This is how the shop comes online

For many years, search engine advertising has offered good opportunities to effectively reach customers on site with the help of local orientation. And especially for dealers or retail chains with local shops, higher visibility can be achieved in a certain region.

The result is a reduction in wastage, since managing directors can specifically reach those prospective buyers who are actually interested in the goods. In this way, lower advertising costs and better conversions can be achieved, because advertising in certain cities or regions is often cheaper because there may be less competition.

However, many retailers have not used these marketing opportunities in the past, or have only used them to a limited extent at best due to their complexity. In the meantime, Google has created an easy-to-use solution with Performance Max, with which less experienced retailers in particular can advertise effectively with reasonable effort.

Local Performance Max makes it possible to advertise local assortments in a targeted manner using Local Ads and Local Inventory Ads, and offers a variety of levers for local businesses. The campaign type introduced two years ago allows access to the entire Google Ads inventory with a single campaign; In addition to the display and search network, YouTube, Discover, Gmail and Maps are also supported.

For example, ads can be displayed specifically for search terms with a regional reference or via maps if prospective buyers are looking for specific companies in a map section or ads for which the company is relevant.

A link to shopping offers with a reference to targeted, timely availability or sales and special offers is also possible. Shops can rely on Click & Collect with the web shop that may be connected, or score points with the immediate availability and the associated advice.

Merchants can either advertise the business location exclusively via local ads or combine this with the inventory feed in the merchant center and thus link the local location with the availability and price of certain inventory products.

To run search engine advertising in this way, local advertisers first need a Google Ads account to set up and manage the campaign. Here they create the Local Inventory Ads campaign as a performance max variant. What makes Performance Max special is the high degree of automation for ad creation. As a result, advertisers have access to high-quality and diverse image, video and text assets without having to spend a lot of time producing their own advertising material.

A Google Merchant Center account is also required to manage the product catalog and inventory. Here the program for Local Inventory Ads is activated and a valid imprint is stored.

The desired product data feeds are then imported into the Merchant Center, with retailers selecting the items stored in the inventory feed in the campaign settings. Once Google has checked the inventory, the Performance Max campaign can be activated with the local product availability.

At least as important, however, is the regular update of the campaign in order not to disappoint the customers. For this purpose, the local inventory, the stock and the prices should be updated at least daily, and if possible more frequently during high seasons (e.g. before Christmas).

Retailers should keep an eye on and take into account the prices of local competitors. Due to the quick local availability and the possibility of inspecting the goods before buying, they do not always have to be cheaper than the big online retailers.

In this context, it is of course important to regularly update your own Google company profile on Google My Business and to enter all available details in the business information (opening hours, means of payment, your own photos and more). The reviews given there should also be responded to promptly and appropriately.

Shop opening times should be taken into account when planning the advertising schedule so that, for example, the advertising can be played during the day before Christmas. Dealers can also book keyword combinations with phrases such as “+ near me”, “pickup”, “on site” or similar and bid on them with high bids in order to actually get a chance in the special case . In general, it makes sense to provide the texts with specific local calls-to-action, such as “Visit us in …” or “You can find us on …-Strasse”. Target group signals can also be used to increase the conversion probability of the ads.

Google Performance Max Local is equipped with comprehensive analysis and tracking tools that enable companies to measure and optimize the performance of their ads. This enables businesses to focus their ad spend on the ads and keywords that perform best.

Continuous monitoring of success is therefore important for campaign management and the gradual optimization of ads. In addition, if the relevant data is available or can be collected by measuring shop visits, retailers can combine online and offline measures and thus implement multi-channel promotions.

The bottom line is that local businesses with a local SEA strategy can increase their visibility and achieve additional sales and conversions with the help of additional store visitors. Overall, Google offers a powerful platform to advertise products locally and can automatically adjust bids, ad placements and asset combinations. However, it is important to meet the requirements mentioned and to manage the process carefully.