Following Google’s recent announcement that it will end its free Google Product Search and replace it with a new, paid service called Google Shopping, The Online Seller spoke with Chris Eckland, the product manager of Auctiva Commerce, a fully featured shopping-cart solution that thousands of sellers use to power their online stores.
We asked Eckland to share his thoughts on what the change could mean for online sellers. Below are his comments.
The Online Seller: What do you think about Google’s change to a commercial model?
Eckland: Hopefully this change will be positive for merchants, as the products presented in Google Product Search become more relevant for buyers, and some of the duplicate or spammy content is filtered out since the service will now be paid. However, I hope the cost is not high. That could impact smaller merchants more intensely than larger, more established merchants.
If the pricing model is correct, the change could be a positive one, over time.
“In the long term, it may help legitimate merchants, as the more dubious stores and content are filtered out of Google Product Search”The Online Seller: Does it surprise you that Google would charge for its service?
Eckland: No—I’m actually surprised it took this long for Google to monetize this channel. With the millions of products and high traffic volume of Google Product Search, it makes sense that Google would attempt to monetize this in some way. I just hope it is not overly aggressive.
The Online Seller: How will the change affect online sellers?
Eckland: I think it depends on how the pricing model is finalized and how much it costs. It sounds like Google is thinking of using a cost-per-acquisition model, where sellers only pay if the Google Product Search ad yields a sale. Hopefully, this cost will be low enough that it doesn’t destroy our merchants’ profit margins, and they can continue to use Google Product Search since it is a very valuable traffic driver.
In the long term, it may help legitimate merchants, as the more dubious stores and content are filtered out of Google Product Search. Online sellers will also need to be prepared to spend a bit of time learning the new setup and making sure their Google accounts are configured correctly for this change.
The Online Seller: Anything else you would like to add?
Eckland: Soon, we should have tutorials up on the Auctiva Commerce Help site to explain these changes, and address any updates our merchants will need to make. As I understand it, the feed itself is not changing, so the actual Auctiva Commerce updates for this will likely be minimal.
To learn the full details about Google’s change to a commercial model, read Google to End Product Search.
