How Google Product Listing Ads Can Boost Your Product Sales

You’re always looking for ways to get your products in front of potential customers, right? If so and you’re not already taking advantage of one of the best tools to do this—Google Product Listing Ads—it’s time for you to start!

Why? And how? You’re about to find out as we discuss what Google Product Listing Ads (PLAs) are, their benefits, how to set them up, and how to write high-converting product titles and descriptions. Let’s dive in.

What are Google Product Listing Ads?

Google Product Listing Ads, also known as PLA ads or Google Shopping ads, appear in product-related user searches. You’ve likely seen them in search results above text ads and organic results.

However, you can also land placements in the Shopping tab, in Images results, on YouTube, and even on Google’s search partner websites. And more placement options are being added all the time, which only increases the potential for driving e-commerce sales!

Do Google Shopping ads work?

Speaking of the potential of PLA ads for boosting sales, consider some of their benefits. They can:

• Increase your reach. Google is one of the first places people go when searching for specific products. So it can be a great addition to your strategy, which may also include promoting and selling your products on Amazon, Facebook or Shopify.
• Result in more clicks. They're eye-catching. Unlike text ads, they include images that help potential customers decide more quickly if your product is what they're looking for. If it is, you'll likely earn a click and, potentially, a customer.
• Boost your conversion rate. These ads provide straightforward pricing info. If your price is right and the product is right, you can generate many qualified leads and sales from PLAs. Especially since your ads can appear several times on the same Google search engine results page (SERP). The more you show up in the right results, the more conversions you can drive.

Additionally, with the introduction of free product listings in 2020, you can now enjoy the benefits of these ads without worrying about cost per click (CPC) and return on ad spend (ROAS). Since free listings were made available, Google has reported 130% more impressions and 70% more clicks on both free placements and paid ones in the Shopping tab. Without a doubt, now’s the time to get in on Google Shopping ads.

How to set up Google PLA ads

So far, we’ve covered what they are and how they’re beneficial. But now you’re probably wondering, “How do I set up a PLA on Google?” In contrast to text ads, keywords don’t dictate how and where Google Product Listing Ads will be shown. Instead, they rely on the existing product data in your Google Merchant Center data feed.

The setup steps are as follows:

1. Add your product data feed to Merchant Center.
2. Sign in to your Google Ads account (formerly Google AdWords) and select Campaigns.
3. Click the plus button to add a new Shopping campaign, then select Shopping as the campaign type.
4. Set your advertising preferences, which include selecting the Merchant Center account containing the products you want to advertise, adjusting the inventory filter, and setting a budget.
5. Select either a Product Shopping Ad for a single product or a Showcase Shopping ad to display a group of related products together.
6. Create your first ad group, name it, and enter your bid.

And voila! You’re ready to start advertising your products.

How to create product listing ads that sell, sell, sell

Of course, there’s more to meeting your target click-through and conversion rates than just setting up an ad campaign. What other important elements play a role in driving conversions?

Choose your images wisely

Select a high-quality image that puts the item searchers are looking for front and center. No need for elaborate backgrounds, text overlays or other features that could distract from the product itself. The product should be the star of the image.

Image Source: Uplift Desk

Write high-converting product descriptions

Besides choosing your product images wisely, you must also stick to best practices for product description writing.

1. Write for your target audience specifically and not for a broad audience in hopes that it'll increase your e-commerce sales.
2. Instead of focusing only on product features, highlight how your product solves their pain points or helps them reach their goals.
3. Avoid writing big blocks of text. Instead use short sentences and paragraphs, bullet points, and other formatting to make your product page descriptions scannable.
4. Use the search terms your customers use to find products like yours (but don't overuse them).
5. Don't count on low-value adjectives like "best" and "high-quality" to persuade people to buy. Explain the “why” and “how” behind such claims. 

Want to see these best practices in action? This snippet of a description for a standing desk shows how it should be done. 

This product has 11,000+ positive reviews! The quality of the description (and leveraging the power of Google ads) no doubt have a lot to do with the success of this listing.

How to write high-converting product descriptions using Jasper

To write your own effective descriptions, use templates in Jasper. The Google Ads Description template is a good starting point. Just enter your product name, a brief description, and a tone of voice to see what suggestions Jasper has. 

Pick an output you like or combine several to create one you like. For example, in this case, let’s combine the outputs into this sentence: “Ultra-slim iPhone 11 folio case that keeps your cards and cash secure and your phone protected.”

Then, head over to the PAS Framework template. Input your product name and tone. Then, either copy your description from the previous template or tweak it to give Jasper more benefits-focused product information.

Tweak the outputs as needed and you’ll end up with a short product description like this.

But what if you need to expand the description further? You can reuse both of the templates above, giving Jasper more information about each main feature of your product. This will give you some additional ideas to work into your existing description.

You could also use a template such as Persuasive Bullet Points to highlight at a glance the most important features and/or benefits potential customers should be aware of.

You could then use outputs from that template to elaborate on and improve the readability of some of the features you’ve already written about. 

This is a simple process for creating descriptions that drive product sales. And, the more you practice using templates, the faster and more effective it is!

Write an eye-catching title

With your images picked and description written, it’s time to write a title that will earn you a high click-through rate (CTR). The secret? Focus on the things searchers care about most. That includes front-loading the most important info so that it’s not truncated due to Google’s 70 character limit.

For example, which of the above titles is the best? The first two start with brand names. These don’t carry much weight if the brands aren’t well-known, sought after or included in the searcher’s query. 

Plus, while the first title is more detailed than the second, the third would likely speak to shoppers more (if we were judging based on titles alone). This is because it immediately: 

• Gives height info
• Reveals the product type (electric standing desk)
• Mentions adjustability, which is a big plus for the target audience
• Uses a keyword that searchers also use (“standing desk”) 

This illustrates the importance of being direct, descriptive, and front-loading the main details that will spark shoppers’ interest in learning more about your product.

Boost your product sales with Google Shopping Ads

Now that you know the do’s and don’ts, as well as how Jasper can help with writing your product descriptions, you’re ready to create your first Google Product Listing Ad and start making money. All that’s left to do is grab your trial of Jasper so that you can take templates for a spin!