In the ever-evolving landscape of digital marketing, the avenues for reaching your target audience are diversifying by the day. However, this diversity also brings along its own set of complexities. For e-commerce websites, in particular, promoting hundreds or even thousands of products effectively can be quite a challenge. This is where Google Ads Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) come into play. But to truly unlock DSA's full potential, there's an additional step you need to take: the utilization of Page Feed.
The Importance of Dynamic Search Ads (DSA)
When you run Dynamic Search Ads in Google Ads, the platform automatically scans your website's content and displays ads for pages that match the search queries users make. This is particularly useful for e-commerce sites with a broad range of products. However, leaving all the control to Google may not always be the best strategy, requiring manual adjustments and optimization.
The Role and Significance of Page Feed
Page Feed is a file containing specific URLs and labels, either manually or automatically generated, that can be regularly uploaded to your Google Ads account. This allows you to have better control over which pages will be displayed in your ads, which is particularly useful when you want to highlight best-selling products or promotions.
In this blog post, we will delve deep into the fundamental features of Page Feed, how you can use it effectively, and the advantages of this strategy. If you're ready, let's get started!
Key Features of Page Feed
What is Page Feed?
Page Feed is a data file specifically created for Google Ads' Dynamic Search Ads (DSA). It helps you determine which web pages your ads will be displayed on. Essentially, you list specific URLs and custom labels for these URLs in a CSV file, allowing you to control ad placements more specifically.
Main Features of Page Feed
-
URL: The web page the ad will direct to.
-
Custom Labels: Used to categorize URLs. For example, "Best Sellers," "New Arrivals," or the category or brand of your products. You can also add multiple labels to a single URL, allowing it to be used in different campaigns.
Page Feed Formats and Custom Label Usage
Page Feed is created in CSV format and consists of two columns.
The first column contains the Page URL, and the second column features the custom_label. Typically, the Page URL and custom_label are separated by a semicolon (;). However, if your Page Feed doesn't work due to certain CSV file formats, you can try separating them with a comma (,) instead.
Using custom_label in Page Feed is particularly useful for large e-commerce sites. It allows you to advertise specific products instead of your entire inventory and also enables you to use the same product under different categories in your ads.
You can download Google Ads' sample Page Feed file here
Here's what a sample CSV file might look like:
Page URL,custom_label
https://www.example.com/products/smartphone1,Smartphones;BestSellers
https://www.example.com/products/smartphone2,Smartphones;NewArrivals
https://www.example.com/products/laptop1,Laptops;BestSellers
https://www.example.com/products/laptop2,Laptops;NewArrivals
https://www.example.com/products/accessory1,Accessories;Sale
https://www.example.com/products/accessory2,Accessories;BestSellers
Creating Page Feed with Optifeed
Optifeed is a product data management platform designed for e-commerce businesses looking to optimize their product feeds, increase the ad performance and maximize ROI.
With Optifeed, you can effortlessly create a Page Feed using your main product file. By linking your Google Analytics 4 account with Optifeed, you can dynamically pull various metrics like view counts, add-to-cart counts, purchase counts, and conversion rates for your products.
This allows you to, for example, add the conversion rate metric to the custom_label field when creating your Page Feed. This way, you can run Dynamic Search Ads specifically for your high-conversion product pages.
Advantages of Using Page Feed
Digital marketing strategies are constantly evolving, and as part of this evolution, the benefits of using Page Feed are becoming increasingly apparent. Here are some of these advantages:
Expanded Targeting Options
With Page Feed, you can target specific pages or product categories, offering a level of targeting not possible with a general DSA campaign. For example, you can target product pages in your DSA campaign that have specific labels like “Best Sellers” or “Discounted Products”.
Increasing Advertising ROI
Page Feed allows you to use your ad budget more effectively. By using custom labels and targeting options, you can direct your ad spend to the pages that will yield the highest return.
We've observed a significant increase in ROI and a decrease in CPO for brands using Optifeed in their Dynamic Search Ads campaigns with Page Feed.
If you're interested in using Optifeed, you can create a new account here: https://www.optifeed.co
More Controlled Campaign Management
You can select which pages will be displayed in your ads, allowing for more controlled campaign management. For example, you can automatically stop ads for out-of-stock products or create special campaigns for products with low visibility but high sales potential.
Time Savings
Page Feed offers the ability to tag and manage pages in bulk, saving time and increasing operational efficiency.
Ease of Testing and Optimization
You can perform A/B tests using different labels and targeting strategies, making it easier to determine which approach is more effective.
Integration of DSA and Page Feed
Combining Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) and Page Feed can elevate your digital marketing campaigns. Let's look at how this integration is done.
Steps to Create Page Feed in Google Ads
- Log in to Your Google Ads Account: If you don't have an account, you'll need to create one.
- Go to Tools and Settings: Click on the wrench icon in the top right corner.
- Select Business Data: Located under the Setup tab.
- Click on New Data Upload: And choose the "Page Feed" option.
- Upload Your CSV File: Upload the Page Feed CSV file you've previously created.
After completing these steps, you can go into the Page Feed you've uploaded and select a regular update schedule from the “Scheduling” option in the left menu. The more frequently you choose to update, the more current the data used for your ad campaigns will be.
Adding Page Feed to DSA Campaigns
- Create a new DSA campaign: Or edit an existing one.
- Go to the campaign settings: Find the "Dynamic Search Ads" option and click on it.
- Add your domain to the Website field: Like www.mywebsite.com or mywebsite.com.
- Click on the Use only URLs from my page feed option.
- Select your Page Feed: Choose the Page Feed you've created and click save.
Utilizing Page Feed Data in DSA Campaigns
You can send any data specific to each product detail page in the custom_label field, and use this data for filtering in your DSA campaigns or ad groups.
For instance, you can send the conversion rate, brand, category, or any other information that's important to you in the custom_label. If you've sent conversion rate data, you can target products with high conversion rates in your DSA ad groups, or set up DSA campaigns based on specific brands and categories.
Let's say you've segmented products in your Page Feed based on their conversion rates. For example, if you add a CR 2-5 label in the custom_label field for products with a conversion rate between 2% and 5%, and a CR 1-2 label for products with a conversion rate between 1% and 2%, you can target products with a CR 2-5 label in your campaigns in the following manner.
Examples of Using Page Feed with Optifeed
Combining Page Feed and DSA can be a powerful way to optimize your digital marketing strategies. However, third-party tools like Optifeed can make this process even easier and more automated.
Optifeed is a tool designed to manage and optimize product data feeds for e-commerce sites. With this tool, you can easily create, update, and optimize your Page Feeds.
-
You can create a Page Feed using your main product file, Google Analytics 4 data, and manually uploaded product data
-
Based on Google Analytics 4 data, you can create a separate Page Feed for products that are less viewed but have sales potential, and target them in your campaigns.
-
You can create a separate Page Feed for products whose sales have increased by a certain percentage compared to the previous week, based on Google Analytics 4 data.
-
You can create a separate Page Feed for products with exceptionally high conversion rates, based on Google Analytics 4 data.
-
By sending product stock information to Optifeed, you can create a separate Page Feed for products that are in high stock and for which you want to clear stock, and target them in your campaigns.
-
You can send product profit margin information to Optifeed to create a separate Page Feed for products with high profit margins, and target them in your campaigns.
-
You can exclude products with low stock levels or below-expectation profit margins from your Page Feeds.
-
Every business has different goals that can vary seasonally. Therefore, Optifeed also offers custom solutions. You can consult with your Optifeed account manager to create a Page Feed that suits your needs.
Conclusion
Digital marketing is a constantly changing and evolving field. In this dynamic environment, you need flexible and robust tools to manage your ad campaigns effectively. Google Ads' Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) and Page Feed offer the potential to meet this need.
In this blog post, we've delved deeply into what Page Feed is, its key features, its advantages, and how to use it effectively. We've also discussed how to further strengthen this strategy using Optifeed and provided examples.
Remember, every successful campaign requires continuous testing, measurement, and optimization. Page Feed and DSA offer tools that simplify and optimize this process. However, to unlock their full potential, it's crucial to understand and apply them correctly.
