Google Local Ads Tips for Back to School Shopping Season

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Now that COVID vaccines are available for everyone 12 and older, children may be more likely to go back to school this fall, meaning many retailers are preparing for back-to-school purchases. To highlight some options that can help retailers optimize for both in-store and online shoppers, Google has released a list of local ad solutions.

Get your local inventory online. Businesses that don’t yet have a local inventory feed can use Google’s Pointy, a hardware device that connects to a store barcode scanner to pull the title, image, and description to add it to Surfaces on Google. For eligible resellers in the US, Canada, UK and Ireland, Pointy is free until September 30th.

Ads for locally available products. Retailers can bring their physical store online with locally available product ads. Local inventory ads also allow stores to indicate whether products are available for immediate off-site pickup or at a later time.

Locally available product ads with take-back options. Image: Google.

Local promotions, available in beta for merchants participating in locally available product announcements and promotions in Australia, France, Germany, UK, Canada and the US, can also be used to show store-specific offers.

Promote your locations. According to Ipsos data commissioned by Google, 60% of back-to-school shoppers plan to make at least a portion of their purchases at a small business this year. Local campaigns, which measure and optimize specifically for store visits and local actions (calls and clicks for directions), can help businesses take advantage of them by allowing them to promote their locations on Google Maps, Search, YouTube, Gmail and Google Display Network.

Optimize for online and in-store. Advertisers can include store visits in Smart Bidding to help them increase both in-store and online sales.

Because we care. According to Ipsos data commissioned by Google, more than half of North American back-to-school shoppers say they will check online store inventory before entering a store, and 48% will shop at stores that offer home pickup or shipping. without contact. Promoting in-store inventory, pickup options, and locations can help retailers make the most of these consumer preferences and potentially sell more products.

If you’re looking for ways to increase your shop’s visibility on Google for free, check out our “FAQ: All About Google Shopping and Surfaces on Google” resource.

About the author

George Nguyen is an editor for Search Engine Land, dealing with organic search, podcasting and e-commerce. His background is in journalism and content marketing. Before entering the industry, he worked as a radio personality, writer, podcast host, and public school teacher.

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