How to Optimize Google Shopping Campaigns for Maximum ROI

The best way to optimize Google Shopping campaigns is to incorporate unique images, data feed and website alignment, high bids on profitable products, A/B tests, and accurate product data.

More than a third of product searches happen on Google.

That makes Google’s Shopping campaigns a powerful way to reach a massive audience — often with a lower cost-per-click (CPC) than most standard search ads.

This campaign type offers users a virtual window browsing experience to scroll and discover different products.

But to maximize your return on investment (ROI), you need to optimize your Google Shopping campaigns.

In this guide, we consulted HawkSEM co-founder and CEO Sam Yadegar and Director of Account Performance Jessica Weber for insights on how to optimize your Shopping campaigns.

How to optimize Google Shopping campaigns: 9 steps

Publishing Google Shopping Ads requires more than a high-res image of your product and a snappy headline. You’ll need accurate product data, pricing, and descriptions to drive ROI.

Here are nine expert tips for Shopping ads optimization:

1. Make the most of your Google Shopping ads titles

While you have 150 available characters for your Shopping ad title, your customer will only see the first 70 characters in the search engine results page (SERP).

Nonetheless, Google recommends that you use the entire title length available.

“Google pulls Shopping ad titles directly from your product titles in your feed,” says Weber.

“We recommend optimizing your feed to include high-priority keywords, brands, size/color identifiers, MPNs, and any other information that the user may find useful when they’re shopping.”

Being descriptive is more important than being clever when targeting these potential customers. Match titles as closely as possible to your audience’s search queries and include specs buyers care about.

Here’s an example: For “electric kettle” searches, Black+Decker Rapid Boil 1.7L Cordless outperforms Anko Electric Kettle because it shows benefits right in the title.

Bonus: Use custom labels

Custom labels help you flag and group products by criteria like Sale, Best Seller, or Low Margin. They won’t always display in ads, but they help you organize performance data and highlight special offers.

2. Speak directly to your audience in your product description

Is the title of a novel enough to sway a book browser to buy? Maybe, but it’s most likely the synopsis (the summary on the back or inside cover) that’s going to seal the deal.

The same goes for your Shopping Ads. The product description is the precious space where you can provide valuable details that encourage the user to purchase.

The product description length in Google Shopping is a whopping 5,000 characters, or roughly 1,000 words.

“We recommend taking full advantage of this opportunity to provide more optimized text about your products, including all details that would be on your actual website,” she says.

“Though not as high a priority for Google’s matching, it will help optimize user experience if they are trying to shop on Google or decide which vendor to click on.”

She adds that, if you provide professional, fleshed out information about your products, users will be more likely to choose you over a brand that doesn’t present itself the same way.

Pro tip: Focus on the product rather than your entire inventory or brand history. You have your website to dive into your brand story and values.

3. Cater your bids to each product

Not every product deserves the same bid.

You can adjust your Google Shopping campaign structure to bid on search terms based on your item ID, product category, product type, or price.

This is a more strategic way to approach bids that preserves more of your ad spend.

Another way to strategize bids?

4. Bid higher on your best sellers

Monitor ad performance and identify the campaigns and products that drive up your conversion rate to make the most of your paid traffic.

Here’s where to find your data:

• In the top-right menu of your Google Ads account page, navigate to “Reports”
• Select “Google Shopping” from the drop-down menu
• A new drop-down will appear with options for category, product type, item ID, store ID, MC ID, channel, and channel exclusivity

From there, identify which products drive the most conversions and bid higher on those product ads to generate a bigger return on ad spend (ROAS).

5. Exclude products that don’t bring sales

Don’t waste ad spend on low performers. Exclude them from campaigns (you can always re-enable later.)

Common reasons to exclude:

• Seasonality: Popular only during certain months
• Promotions: Limited-time offers
• Availability: Out-of-stock products

6. Use images to stand out

A quick Google search might generate a ton of Shopping ads that all look the same or similar. For example:

All these images are high-quality and clearly professionally done. The only problem? They all look pretty similar.

Consider unique and valuable ways to show your product and its functionality. The best way to know what resonates? Test different images.

7. Conduct A/B tests

Run two versions of an ad with one element changed, such as:

• Human model vs. stock product image
• Title with vs. without brand name
• Different featured specs

Analyze which generate higher clickthrough rates (CTRs) and conversions over time.

Further reading: 16 A/B Testing Ideas to Boost Conversions + Tools to Use

8. Match Google Shopping feed details with website and audience

Many ecommerce businesses import feed data from their online storefront on Shopify, Google’s API, or an Excel spreadsheet. However, imports aren’t always 100% accurate to your product availability, pricing, or details.

That’s why you need to consistently check your product feed to verify Google is pulling the most accurate product data for your audience.

Mismatches between ad price and website price frustrate shoppers and hurt trust.

If you sell across regions, create regional feeds with localized pricing and details so each audience sees the most relevant version.

9. Leverage remarketing

Remarketing lets you re-engage people who have already interacted with your ads or content.

These ads allow you to provide more detailed information about your products and bid higher to target higher intent audiences.

Yadegar recommends taking advantage of Shopping campaigns for top-funnel audiences and remarketing for those at the bottom of the funnel.

“When it comes to shopping, the path from discovery to purchase can be quick.”

Further reading: How to Set Up a Remarketing Campaign in Google Ads

3 Google Shopping mistakes to avoid

While mistakes can happen, ignoring them could cost you more over time in wasted ad spend.

That’s why it’s important to familiarize yourself with some common pitfalls of optimizing Google Shopping Ads campaigns:

1. Limiting product attributes

Color, size, SKU, type, availability, and brand are all examples of product attributes you can include in your shopping feed. The more you include, the more you stand out from your competition.

2. Forgetting negative keywords

Negative keywords help you preserve your marketing budget for only the most relevant audiences likely to buy your products.

3. Relying on automated bidding

Smart shopping (similar to smart bidding in Google Ads PPC campaigns) lets you leverage Google’s machine learning algorithms to maximize clicks and conversions for your Shopping ads based on ad performance.

While we love the efficiency of automated bidding strategies and use them for Shopping campaigns, we never set-and-forget bids because ecommerce landscapes, audience preferences, and pricing change so frequently.

What does a Google Shopping ad look like?

Google Shopping ads are product-based ads that appear at the top of the Google search results page (SERP) or in the Google Shopping tab when someone searches for a relevant product.

(Image: Google Shopping)

Each ad highlights key product details in a visually engaging way, including:

• Product image
• Title
• Price
• Retailer name and link
• Star rating (if available)

This format differs from standard Search campaigns because it’s tailored to how people shop — giving them a quick view of what’s being sold before they click.

When clicked, Shopping ads usually take users directly to the retailer’s product landing page, where they can view more details, compare options, and complete their purchase.

The Shopping tab in Google also shows product listings in more depth, sometimes with price comparisons across sellers, detailed descriptions, and customer reviews.

Here’s what all that looks like on this Google Shopping product page for an Apple iPad:

(Image: Google Shopping product page)

From a reporting standpoint, Shopping campaigns offer more retail-specific performance metrics in Google Analytics, as well as custom reporting dashboards in the Merchant Center for more granular insights.

In Google Merchant Center and Google Ads, you can analyze metrics like clicks, conversions, and impressions for individual products, as well as holistic performance across multiple product ads, ad groups, or categories of products.

The takeaway

Google Shopping campaigns are an ecommerce marketer’s bread and butter.

They mimic an online shopping catalog and place your products in front of a wide target audience at a fraction of the price of traditional Google Ads campaigns.

That is, if you consistently optimize Google Shopping campaigns for better ROI.

Overwhelmed by the details? That’s why we’re here.

As a Google Premier Partner, HawkSEM’s team of digital marketers has unparalleled expertise — with an average 4.5X ROI for all our clients.

Ready to send your audience on a shopping spree? Let’s make it happen.

This article has been updated and was originally published in April 2024.