There are many reasons why your Google Shopping ads may not be displaying, ranging from incorrect data feeds to account violations of platform policies. In this article, we’ll explore common causes and provide expert advice on resolving these issues.
How to Check if Google Shopping Ads Aren’t Showing?
The only way to confirm that your shopping ads aren’t showing is by checking the campaign report. Here are the steps:
- Access your Google Ads account.
- Select “Campaigns” from the left menu.
- Look for the “Impressions (Impr)” column. If you don’t see it, click the “Columns” button and choose “Modify columns.” Select “Competitive metrics,” and the “Impressions” column should appear.
- After clicking “Save,” impression data will display in your statistics table.
- If the number in the “Impressions” column is 0 (zero), it means your campaign’s ads aren’t showing.
- If you find that some shopping ads aren’t appearing, it’s crucial to address the issue promptly.
Reasons Why Google Shopping Ads Aren’t Showing and How to Fix Them
Here’s a flowchart to help us identify shopping ad issues.
Account Issues
If shopping ads aren’t showing, there might be an issue with your account. Check for any of the following problems.
1. Failed Association Between Google Merchants and Google Ads
A typical reason products don’t appear in Google Shopping is that Google Merchants isn’t properly linked to Google Ads. This usually happens when the Merchant Center is disassociated from the Google Ads account or the connection process fails.
How to Fix: First, ensure you’ve claimed and verified your Google Merchant Center and verified your website ownership with Google. Then check if your Google Merchant Center account is linked to the corresponding ad account. Verify that the connection is working and that Google Merchant Center is visible in the list under “Linked accounts” in your Google Ads account.
2. Google Shopping Rules and Policies
Ensure your products aren’t listed as “prohibited” or “restricted.”
- Dangerous goods: weapons, fireworks, tobacco, etc.
- Inappropriate content: bullying or intimidation, crime scene or accident images, self-harm, etc.
- Products encouraging unethical behavior: forged documents, etc.
Many items are also prohibited (but allowed with restrictions). These include:
- Adult-themed content
- Alcoholic beverages
- Gambling-related content
- Health-related topics
- High-fat, high-salt, high-sugar foods and drinks
3. Google Shopping Violations (Suspension)
If a Merchant Center account is found to violate Google’s regulations, it may be suspended. When this happens, all products associated with that account will no longer appear in Google Shopping ads. Violations may stem from billing issues.
Solution: If you’re billed monthly, carefully check your account budget. If your overall ad campaign spending exceeds the amount specified in the account budget before the cutoff date, all ads in the account will be disabled. Learn how to set or change your account budget. For rejected payments, refer to your billing summary or transactions page.
To prevent account suspension, advertisers must comply with Google’s regulations and ensure their product data is correct and up-to-date.
Conclusion:
If your Google Shopping ads aren’t showing, it could be due to various reasons such as violating Google’s policies, incorrect product data, budget limitations, or setting unrealistic target ROAS. It’s crucial to regularly check and optimize your product data and ensure proper budget and target ROAS settings. By addressing these key areas and staying vigilant, you can improve your ad visibility and performance in Google Shopping campaigns. Remember that success in Google Shopping advertising requires ongoing attention and optimization to stay competitive in the dynamic e-commerce landscape.
