Product Feed Optimization Guide
Feed quality directly affects product visibility, ad eligibility, and conversion rates. Optimized feeds get more impressions in Google Shopping, better placement in Meta dynamic ads, and fewer disapprovals across all platforms. These are the attributes and practices with the highest impact on feed performance.
Title Optimization
The product title is the single most important attribute for search matching and click-through rate. Titles are used for keyword matching in Shopping ads and search relevance scoring.
| Practice | Recommendation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Keyword placement | Put the most important keywords first. Google gives more weight to the first 70 characters of the title. Brand name first for branded products. | Nike Air Max 90 Running Shoe - Black/White - Men's Size 10 |
| Character limits | Google: 150 chars (70 visible in ads). Meta: 200 chars. Amazon: 200 chars. Keep essential information within the first 70 characters. | Front-load: Brand + Product + Key Attribute |
| Include variant attributes | Add color, size, material, and pattern to the title for variant products. Helps match long-tail searches and reduces duplicate content issues. | Levi's 501 Original Fit Jeans - Dark Wash - 32x32 |
| Avoid promotional text | No "Free shipping," "Sale," "Best price," or "Limited time" in titles. Google disapproves products with promotional language in the title. | SALE - Nike Air Max 90 - FREE SHIPPING (disapproved) |
| Capitalization | Use title case or sentence case. ALL CAPS is flagged by Google and reduces readability. | Title Case or Sentence case only |
Image Requirements by Platform
| Requirement | Google Merchant | Meta Catalog | Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum size | 100x100 px (250x250 for apparel) | 500x500 px recommended | 1000x1000 px (for zoom) |
| Maximum size | 64 megapixels | 8 MB file size | 10,000 px longest side |
| Aspect ratio | No requirement (square preferred) | 1:1 square recommended | 1:1 square required for main image |
| Background | White or transparent preferred | No requirement | Pure white (RGB 255,255,255) required for main |
| Text overlays | Disapproved if overlays cover product | Max 20% text in ad images | No text, logos, or watermarks on main image |
| Formats | JPEG, PNG, GIF, BMP, TIFF | JPEG, PNG | JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF |
Best Practices Summary
| Area | Practice | Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Price competitiveness | Use sale_price for temporary discounts. Keep price accurate and matching the landing page. Price mismatches cause disapprovals. | Critical |
| Inventory accuracy | Update availability within 1 hour of stock changes. Products shown as in_stock but unavailable on the landing page get suspended. | Critical |
| Feed update frequency | Google: at least daily (every 30 days minimum, feed expires after 30 days). Amazon inventory: hourly for high-volume. Meta: at least daily. | High |
| GTIN coverage | Include GTIN for all products that have one. Products with GTINs get prioritized in Google Shopping results. Missing GTINs reduce ad eligibility. | High |
| Product categorization | Manually set google_product_category to the most specific level. Auto-categorization misclassifies 10-15% of products. Correct categories improve ad targeting. | High |
| Additional images | Provide 3-5 additional images per product. Include different angles, lifestyle shots, and size reference. Products with multiple images have higher click-through rates. | Medium |
| Custom labels | Use custom_label_0 through custom_label_4 for campaign segmentation: margin tiers, seasonal products, bestsellers, clearance, new arrivals. | Medium |