Product Feed Optimization 101

It’s no secret that traditional brick-and-mortar retail is in decline. But remember when visual merchandisers showcased the lead products in the shop window? Well, that’s what’s happening when you optimize your product feed.

Product feed optimization is an essential component of any eCommerce enterprise. So if you are unfamiliar with the term and want more information, then read on.

This article walks you through the definition of product Feed Optimization. You’ll also learn how it can help your business thrive in today’s digital retail climate.

​Part One: An Overview of Product Feeds

Product feeds are an important part of e-commerce sites. This is because they provide online stores’ information to display to shoppers online.

As they focus on products for sale, product feeds include many details. Examples include images, titles, descriptions, prices, category information, and other related data.

Product feeds give a way for people to discover products in an efficient and timely fashion. Product Feeds build-up using the information provided by a supplier. Then at a later time, online stores are able to determine how much of their sales came from the feed.

For consumers, product feeds showcase their favorite products in real-time. Customers can also get updates on price changes in real-time. The feeds make it easier for people to work out which items they want.

What Are Product Feeds?

Product feeds are information databases that show products available on an e-commerce site. The feed allows other sites to use the same information to display products for customers.

They have the biggest effect on merchant sites, affiliate sites, and even search engines. These feeds give shoppers up-to-date pricing and product information such as stock availability.

Product feeds are also more often called product descriptions or product listings. Feeds link to the online seller’s website. Thus a site owner must make sure they use the correct keywords to get customers to buy their goods.

Product feeds are a must-have hack for efficiency. They serve many functions. These include sales drivers and data analysis, as well as other elements of the sales funnel.

Part Two: How to Optimize Your Product Feed

Now you’ve got a basic understanding of what a product feed is. It’s time to create your Product Feed and optimize it.

Remember that once you’ve made your Product Feed, it needs regular care and attention. You’ll find you need to keep looking at the data and tweaking feeds. That way, you’ll get the most out of your customers’ feed.

1. Create a Feed Optimization Strategy

The first thing you’ll need to do in creating your feed optimization strategy is to make sure it is best suited to your business. Does your business sell a lot of different products? If so, you’re going to want to choose a solution that allows you to manage products with the most significant possible customization amount.

Some feeds work with particular types of products in mind, so you’ll need to choose a compatible solution with the types of products your company sells. If your business is starting, a basic feed solution may be all you need.

Product feeds are divisible into two different types, static and dynamic. The two have alternate purposes and use differing formats.

Suppose you’re a small business with only a handful of products. In that case, you’ll likely appreciate the option to keep things simple and opt for a static product feed.

2. Create Your Product Feed

Once you’ve decided which type of feed is right for you, it’s time to create your feed.

Make sure you’re choosing the tool that has the features needed for those purposes. You should check how easy the tool will be to use after a while. In these checks, think about how well it integrates with other areas of your business, such as e-commerce shopping carts.

Some of the most prominent product feeds categorize as follows:

Paid Search Engines

Product feeds provide search engines with the information they need to display products. One of the most ways to make a feed is through Google Merchant Center, which integrates with sites such as Shopify.

To do this, you have to add a Product Feed tab and then put your product feed HTML into that tab. You can use Google’s wizard or API wizard for uploading your feed.

Social Media

Optimizing for Pinterest, Facebook and Instagram are all avenues that you can pursue to get your product to the masses. Like marketplaces, these showcase products advertised on relevant marketplaces and websites

Comparison Sites

Comparison sites aren’t the most well-known product feed, but it makes perfect sense. When you compare car insurance, for example, you receive a list of services tailored to your requirements inputted in the inquiry stage.

Affiliates

Marketing companies and publishers use product feeds on their sites to promote relevant products that relate to their content. There is some crossover here with influencer marketing on social media, where the affiliate relationship is a multi-platform channel. In this context, the products funnel through their platform through relevance.

What is a Feed Management Service Provider?

A feed management service provider does the optimization process for you. For example, they will design the product feed themselves or work with a design team to create the feed layout, including images and their products’ descriptions. If you’re an online seller, you should be aware that Google’s product feed specifications are the standard, and merchants can change their feeds as they see fit.

Fluctuations in the availability of products or prices, or if a merchant changes the product category, will need updating for shoppers to get current information about products. It’s also necessary for ensuring that pages related to older products aren’t indexed by accident.

In many ways, automated product feeds are preferential thanks to dedicated software programs known as feed management and feed monitoring systems. These programs provide website owners with tools that allow them to watch their product feeds, often including all the basic features mentioned above.

Why Use a Feed Management Service?

Google recommends using a feed management service because it reduces errors. You should keep their product feeds up-to-date to avoid search engine indexing issues. Feed management services can also help you change your feeds a lot and ensure that they are accurate for each page and each product.

Merchants or feed management service providers should be aware that Google will crawl the product data and associated URLs on occasion. Suppose product data doesn’t get indexed within a few weeks. In that case, Google may not track new products and prices or show previous prices for reference.

You should also be aware that if there are errors in their feeds, this can cause search engine indexing issues. You need to keep an eye on the pages and product feeds to ensure that listings are accurate and up-to-date at all times.

3. Identify the Most Important Data Points

To identify the essential data points for your product feed, identify the different items you wish to include. These can include how many units are available, pricing information (including pricing changes), and any extra features included with the product.

Remember that each item will have a different weight depending on its popularity and what other items exist in the feed. To get accurate data, merchants need someone who understands the platform they’re using (based on their product listings). That way, the specialist can input the data by hand into their feed monitoring program, reducing resource wastage.

Product feeds have a plethora of data that can engage with the system, depending on the feed’s platform. Here are some examples below:

Unique Identifiers

Unique identifiers such as serial numbers, SKU codes, UPCs, or EAN numbers can pull up extra information about the products on a shopping site. It makes it easier for shoppers to find the products that they’re looking for and get all questions answered in one place.

There are a few things to watch out for, though. Make sure you don’t change the identifiers if you change your feed provider and stick to letters and numbers to keep it simple.

Product Title

In the product title, make sure you stick to clear, easy-to-understand descriptions. In most cases, the image will do the work for you, so it’s best to keep it simple. Examples include color, gender, product type, and attributes such as size.

Product Listings

These are descriptions that provide extra information about the products available for sale on a merchant’s site. They contain text and visuals which include extra details about the products, such as how many units are available, pricing information, and images.

This is where copywriting skills come in handy. Think about how you are going to portray the message to your customers that they need to buy this item.

Knowing your target market comes in handy in this section as you can tailor your language to their demographic (age-related tone of voice and formality, simplicity, detail, which benefits you highlight)

Target Audience

Analytics software pulls in data from previous purchases to know whom to target when advertising in the product feed. If this information isn’t available, you can input specific parameters instead.

Product Tracking

This section can help keep track of which items sell by using order numbers. It also shows how many units are available and how much stock remains in each product category. While the preferred update interval of this data is hourly, there are options to update it as and when you need to push an update through.

Product Pricing

This section shows each product’s price and if it changed, when that change happened, and how much. It keeps a running total of the site’s prices across all categories that need updating as often as possible.

In some cases, you can add a sale price to the item, and set start and end times.

Availability

Stock inventory levels are vital in the feed. For Google this means “in stock, out of stock, or preorder”, but for other feeds, it may require a quantity inputted.

Quantity of Item

In some cases this is required to distinguish single items from multipack bundles, to avoid any confusion. Making sure this is clear and correct will avoid customer confusion as well as any stock discrepancies (for example 1 multipack of 3 shirts is different to 3 single-pack shirts)

Product Categories

These work around what type of products sell and help shoppers look for specific items or brands online. This section pulls in data from other shopping sites or catalogs where products group together. That way, it’s easier for site owners to give customers access to everything they want instead of going through many websites.

Product URL

This is the link to your product on your site. It gives customers the opportunity to purchase the product once they have clicked on it.

Make sure you add tracking data to your links so you can see where the buyers are coming from. That way you can tailor the customer journey based on these statistics in your data analysis.

Image URL

This URL is where the product images live that display on the feed. An image is an excellent place to include promotional photos or essential features of the product. Make sure you use a solid image to attract buyers.

Material

This is where the materials used to make the products are presented. This feature is useful for customers with allergies.

Sometimes this can appear in the description, but there may be a legal requirement to add this as separate information for allergies or if the item you are selling is made to the regulation.

Shipping Information

Some feeds require shipping information for calculating shipping costs. Location, weight and package size are three examples of the information required. Make sure you use the correct units and dimensions for measuring products.

Language

Product descriptions are possible to have set up in three different languages to make it easier for shoppers to find the information they need. Merchants also have an easier time promoting their products.

These languages include English, Spanish and French. You can also translate these into other languages using specialist software.

4. Write Up a Feed Schema

The Schema is the DNA of your product feed. It’s a piece of code that defines how it should display different data in different fields. All Schema fields need defining, and there must be at least one rule for each item in your feed.

Merchants must understand that these rules should reflect their products and what types of products will fit into the feed for their store to get indexed in the correct way.

Suppose there are any errors with a merchant’s product feeds. In that case, Google will ignore them, or they may even filter out depending on what the error was. That’s because Google works very hard to make sure its products are accurate and efficient.

As mentioned earlier, creating a product database is part of the initial planning stage for eCommerce website owners. Too many websites have tried to launch without a precise data model, leading to inconsistent product grouping and not knowing which products should exist in which categories.

Categorizing the Schema

The Schema can also define how products group together. It is handy for those who sell many products. That way, the products present themselves in a way that makes sense to both merchants and customers.

For example, a merchant may decide to create different schemas with different feeds for mobile phones or clothes.

For example, instead of having to group all the clothing items in one category, sorting the inventory by themed clothing items may be a better option for merchant website owners. Separating specific product categories can solve some inconsistencies that arise over time with product categorization. But this depends on how particular merchants serve different audiences.

While some eCommerce webpages use keyword phrases, a good part of merchants want to use keywords whenever possible. They do this to boost page rankings and improve customer satisfaction.

5. Approve Your Feed Schema

Once you have your data formatted for compatibility with your feed management system, you’ll need to upload it into the system. The process of approving a product feed schema can vary depending on the different needs of merchants.

Manual Input

Some feed management systems may need merchants to enter information by hand, and update the feed manually.

This is fine for small businesses or companies dealing with one-time orders, but for those wishing to expand the business, it will get tiresome very fast.

Generating a Product Feed From Spreadsheets

Depending on the product feed management system used, it may be necessary to create the feed from a CSV file. CSV files are ideal because they can get essential data into a feed in a quick and easy way. Yet, the feed management systems must be compatible with the software used to create the feeds.

When you’re trying to create a product feed in CSV format, it can be beneficial to have a template that can suggest what type of information should be present. Google recommends using product data, feeds, and any other information that is relevant to your platform. It helps improve efficiency since you’ll be able to pull up your store data at speed and turn it into an automated product feed.

It’s also important to note that for Google’s system to read your data, you’ll need specific identifiers for it to pull up the correct information. If you’re using a static feed, make sure your formatting is compatible when uploading.

If you’re using a dynamic feed, be sure that your data is accurate. Issues such as misspellings or incorrect categories can cause problems with data indexing.

Automated Feed Tool

As discussed, automated tools allow the combination of a hands-off automated experience while allowing changes to be made with ease.

Some tools require more active input than others, but all in all, they offer some level of customization and flexibility when uploading the feed.

It’s vital that you choose a platform that makes it easy for you to update data and information as needed. Many platforms don’t charge for updates, making it easier for you to keep up with changes.

Automating using an API

APIs are Application Programming Interfaces, aka pieces of code that allow another tool to do the formulating. In this case, some shopping platforms can automatically send the data over to the product feed host, but this comes at a price.

That’s because you have little control over what information appears in the feed, so you might find your descriptions aren’t optimized for that specific use case.

Feed Host Approval

You’ll also need your feed approving by the host of the feed, even if you’re using an automated service. Google requires that product feed menus exist in XML format with a specific layout. Making sure this layout is correct can be time-consuming if you have many products.

Once you have the Schema in place, it’s a matter of submitting it to the host so that they can check for accuracy before it ends up on their platform.

Merchants who use Magento to design their websites and sell on eBay should find the process more straightforward than others since these platforms already have integration in place between them. ECommerce merchants who use these platforms will not have to make any code changes since the integration exists within the software. As a result, merchants can submit their feeds straight to eBay without worrying about different formats.

6. Test Your Feed Schema

Next, you’ll want to test the feed by going through it with an in-depth analysis of all rules that you have configured. Once done, you can check for any errors or warnings present and possible discrepancies between different data sets such as price and quantity.

Merchants should keep in mind that if there are problems with the feed, Google Search Engine will not show product listings on the Google search engine. It is vital for new merchants since this information can prevent them from having their products indexed by Google’s systems.

Merchants with their sites indexed should use return traffic to test their feeds. It happens because they can’t rely on search engine rankings to determine whether it’s working right or not.

Testing a product feed is a critical part of the process. Merchants need to make sure that their feeds will work the right way and that they are accurate at all times. The feed can reflect any changes to products or prices in the feed and on Google’s site in a quick manner.

If there are any bugs, merchants should contact the feed management service provider immediately to fix them before those bugs get out into the public. Merchants should also ensure that the product feed works with their system in the right way before doing anything else, such as running a Google-led test.

7. Upload Your Feed Schema

Once you have a product feed, it’s time to upload it to your chosen platform. It will help ensure that your data display on different platforms.

To do this, you’re going to need to export the data in a way that’s consumable by all the different social media networks. This process includes information such as product title, price, and quantity. If you’re reading this and still not sure, re-consider a product feed management service to help you with this process.

Due to the importance of shipping your product feed, it is also vital that you don’t leave it out on your website’s servers unattended. Some merchants have forgotten to ship their feeds, and it has caused issues with search engine indexing. If there are any complications, contact the vendor immediately and ask them what steps to rectify the problem.

Merchants wanting to reduce the chances of this occurring should always ship their products as soon as possible. It allows them to receive a notification when there is a change, so they know when they need to submit an update. Most platforms allow merchants to change feed details as needed, so there’s no reason why you can’t make these changes at any time.

8. Update Your Site and Product Feeds

Once you’ve shipped the feed, it’s time to update your website and your product feeds, at least once or twice a week. If you make any changes to products or the feed, you should test them to ensure no errors before submitting them again to get blocked by Google’s systems.

For Google, Merchants need to ship their product feed to the Google Merchant Center for their webpage and products for indexing and for shoppers to find them online. Google Merchant Center accepts data feed optimization using third-party services. This shipping data method is the best because merchants can track their data across several different platforms at once.

Google’s Merchant Center contains two shipping managers: one for feeds and one for Webpages. The Google feed shipping manager tool allows merchants to submit their product feeds, track their code, and check for errors. The Webpages shipping manager tool allows merchants to create a new web page or fix the existing one’s features.

Once Google has received the feed, it will begin to index the data into Google’s database. This indexing process will occur by itself over time as part of its search engine optimization process. Once this process is complete, shoppers will be able to see all your data in one place on your site and search it with a simple search box straight on Google!

8. Promote Your Product Feeds Online

Once Google indexes your feed, you need to make sure that it’s seen and used as often as possible. Active users are the most crucial part of the process because Google will not only crawl your product feeds. But they’ll also examine the website traffic and page rankings, which helps determine your potential for success with Google shopping.

An integrated platform ensures that merchants can do everything from creating product feeds to manage them. This platform allows merchants to create a feed at speed, submit it and track how the data is doing.

It’s easy to update specific features if they need to make changes, which means that merchants are not limited in their ability to customize their platforms at all. These system types aim to make it easier for merchants to run their content and advertising campaigns. In doing so, they also aim to improve customer satisfaction by allowing shoppers to find everything they’re looking for in one place.

Consistent marketing is a vital part of the process, especially since many merchants have difficulty promoting their products in print media or on television. You can take several steps to promote your product feeds online, some of which we explain in the next section.

9. Analyze Your Product Feeds and Test Hypotheses

After your product feed is live, it’s time to analyze its effectiveness so that you can understand what works and what doesn’t.

For example, suppose only a few shoppers are making purchases via the feed. In that case, you’ll need to get an idea of why this is happening. The analysis will help you develop new ways of selling your products to those who may not currently buy them through a product feed.

One of the most critical elements of this step is also thinking about changes if needed. Merchants need to analyze the data and then identify what needs changing.

Once you’ve optimized your product feed by coming up with a new marketing plan or strategy, you need to ensure that your plan changes immediately. Implementing a new marketing plan means trying something new – something that’s proven effective in the past.

Rinse and Repeat

As we mentioned before, keep repeating this process and make it a regular part of your marketing and growth strategy. For most e-commerce stores, there will be seasonal peaks and troughs depending on the products sold, so this is one key reason you should always keep on top of the product feed.

By reviewing your feed every few weeks and analyzing the data, you can make sure that your store runs at peak performance all year round. And, you’ll find yourself prepared for any unexpected surprises, such as abnormal weather fluctuations where you might need to ship stock out earlier than anticipated.

Part Three: How to Make The Most Of the Product Feed to Gain Valuable Data

Your priority is keeping a close eye on the product feed and analyzing its effectiveness in this stage. Maximizing your outreach of the product feed will give you more data for analysis.

Having this data helps you observe any consumer patterns of behavior. It also helps see if any issues are preventing the customer from completing the buying journey.

Here’s how you can maximize the initial testing and promotion stage of your product feed.

AB testing

AB testing is a prevalent way of optimizing and testing product feeds, allowing you to glean valuable data from consumers who use your products. It’s also a valuable tool for testing product pricing and promotional offers, and more.

AB testing is a trial and error testing process to determine which product or choice is the most popular. It’s a process that involves offering two different versions of the same feed to different individuals within the target demographic.

Over time, you can determine which product or choice people prefer by analyzing which option has higher click-through rates. You can also analyze other variables such as feed location, user data, and time of use.

You can keep watch over your data and make sure that your products aren’t falling victim to customers’ negativity. These customers may feel angry about their experience with your product, whether it’s because it’s delayed shipping, a batch issue, or the incorrect product sent out.

Incorporating Intelligence Into Your Digital Marketing Strategy

Once your product feed is live, you may start to wonder how you can start marketing it. Optimizing your product feed doesn’t happen overnight.

It takes time and much patience. The good news is that there are several ways to market your product feeds online.

The process of implementing your online market strategy can include:

Uploading Data to Multiple Sites

Because the platform uses schema mark-up on websites, Google will recognize where it resides and indexes it in the right way into its search engine results. It does this to promote data through its search engine pages. That way, shoppers can find your products when they search for them online during their browsing sessions.

As long as you’ve uploaded your feed the right way and in a way that’s compatible with Google’s search engine, you can upload it anywhere on the internet and make use of various marketing strategies. It’s easy to do this because you can insert a QR code that acts as a visual link into your site for shoppers to scan and view the data on Google’s search engine pages.

Creating a Landing Page for Every Product

The landing pages should be able to include essential information about your products with ease. It’s also essential that they’re able to showcase the feed, as well as guide the user through the buying process.

Using Google Shopping Ads

Using Google Shopping Ads will help drive traffic and sales in your store by bringing shoppers straight to your product feed or other relevant products in your store. Optimizing your product feed is only the first step to building a successful eCommerce store. It’s vital that you continue to work on improving it for all your customer’s needs, which ends up leading to success.

Because these ads show up on Google’s search engine results pages (SERPs), they’re easy to spot. People click on them to find out more about the product in question.

Seasonal Product Promotions

Merchants can host seasonal product promotions with Google Shopping ads, which will surface during seasonal peaks and troughs. Also, merchants can use Google Shopping ads as added exposure to their feeds.

It also gives them the chance to reach new customers and target them based on user data. During the promotional period, the ads will run alongside all other regular products. Still, they’ll have a special offer attached to them.

Organizing Google Shopping Forums

Running Google forums will ensure that many people can get together to discuss relevant topics or problems that they’re experiencing with their products or stores. That allows merchants to respond quickly and provide a solution as soon as possible.

Product Feed Optimization Maximizes Efficiency and Productivity

The above article explains how you can promote your product feeds online, but it also looks at ways of optimizing them. When you optimize your product feed, it will put your e-commerce business in a better position to sell its wares online and allow shoppers to find everything they’re looking for in one place.

Often, small businesses do not have the time or money to create their own product feed for their products. The good news is that there are many product feed management services out there that can help with the process. Even so, it’s still vital that merchants understand exactly how these feeds work and what they should be looking for when doing so.

With the right strategies, merchants can increase their sales and improve their marketing performance by using their product feed optimization knowledge. In doing so, they find new, innovative ways of doing business online.

To find out how we can help your business, contact us today and optimize your product feed. We love nothing more than helping businesses grow their sales and seeing top-level results.