Before the initial launch
Your products are already online on Google Display Ads or Google Shopping? Or is it the first time you send your catalogue to Google?
Depending on your situation, actions you have to realise may vary. Please refer to the case that mapes your situation to know what to do to launch your products through API feed:
- Case #1: It is the first time your catalogue is sent to Google: go directly the next paragraph.
- Case #2: Your catalogue is currently sent to Google via CSV feed (URL) with Lengow.
- Case #3: Your catalogue is currently sent to Google via another way (a file directly uploaded in your Google Merchant Center for example)
For cases #2 and #3, make sure that once a product is sent through API, it’ll no longer be sent via CSV (or another source). This could complicate the switch to the API.
Follow our advices below before following the next point.
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Test your Google API - Services feed on few products only
- Create an exclusion, to narrow your test to part of your products.
- Make sure to exclude the same products from the Google Shopping URL feed which currently display your products.
- Sign in to Google and select your MerchantID at the "Settings" in Lengow
#At this stage, most of your products is sent to Google with your previous feed in Lengow (via URL) and a small part of your catalogue is sent with the new feed (via API).
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In your Google Merchant Center, make sure products you sent through API are correctly set up.
In case they aren’t, modify parameters in the API feed until products are displayed and map with your expectations and Google’s expectations. -
Display 100% of products you want to launch through API
- Modify the exclusion you set up for your API feed test, in order to display products you want through API
- Immediately, exclude the same products from the channel which is sending products to Google via URL (CSV feed).
#At this stage, you are sending 100% of products to display through API via API and none of them through URL (CSV feed).
How to pause your whole URL feed in your Google Merchant Center?
Go to your Google Merchant Center and pause the csv feed: Google Merchant Center > "Products" > "Feeds" > choose you feed > "Settings" > "Fetch schedule" > "Pause schedule”.
-
Test your Google API feed on few products only
- Create an exclusion, to narrow your test to part of your products
- Make sure to exclude the same products from the other source which currently display your products.
- Sign in to Google and select your MerchantID at the "Settings" in Lengow
#At this stage, most of your products is sent to Google with your previous sending method and a small part of your catalogue is sent with the new feed (via API).
-
In your Google Merchant Center, make sure products you sent through API are correctly set up
In case they aren’t, modify parameters in the API feed until products are displayed and map with your expectations and Google’s expectations. -
Display 100% of products you want to launch through API
- Modify the exclusion you set up for your API feed test, in order to display products you want through API.
- Immediately, exclude the same products from the other sources which is sending products to Google.
#At this stage, you are sending 100% of products to display through API via API and none of them through URL (CSV feed).
Once the set up is done for your API catalogue and products are online:
Your data is sent automatically between Lengow and Google via API.
Do not enter any URL in your Merchant Center. A URL is made available on the "Settings" tab for the API channel only for you to have a look at the data sent to Google. If you use this URL in your Google Merchant Center, errors will occur.
Update frequency
Two different feeds are sent to Google through the API:
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Product feed: enables the integration and creation of products. It contains all the fields expected by Google. It is sent to Google once a day.
If your products are free from errors, they will be created in Google and will appear online within 2 days, after the offer feed has been sent -
Offer feed: enables updates for prices, stocks,... It includes only product id field and data which change frequently. When Google gets the offers feed, the update is almost instantaneous.
It is sent to Google:- once a day (within the product feed) if you didn't add a supplemental feed;
- hourly if you added a supplemental feed. This feed's identifier may be entered after the initial launch, in the Connection settings section.
If the supplemental feed identifier has not been entered, offers will be updated only once a day.
Read our guide: Google API - How to add a supplemental feed?
