When you’re looking for a product on Google, whether it’s text or image search, you’re probably also looking for where you can buy them. More often than not, you probably end up on Amazon though and Google wants to offer other retailers a fighting chance against the online retail giant. Their new program is called Shopping Actions and it will let retailers list their products under Google Search, Google Express shopping service, and Google Assistant on both mobile devices and voice devices as well.
The Shopping Actions program will be available to partners in the US, including Target, Walmart, Home Depot, Costco, and Ultra Beauty Inc. This is different from companies placing ads for Google Search results as in this case, the retailers will pay a percentage of each sale that they make when users click on their results and buy the products from them directly. The paid listings will still appear under sponsored results and will not affect the regular, organic results.
This new program came from their studies that showed people were asking “Where can I buy this?” or “How can I buy it?” when they search for products on Google. Aside from buying from the retailers directly, they can also offer deals for users to buy through Google Home voice shopping by adding items to their Google Express cart.
Retailers who signed up for Shopping Actions have seen the average size of a customer’s shopping basket go up by 30%. And with voice activated devices gaining popularity, they want to see a level playing field for retailers and give users options other than Amazon.
VIA: Reuters
