Google adds generative AI insights, shopping ad campaign goals

Google today introduced four updates meant to help retailers ahead of the holiday shopping season.

Key updates:

• Shopping trends insights. You can now access real-time shopping trends in Google Merchant Center. This could help you adjust your inventory and product descriptions based on what shoppers are actually searching for or viral trends.

• AI-powered insights. Two new generative AI features in Merchant Center Next provide quick summaries of product performance and custom reports based on specific data queries.

• Automated in-store availability. Google is streamlining the management of local inventory ads by automatically syncing in-store availability from retailers’ websites. This should make it easier for customers to find products nearby.

• New campaign goals. Google Ads now includes options for setting customer acquisition goals and optimizing campaigns with profit-focused metrics, helping advertisers prioritize profit and optimizations during peak shopping periods.

Why we care: There are fewer days between Thanksgiving and New Year’s to reach consumers. This means retailers will be under pressure to hit holiday sales goals. Google’s new tools are meant to help businesses stay agile and make smarter, data-driven decisions.