Also known as product data feeds or data feeds - these are files in a variety of formats (CSV, txt, XML)(product feed formats) containing any manner of different product information.
Extensible Markup Language (XML)
Comma Separated Values (CSV)
JavaScript Object Notation (JSON)
Tab Separated Values (TSV)
Product Feed Meaning
In an eCommerce context, these 'feeds' or 'e-commerce feeds' are used by sales and marketing channels like Google Shopping, eBay, Pricerunner and Facebook to receive the product data from eCommerce merchants and then use it to display their product listings on their site.
Product feeds play a vital role in getting data from your online store to be listed on global marketplaces.
Different channels have their own unique requirements regarding the appearance and structure of your product feed. When it comes to showcasing your products, it is crucial to understand and adhere to these guidelines. For instance, Google, being one of the leading platforms, demands that each product in your feed is accompanied by a Global Trade Item Number (GTIN). This serves as a standardized identifier that helps to ensure accurate product information and seamless integration with Google's systems.
On the other hand, Miinto, another prominent channel, has specific guidelines concerning product titles. They explicitly state that brands should not be included in the product titles. This requirement aims to create a consistent and uniform presentation across their platform, allowing customers to focus solely on the product itself, rather than brand recognition.
By carefully studying and adhering to the distinct requirements set forth by each channel, you can optimize your product feed to effectively meet the expectations of both Google and Miinto. This attention to detail ensures that your products are accurately represented and increases the likelihood of successful integration and exposure on these platforms. Ultimately, complying with channel-specific guidelines enhances your overall visibility, accessibility, and customer engagement.
For digital marketers, product feeds are important as they are the line between a successful online campaign and a waste of online spending. For them, it's not just a matter of making sure the product feeds have all the requirements the sales channels require. For effective results, e-commerce product feeds should be about more than just getting product data from one place to another.
Product feeds represent the overall quality of your campaigns in the eyes of shopping channels. These channels rely on the information contained in your product feeds to assess the relevance and value of your offerings. By evaluating factors such as content, feed entirety, and relevant keywords, the channels determine whether or not your products should be displayed when a shopper conducts a specific search query.
As an online seller, your product feed is the primary source of information that you provide to sales channels. It serves as a critical link between your inventory and the algorithms these channels use to determine which listings should be displayed to shoppers. Since the feed is the sole basis for their decision-making process, the quality and completeness of the data you include become paramount.
As an online seller, your product feed is the critical link connecting your inventory to sales channels and their algorithms. Investing time and effort into creating a detailed, complete, and high-quality feed can significantly improve your results on the chosen channels. The more relevant and accurate your product information, the better the algorithms can match your listings to interested shoppers, enhancing your visibility, competitiveness, and overall success as an online seller.
When you are selling online, there are a number of factors you have to complete to ensure success:
Having a mismatch between your online store and sales channels can lead to suspension, so product management is about getting the right information at the right time.
When you are paying for every click, impression and sale, you want to adhere to the recommended methods and techniques which you know will get you the sale. Managing your product feeds efficiently gives you the control over your data which you need.
Using a spreadsheet to manually build product feeds.
The clue is in the name here! It's up to you (or a costly third-party developer) to build and constantly manage product data using a spreadsheet that you have to update manually using Excel or Google Sheets etc. Every single time you make a change to that initial spreadsheet, it's up to you to re-import the file in a csv or txt format to each and every channel on which you're selling.
If this sounds time-consuming and long-winded that's because it is! Only consider this if you have a very small spreadsheet and a lot of time (or budget!) to spare.
Adding product feeds directly from your store using API.
These use a connection between the host of your online store and the channel you want to sell on. Some ecommerce hosts like Shopify, Bigcommerce and 3dcart all have different versions of these API available in their app stores.
The good thing about this is that it's quick and easy. The bad thing is the total lack of any kind of customization and optimization of your product data. It will be sent to those channels exactly as it appears on your online store. As we looked at above, that isn't always the best case when channels have their own specific recommendations and preferences for how they want your product feed to look and be structured.
Automated product feeds from feed marketing platforms.
Unless you are a first-time seller who has only recently created an online store, using automated product feeds is the best option.
Having the process automated saves digital marketers hours of time, meaning they can focus on other tasks and be safe in the knowledge that their feeds will be updated and optimized for each channel they're selling on.
The best technique to use when weighing up which product feed management tool to use is to look at the scalability of the product. If it lets you in at entry level for a low price and a basic package for optimizing feeds, as well as the features and support to allow you to scale up, then it's the tool for you.
Check out our Tool Comparison where we contrasted some of the key features of the available tools.
If you only have 20 products, you probably don't need to use product feed automation tools. As eCommerce businesses grow and begin to stock more products, the need for a tool that simplifies and saves time becomes more relevant.
As mentioned above, it's crucial to give eCommerce channels up-to-date information. Any changes to your pricing, inventory, sizes etc need to be registered and exported quickly, which is where a tool that can automate the whole process will come in handy!
Perhaps the most crucial use of automating product feed management is when it comes to multi-channel sales strategies. In today's digital landscape, businesses often sell their products across various platforms, such as Google, Fruugo, Facebook, and Amazon. However, it's important to recognize that each channel has its own unique requirements and specifications for product feeds.
When you have a product feed specifically tailored for your online store, it may not be optimized for other channels. This is where the need for automation and specialized tools arises. Feed management tools, also known as data feed solutions, play a vital role in ensuring that your product information is seamlessly adapted to each channel without altering your original product data from the online store.
These feed management tools offer pre-made templates that enable you to import a single feed and customize it for each and every channel you sell on. By using these templates, you can effortlessly modify your product data to meet the specific demands and formatting requirements of different channels. This saves you valuable time and effort that would otherwise be spent manually adjusting and optimizing product feeds for each platform.
Moreover, a product feed management tool provides a centralized hub for managing and optimizing your product feeds for any number of channel exports. Instead of juggling multiple platforms individually, you can utilize a single tool to streamline the process. This allows you to efficiently monitor, update, and synchronize your product data across various channels, ensuring consistency and accuracy.
In summary, leveraging automated product feed management tools is essential for successful multi-channel sales strategies. These tools empower retailers to effortlessly adapt their product feeds to meet the diverse requirements of different platforms. By centralizing and optimizing the management of product data, businesses can enhance their visibility, reach a wider audience, and ultimately maximize their sales potential in the ever-expanding digital marketplace.
WakeupData is a data feed management platform, which helps merchants on Magento, Shopify, WooCommerce, Prestashop and more to optimize their product data feeds.
We offer a user-friendly interface, intuitive design and a Customer Success Team to deliver ROI through feed management and optimization through effective Data feed management.
Download our FREE Product Feed Audit Guide or book your live demo and free evaluation today.
Wakeupdata allows me, a person with no programming background, build the feed by myself from scratch and customize it as I go, which definitely has the potential to be a big time-saver.
Joni Helminen, Senior Specialist at OMD Finland