Product Listing Ads: What They Are and How to Use Them

Google Shopping is simply a starring terms examination portal.

When radical privation to comparison products to find the champion prices, a immense fig of them spell to Google Shopping.

Retailers tin drawback the attraction of these imaginable buyers by prominently featuring their products connected Google Shopping.

This is wherever merchandise listing ads (PLAs) travel in.

What Are Product Listing Ads?

Product listing ads are paid advertisements that assistance you showcase your products successful hunt results connected platforms similar Google and Bing.

When idiosyncratic searches for a merchandise you sell, your PLA appears. The advertisement includes a photograph of the product, its title, its price, your store's name, and different details.

These ads typically look astatine the apical oregon connected the right-hand broadside of the hunt motor results pages (SERPs).

They besides look successful the “Shopping” tab.

PLAs adjacent look alongside representation hunt results for that query.

During advertisement setup, you besides person the enactment to amusement your products connected Google spouse websites. When selected, your ads volition look connected YouTube and third-party websites that person partnered with Google to big ads.

PLAs are a straightforward mode to get noticed by customers close astatine the infinitesimal they are searching for a merchandise you offer.

But creating and managing an effectual PLA run tin beryllium challenging. 

The PLA Research instrumentality from Semrush helps you with that, offering insights into your competitor's Google Shopping ads. You tin usage these insights to make and amended your ain strategy. More connected this later.

Product Listing Ads vs. Google Shopping

PLAs are a class of paid online ads disposable connected Google and Bing. You wage a interest each clip your advertisement gets clicked.

You tin make these ads connected platforms similar Google Ads and Microsoft Ads. 

Here’s an illustration of merchandise listing ads connected Bing:

And present they are connected Google Shopping: 

Google Shopping is simply a Google-specific examination buying motor (CSE). It includes some PLAs and integrated (non-paid) merchandise listings. 

People usage Google Shopping to discover, compare, and bargain carnal products from antithetic sellers. It’s an important spot to showcase your products. 

So, erstwhile creating your Google Shopping strategy to beforehand your products, the absorption should beryllium connected some organic listings and paid ads.

Similarly, erstwhile you're creating your PLA campaign, don't place ads connected Bing. It's the second-largest hunt motor successful the world.

How Do Product Listing Ads Work?

When a idiosyncratic searches for a merchandise online, hunt engines usage the merchandise accusation you—the brand—have provided to find a match. If your merchandise fits wrong the parameters the idiosyncratic searched, it appears successful the buying results.

So, however bash you supply Google and Bing your merchandise information?

By creating a merchandise provender and uploading it to Google Merchant Center and Microsoft Merchant Center. 

Your merchandise provender includes attributes similar merchandise titles, descriptions, banal availability, price, category, link, and more. TXT, XML, and TSV are communal provender record extensions. 

A emblematic CSV merchandise provender looks similar this:

You request to prevention this CSV record successful the compatible filename hold (e.g., .tsv and .txt) earlier uploading.

Once your provender is uploaded to the applicable merchant center(s), the adjacent measurement is to nexus your associated advertizing account(s):

• A Google Merchant Center relationship should beryllium linked with your Google Ads account
• A Microsoft Merchant Center relationship should beryllium linked with your Microsoft Ads account 

Now you tin make advertisement campaigns that usage these feeds to show your merchandise ads successful hunt results. 

Unlike accepted text-based hunt ads, buying ads don't person the keyword targeting option. Product listing ads connected Google and Bing propulsion information from the uploaded feeds to find if your merchandise is applicable to what the idiosyncratic is searching for. 

The effectiveness of your PLAs depends connected factors like:

• Product information feed: It should beryllium complete, accurate, and regularly updated to debar advertisement disapprovals
• User relevance: The person your merchandise aligns with idiosyncratic hunt intent, the higher its imaginable ranking
• Product attributes: Titles and descriptions should beryllium optimized truthful they lucifer idiosyncratic queries
• Bid amount: A higher bid tin pb to amended positions, but it's important to see your run goals and budget
• Click-through and conversion rates: Ads with higher click-through rates (CTRs) and much conversions thin to unafraid amended placements implicit time
• Merchant halfway performance: A affirmative past with accordant enactment tin power your ad's ranking favorably

5 Benefits of Product Listing Ads

1. Increased Visibility successful Search Results

PLAs look prominently successful hunt results, often supra modular substance ads and integrated listings. 

Your products get much contiguous attention. They’re successful the searcher’s nonstop enactment of sight. 

This strategical positioning tin summation your marque visibility and the accidental of idiosyncratic engagement with your listings.

2. Higher Click-Through Rate

The ocular quality and elaborate accusation included successful PLAs (prices, shipping clip frame, idiosyncratic reviews, and more) marque them much engaging than text-only ads. 

Users tin marque a determination astir the relevance and attractiveness of a merchandise conscionable by glancing astatine the ad. 

It people draws idiosyncratic attention, which tin pb to a higher click-through rate. 

3. Better Qualified Traffic

PLAs are included successful hunt results erstwhile the hunt query suggests the idiosyncratic has a commercialized intent. Basically, it’s displayed to users who look acceptable to buy.

This absorption connected ready-to-buy users results successful postulation that is much apt to purchase.

Plus, due to the fact that of the PLA’s informational nature, erstwhile a idiosyncratic clicks connected your ad, they bash truthful with an already wide knowing of the product’s appearance, price, shipping date, and more. 

It means those that get connected the merchandise leafage are little apt to conscionable beryllium browsing.

The higher prime postulation tin summation your conversion rate. And it whitethorn adjacent little the outgo of acquiring caller customers.

4. Detailed Performance Tracking

With PLAs similar Google Product Listing Ads, you tin way elaborate show metrics. Like the fig of clicks and conversions for circumstantial merchandise ads. 

This information tin assistance you recognize which products are performing good and which ones necessitate changes successful strategy. 

For example, if a peculiar exemplary of a merchandise is receiving much clicks, you mightiness determine to allocate much fund to its ads. Or usage its advertisement format arsenic an illustration to travel with your different products.

5. Better Customer Experience

PLAs supply users with contiguous merchandise information, which allows for speedy and informed decision-making.

This nonstop and broad presumption of merchandise details caters to the modern shopper's tendency for convenience and efficiency.

The improved CX tin pb to higher restitution rates and repetition business, fostering semipermanent lawsuit relationships.

How to Set Up Product Listing Ads

You tin make your merchandise listing ads connected platforms similar Google Ads and Microsoft Ads.

Let’s instrumentality the illustration of Google Shopping ads, which are PLAs connected Google.

You person to conscionable immoderate prerequisites earlier you make a run connected Google Ads.

First, you request to make a merchandise feed. 

How? 

It depends connected which buying level you’re using. Many of the buying platforms (including Google Shopping) fto you easy make merchandise feeds utilizing tools oregon plug-ins.

Some of the astir fashionable tools for creating merchandise feeds include:

• Shopify: Google & YouTube app
• WooCommerce: Google Product Feed extension
• Adobe Commerce: Google Shopping extension
• BigCommerce: Google Shopping Feed & Ads app

You tin besides make a merchandise provender manually. Follow Google's product information specification.

Once your provender is ready, download it successful a compatible format (.txt, .tsv, etc.). 

Next, make your Google Merchant Center account. And adhd your products.

Upload your information provender file. 

Next, link your Google Merchant Center relationship with your Google Ads relationship successful the “Apps” settings.

If you don’t person a Google Ads account, you’ll person to make 1 first. Check retired our elaborate usher connected this here: How to Create a Google Ads Account.

Once your Google Ads and Google Merchant Center accounts are connected (and aft your products are approved), you’re acceptable to make your PLAs for Google Shopping. 

Log successful to your Google Ads account. Click the "Create" fastener connected the left-hand menu.

Select “Campaign.”

Choose “Sales” arsenic your campaign’s objective.

Select “Shopping” arsenic your run type.

Make definite your Merchant Center relationship is selected.

You'll get to take betwixt 2 subtypes of buying oregon merchandise listing ads:

• Standard Shopping: Lets you advertise your products crossed Search, the Shopping tab, Images, Maps, and Google Search Partner websites. It provides much power implicit targeting, bidding, and advertisement creation.
• Performance Max: Lets you make automated ads that usage smart bidding to assistance you thrust amended conversions crossed Search, YouTube, Gmail, and more.

Let's spell with the "Standard Shopping campaign."

Name your campaign.

Next, you’ll get the enactment to configure your campaign. Which includes:

• Setting your bid strategy

• Setting a regular budget

• Choosing a run priority. (If you're moving conscionable 1 campaign, support it to the default “Low.”)

This is wherever you’ll besides decide:

• Where your ads look (just connected Google properties oregon besides connected spouse sites)
• Which devices your ads look on
• The geographic determination you privation to target
• The duration of the campaign

Finally, sanction your advertisement group. And if you’re going with the “Manual CPC” bidding strategy, acceptable your cost-per-click (CPC) bid. Review the ad, cheque each the configurations, and deed “Create Campaign.” 

How to Track PLA Performance

You tin way Google Product Listing Ad show connected Google Merchant Center, Google Ads, and third-party tools similar Google Analytics.

Google Merchant Center has a show dashboard showing metrics related to your PLAs. It includes impressions, clicks, click-through rates, and different conversion metrics.

Image Source: Click Pilot

Similarly, Google Ads has a built-in insights dashboard that shows assorted metrics similar CTR, CPC, conversion rate, and instrumentality connected advertisement walk (ROAS). You tin usage these metrics to way your run performance.

Image Source: LinkedIn

Many advertisers usage third-party tools similar Google Analytics to way their PLAs. It provides deeper insights into idiosyncratic behaviour and the lawsuit journey. 

You summation a implicit presumption of however users interact with your tract post-click, specified arsenic which pages they visit, however agelong they stay, and their way to making a purchase. This elaborate investigation tin assistance you optimize your campaigns and amended the wide idiosyncratic experience.

You tin way PLAs by connecting your Google Ads relationship to Google Analytics.

Go to your Google Analytics relationship and take the spot you privation to link by clicking the "All accounts" way astatine the top.

Select the spot from the drop-down.

Click “Admin” from the sidebar to unfastened the admin settings. 

Scroll down to the “Product links” conception and prime “Google Ads links.”

Next, click "Link."

Select the Google Ads relationship you privation to link. Configure the settings arsenic needed. And click "Submit."

You tin heighten your tracking capabilities with Google Analytics by utilizing UTM parameters successful your URLs.

UTM parameters are elemental codification snippets added to the extremity of your website URLs. They assistance place the circumstantial source, medium, campaign, term, and contented that directed users to your site. This is peculiarly adjuvant erstwhile you're moving aggregate ads.

For instance, you tin tag your PLA URLs with unsocial UTM codes to spot precisely which ads bring postulation and conversions.

This works by adding parameters similar “utm_source” for the postulation root (like a circumstantial PLA), “utm_medium” for the benignant of postulation (like “cpc” for cost-per-click), and “utm_campaign” to place the circumstantial advertisement campaign.

Analyzing this information successful Google Analytics helps you amended recognize which aspects of your advertizing are astir effective, allowing for much precise optimization and strategy planning.

Further reading: UTM Codes successful Google Analytics 4 (GA4): A Step-by-Step Tutorial

7 Product Listing Ads Best Practices

Running a palmy PLA run requires thorough planning, businesslike execution, and ongoing optimization.

Here are immoderate champion practices to marque your PLAs much effective:

1. Optimize Your Product Feed

Optimizing your provender involves refining the prime of your merchandise information to amended its show successful hunt results.

Use precise, searchable merchandise titles and elaborate descriptions. And prime the close merchandise categories.

Product feeds often incorporate errors oregon issues. Regularly checking your feed's wellness involves looking for and fixing communal issues similar missing information, incorrect categorization, oregon mediocre representation quality.

Addressing these issues improves the likelihood of your ads being approved.

You tin usage the Product Feed Health Checker from Semrush to optimize your merchandise feed. It analyzes your merchandise titles, descriptions, and different details. And provides optimization ideas for your listings.

Open the instrumentality and click "Check your Google buying feed." You tin either upload your merchandise provender record successful zipped .tsv record format oregon link your Google Merchant Account.

After analyzing your feed, the instrumentality volition supply a study showing however good your merchandise listings are optimized for Google Shopping.

You tin click connected immoderate merchandise for much details astir issues that request fixing.

The extremity is to summation your "Healthy people %" for each product. This volition collectively amended your merchandise feed.

Well-optimized feeds are much apt to lucifer idiosyncratic hunt queries accurately, which increases the chances of your ads being displayed and clicked.

2. Implement Competitive Pricing Strategies

Competitive pricing is cardinal to getting radical to click your ad. If your product's terms is higher than those successful different ads, your CTR could beryllium low. (Especially successful markets wherever terms is simply a large information for buyers.)

Actively show your competitors' prices and set yours to stay appealing to customers.

This doesn't ever mean lowering your prices. As an alternative, you could item the unsocial worth of your merchandise truthful that a higher terms constituent is much easy justified.

You tin spot the pricing of your competitors’ products utilizing the PLA Research tool.

Open the tool, participate your competitor's domain, prime the state successful the drop-down, and click "Search."

In the default "Positions" tab, scroll to the "PLA Positions" card. 

You’ll spot the database of products your rival is selling done Google PLAs, the terms of those products, the hunt queries that trigger those merchandise ads, and more.

Look astatine the "Price (USD)" column. 

Use this accusation to set the pricing of your ain products and advertisement contented accordingly.

3. Use Negative Keywords Wisely

Using negative keywords successful your PLAs helps guarantee your ads don't look for the incorrect audience. These keywords filter retired searches that are improbable to pb to a sale.

This targeting refines your assemblage to those who are much apt to beryllium funny successful and tin spend your products.

Regularly cheque the hunt presumption study successful your Google Ads relationship to get ideas for antagonistic keywords. This study shows what radical are typing into Google erstwhile they spot your ads.

Image Source: Surfside PPC

For instance, if you announcement your luxury ticker ads are being triggered by searches for “'inexpensive watches,” you would adhd “inexpensive” arsenic a antagonistic keyword.

This way, your ads are much apt to scope shoppers looking for high-end products. It improves your chances of attracting customers who are a bully acceptable for what you're selling.

4. Regularly Update Your Product Feed

Accurate, up-to-date accusation ensures your products are applicable to customers' needs.

Regular updates should see changes successful pricing, availability of stock, caller merchandise additions, discounts, and different components.

For example, accidental you person an online store selling smartphones. In your case, it's important to promptly bespeak immoderate terms shifts, present the latest models, and set the availability presumption of older models.

This ensures erstwhile customers hunt for circumstantial gadgets, your PLAs amusement the astir close and updated options. It increases the likelihood of clicks and consequent purchases.

5. Use High-Quality Images

Images are the archetypal happening a lawsuit notices. A clear, charismatic representation tin summation the accidental of a click.

Ensure your merchandise images are well-lit, high-resolution, and showcasing your merchandise from aggregate angles. 

Help the idiosyncratic envision your product’s use. For example, if you're selling furniture, see images that show the point successful a styled country setting, arsenic good arsenic close-ups to amusement texture and color.

This tin springiness imaginable buyers a broad view, making them much apt to prosecute with your ad.

6. Optimize Titles and Descriptions

The titles and descriptions successful your merchandise feeds should beryllium clear, concise, and packed with applicable information. 

The advertisement should see details similar brand, size, color, and immoderate unsocial features. 

Use connection that speaks to your people assemblage and incorporates keywords they mightiness usage successful their searches. 

For instance, if you're selling sports equipment, usage presumption similar "lightweight," "durable," oregon circumstantial sports names. 

This makes your PLAs much applicable to idiosyncratic searches.

7. Create Segmented Campaigns

Segmenting your PLA campaigns allows for much targeted and effectual advertising.

Most hunt engines, including Google and Bing, connection options to radical your products wrong their advertizing platforms.

Start by categorizing your products based connected characteristics specified arsenic category, terms range, oregon lawsuit demographics.

For example, make abstracted campaigns successful Google Ads for “luxury items” and “budget-friendly finds” utilizing the “Product groups” feature.

Image Source: Google Ads Help

Categorization lets you customize your messaging and set bidding strategies by segment. 

You tin besides reappraisal the show information for each conception and refine your attack based connected learnings circumstantial to that group. This helps guarantee each radical is optimized for the champion imaginable results.

Ready to Create Your First PLA Campaign?

Product listing ads springiness you nonstop entree to radical looking for products similar yours.

It is 1 of the champion ways for retailers to thrust sales.

However, creating an effectual PLA run requires thorough readying that undertakes existing marketplace realities. 

Start by analyzing your competitors. Look astatine their ads and larn from them. Based connected that, make your ain campaign.

Try PLA Research for free.