Google have recently announced a raft of updates to Google Shopping campaigns which should give advertisers and PPC experts plenty to be excited about. The biggest change will be for broader queries which will display a whole new ad format for these kind of search results.
Flights and Hotels
Updates include new options for users searching for hotels called Hotel Smart Filters. These filters will refine results based on specific hotel related criteria such as ratings and price. Initial these features will only be available in the US but with the global roll out to take place later this year.
In addition, Google will also be including Hotel Deals in search results to give customers more confidence in finding the best prices. These will be displayed in SERPS with labels to indicate a lower than normal rate or when discounts are available.
Hotel Tips are another way Google are enriching search results in this sector. This feature helps users by proactively notifying them of ways to save money – such as changing the dates of their booking. For example “Save £50 if you stay Fri, Jul 15 – Fri, Jul 22”.
Also related to pricing, Flights price tracking will help users see changing flight prices within Google Flights. Users can opt in to track certain flights and be notified of changes to fares. This feature will be available to all countries where Google Flights are currently active.
Broad Shopping Terms
Google have revealed that 40% of shopping related terms are for broad phrases such as “Women’s shoes” or “Men’s shirts”. In a bid to provide users with more choice, Showcase Shopping ads will allow advertisers to showcase their entire collection of related products in a much more visual way.
All advertisers using Shopping campaigns in US, UK and Australia will have access to the new feature and their products will be eligible to be shown in the new Showcase ad format. Furthermore, a premium version will be available for advertisers who wish to customise their brand experience and change how their products appear to users.
Shopping on YouTube
YouTube is the second biggest search engine on the web and is used by millions of users on a daily basis searching for products. Google are planning to make further enhancements to their TrueView for shopping feature which was rolled out last year.
These new features include a Companion Banner that will appear next to the YouTube video. This banner is scrollable while the video is playing so viewers can browse products while still watching videos.
In addition, a Product Picker allows advertisers to prioritise which products are featured in a TrueView ad on a per campaign basis. This provides advertisers with extra control over how their ads are show with specific products being featured in specific campaigns.
Currency
Finally, Google also claim to have made improvements to their currency conversion feature that automatically converts prices into a users native currency (when the product being sold is advertised in a different currency). The new feature will allow users to locally convert currencies in their ads making them more effective when advertising globally and without having to change anything on their site.
To read more, here’s a link to the full Google announcement.