field.

That’s it. The process is complete.

Confirm and give Google time to process the feed for the first time.

Method 3: Manual Method

The third way of creating a product feed for Google is to upload your product one by one.

Following this method, you can add your product data from the Products tab of your Google Merchant Center account. 

Steps To Follow:

Go to Google Merchant Center account → Click ‘Products’ → Click ‘Add Products’ → Click ‘Add Product One by One.’

In the next step, you must manually fill in all the details, such as GTIN, Product name, description, adding images, providing links, etc.

You can toggle on the Advanced option to enable attributes such as energy efficiency class, shipping weight, shipping label, etc.

After filling in the details, you’re done.

NOTE: You submit the product data for each item individually, so you must update your product feed manually. For instance, if any product is out of stock, you have to update the information manually.  While you can choose this method as a small business owner, it won’t suit you as you scale.

Let’s get onto the fourth method.

Method 4: Using Spreadsheets 

This method allows you to upload a file on your computer or a Google sheet.

STEP 1: Go to your Merchant Center account → click ‘Products’ → click ‘Feeds’ → Click the ‘+’ option.

STEP 2: In this step, you’ll find the following options:

• Google Sheets
• Scheduled Fetch
• Upload

Select Google Sheets if you have a product feed on a Google spreadsheet. Or choose the ‘Upload’ option if you have product data on any other file on your computer.

STEP 4: Select one of the options, then select the feed file you want to upload.

Click ‘Continue.’

NOTE: You can also test your feed before incorporating the data; select Upload as a test.

STEP 5: Click ‘Upload.’

NOTE: The file must be less than 4 GB. If it is larger than 4 GB, split the file into multiple smaller files before uploading.

Method 5: Using FTP/SFTP

FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. It allows systems to communicate with each other and transfer files.

Generally, you can access websites starting with ‘http://. ‘ But for FTP, it starts with ‘ftp://’ and is something like this: ftp://uploads.google.com 

What Are the Requirements For Uploading Feed Through FTP?

• If you’re using third-party software to upload the feeds, you need to install an FTP client. Another way is to use your computer’s command line. 
• An FTP address: this is the “URL” similar to ftp://uploads.google.com.
• An FTP account: You can create your FTP account in the Google Merchant Center.

Here’s How to Create your FTP account and connect to Google 

• Log in to your Google Merchant Center account
• Click on the settings and then choose SFTP/FTP/GCS → SFTP/FTP.

• Choose the ‘Create an FTP account’ option and follow the steps.
• Your username is automatically created by Google. To create the password, click ‘Generate Password’.
• Google creates a password.
• In the next step, there will be a popup window with the password. 
• Remember to save this password.
• Then, try logging into your account.

As discussed earlier, there are two ways you can upload a feed via FTP.

The first way is through a third-party app which is suitable for beginners.

The second way is to use the command line on your computer, and the instructions for this will differ depending on your computer’s operating system. 

NOTE: If you’re using a third-party app, you can connect your FTP account while logged in to the app.

Upload Feed Using the Command Line

This is ideal for those with adequate knowledge of using the commands, and this includes different methods depending on the OS: Windows, Mac, or Linux computer.

You can find the step-by-step process at the Google Merchant Center.

Method 6: Google Cloud Storage

You can submit your shopping data securely to Google via Google Cloud Storage. 

Google Cloud Storage is a new cloud-based storage service that lets you store and access your data on Google’s infrastructure.

Interacting with Google Cloud Storage is similar to interacting with an SFTP server: you can submit and access files with a file transfer client. Instead of folders, Google Cloud Storage uses ‘buckets.’ 

When you set up your Google Merchant Center account with Google Cloud Storage, Google automatically assigns you a private bucket for your shopping data. 

This method is ideal for developers who have technical expertise in programming applications.

The process is as follows:

Step 1: Link your Google Cloud Storage and Merchant Center accounts

• Sign in to your Merchant Center account.
• Select SFTP/GCS under ‘Settings.’
• Click the Google Cloud Storage tab.
• Select either a Current user (if you use the same login credentials for your Google Cloud Storage and Google Merchant Center accounts) or a Different user with your Google Cloud Storage login details.
• Then click ‘Link Google Cloud Storage,’ and you will be automatically assigned a bucket for your product data.

Step 2: Preparing your data feeds

• Create your data feeds.
• Register your data feeds in the Google Merchant Center before submitting them. 

NOTE: Your registered feed filename must be the same as the actual filename and the same file extension that is mentioned during feed registration.

Step 3: Submit your data via Google Cloud Storage

This step requires you to refer to the developer’s guide and a guide on getting started with Google Cloud Storage.

Visit Google Merchant Center for detailed information.

Step 4: Verify your submission

This is the final step, and after submitting the feed, you can check the status of the submission on your feeds page –> ‘Status’ column in your GMC account.

And that takes us to the end of the various methods of submitting the Google Shopping product feed to the Google Merchant Center. 

Also read: A Quick Guide To Price Drop: Google Shopping How to add keywords in Google Shopping Ads Google Shopping Feed Setup Explained

Best Practices for Feed Specification

Here are some tips to optimize the product feed and gain better product visibility.  

Optimize Titles

• Provide the information shoppers seek and ensure that important information is put at the beginning of the titles in case the title gets truncated in the result pages.
• Include important keywords in the title.
• Refrain from sounding salesy.

Optimize Colors

• Write the full-color name; don’t use a number replacement (like HTML colors).
• You can add one primary color and two secondary colors.
• If your product consists of any metal, combine the material and color attributes—for example, a green pearl necklace.

Optimize Images

• Use high-quality pictures.
• Ensure the variants match the picture w.r.t color, size, and material.
• Avoid text over the picture (watermarks, sales, manufacture parts numbers).
• Test product images vs lifestyle images (to find which works best for your brand).

Lifestyle images display your product in a real-world context. Examples include a watch worn by a model, a TV unit with multiple products, or products shown with various backgrounds.

Custom Labels

Custom labels are another optional attribute in the Google Shopping product feed. Similar to brand and category, you can use custom labels to group your products when looking at performance in Google Ads and making bid changes.

Custom labels help you create labels that describe the attributes of your product, making optimization easier. You can add labels like best sellers, summer collection, holiday, etc., for easy filtering.

Provide Accurate Product Data

• Maintain up-to-date price and availability along with tax and shipping information.
• Categorize your products with type. Arrange product types starting with a broad group and ending with a specific group. 
• Use unique product ID and product title attributes for every product.
• Provide GTIN values (if available).
• Focus on valuable products that have higher performance and fix any critical issues for those products. 
• Highlight USPs, provide ratings and customer reviews or run local inventory ads to differentiate from your competitors.

Lastly, keep experimenting with the optimization techniques to drive better results.

For more information on optimization tips and best practices, here’s a guide.

Common Google Merchant Center Issues and Resolutions

You might encounter issues when submitting a product feed to the Google Merchant Center. These issues are classified into Errors, Warnings, and Notifications.

Let’s understand them!

Errors: If you see errors on your account, these are critical issues with high severity. If you do not resolve them immediately, they can lead to product disapprovals and, in some cases, account suspension. Therefore, prioritize the errors and fix them immediately.

Warnings: Warnings negatively impact feed quality and decrease the performance of the affected items in your shopping campaign. They are less severe than errors. Ensure the warnings are resolved promptly to avoid product disapprovals or account suspension.

Notifications: These aren’t necessarily issues, but you can consider them as tips to improve product performance.

Now that we have a fair understanding of the types of issues, let’s look at the common issues with Google Merchant Center.

Invalid Currency or Currency Mismatch

This error means you submitted the feed with one currency and provided another currency on the product page. Upon crawling, Google found different currencies, thus throwing a currency mismatch error.

How To Fix It: Submit the same currency on your product page and in the product feed.

Mismatch Price or inconsistent pricing

This is a similar case of currency mismatch, which typically means an error in the price value.

How To Fix It:

• Ensure the product price is the same on the product feed and product page.
• If your store is having a sale, the sale price should be specifically mentioned on the product page under the price for structured data.

Another error you might encounter is ‘Invalid or missing required attribute: price.’

How To Fix It: Do submit a valid price, and do not submit a value as “0” for the price.

Missing Or Incorrect Shipping Value

This type of error is shown for the attributes shipping and shipping weight. It means there are invalid or missing values.

How To Fix It:

• Make sure to follow the requirements mentioned when formatting the shipping value.
• Include the shipping country and price along with the proper currency.
• The values must match the product page and the product data.

Pending Initial Review

Typically, the product feed review takes 3-5 business days. If it takes longer than this time interval, here’s how to fix it:

• Go to Diagnostics on your Google Merchant Center account and check for pending issues on an account, product, or feed level for this specific product feed. Resolve those issues.
• Ensure the Google Merchant Center account is properly configured.
• Ensure you are not violating any Google Shopping policies.
• On your website, maintain an up-to-date policy page, terms and conditions, delivery page, returns page, and contact page with business address, phone, email, and contact form.
• Contact your hosting provider to make sure your website is not blocking GoogleBot from indexing.

If everything is in place, then you may submit a request here.

Google Shopping Policy Violation

If Google finds you have violated any policy, it will disapprove your products and will show the following warning:

Preemptive Item Disapproval (PID): Policy Violation

How To Fix It: The only fix is to ensure you are following Google shopping policies and their guidelines.

Invalid Or Missing Availability

Errors related to availability include invalid values and missing required attributes.

How To Fix It: Ensure that you use only the supported values “in stock,” “out of stock,” and “pre-order” for your products.

Invalid Images And Product Titles

Invalid image errors could be due to:

• Invalid image link.
• Promotional overlay on the image.
• Image too small or low image quality.

How To Fix It:

• Check the product URL and ensure it is working properly on your website or if it is marked as ‘public’ and not ‘private.’
• Avoid using promotional overlays or watermarks on product images.
• Maintain high-quality images with the recommended image size.

Invalid Product Titles

Common errors regarding the title attribute are Invalid value and Excessive capitalization.

How To Fix It:

• Do not use product titles that are more than 80 characters.
• Avoid using special characters in product titles.
• Do not overuse capitalization.

Missing or Invalid Identifier

You must submit the brand name and one of the two identifiers, GTIN or MPN.You will get the following errors if you do not submit them.

Limited performance due to missing value and limited performance due to missing identifiers.

How To Fix It:

• Provide a GTIN or MPN for every product.
• If you do not have a GTIN or MPN available, submit an additional attribute, “Identifier Exists,” with the value “no.”
• Submit the product brand. If it’s a non-branded product, use your store’s name as the brand name.

It is common to encounter errors and warnings, but make sure you resolve them. By doing so, you can experience a higher approval rate on Google Shopping and start getting your products listed without any issues.

Conclusion

We hope you understand Google shopping feed requirements and how to submit a feed to the Google Merchant Center by now. Regardless of your number of products, uploading products manually might be difficult as it involves updating them manually, which is time-consuming. 

The best solution is to set up a product feed management tool that automates everything for you. Try AdNabu for free, and your products will be up and running in no time.

We wish you luck.

FAQs

What are the requirements for Google shopping feed?

Google Shopping feed must contain attributes such as ID, title, description, link, image_link, price, brand, GTIN, condition, and availability.

What is the feed for Google Shopping?

A feed is a file that contains information about all the products you wish to promote through Google Merchant Center. The information includes ID, title, description, images, etc. The file is usually in XML, TSV, or TXT format.

What size image is best for Google shopping?

The recommended size for Google Shopping images is 800 x 800 pixels or up to 1200 x 1200 pixels. The product image is high quality in this range.

What are unique product identifiers, and why are they important?

Unique product Identifiers(UPIs) define and distinguish products in the global marketplace. They also help match search queries with sellers’ product offerings.

How do I format my products’ MPN (Manufacturer Part Number)?

Manufacturer Part Number (MPN) is a unique product identifier manufacturers provide. The format must follow a series of numbers and letters.

What is the GTIN (Global Trade Item Number), and how is it used in the feed?

Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) is a unique product identifier. It is an internationally recognized product identification system. A GTIN helps Google customers easily find your ad or unpaid listing. Products without a GTIN might be difficult to categorize and not eligible for all the shopping programs.

How do I include custom labels in my Google Shopping feed?

Firstly, define your custom labels and assign values for these attributes. Next, add custom labels to your product feed and use these labels to organize campaigns.

What are the requirements for submitting bundled products in the feed?

Use the [is_bundle] attribute to signify that you’ve combined a primary product with other distinct items, selling them as a single package for one price. This attribute helps Google accurately display your product by differentiating it from manufacturer-created bundles, multipacks, and standalone products without accessories.