How to Run Google Ads for Ecommerce (Merchant Center, Shopping and Performance Max)
To run Google Ads for ecommerce, get your products approved in Google Merchant Center, set up purchase conversion tracking with transaction value, link Merchant Center to Google Ads, then launch a Shopping or Performance Max campaign with a budget you can hold steady while you review search terms and product-level results. Infinall AI prepares the research, ad copy and image or video assets for your review; you build and run the campaign in Google Ads yourself.
Google Ads is different from social ads for an online store because shoppers arrive with intent, and the product feed does much of the work that creative does elsewhere. That also means feed quality, tracking and structure decide results before ad copy does. This guide walks through the mechanics in Merchant Center and Google Ads, then shows where Infinall AI can help with the assets those campaigns need. Google changes campaign types, names and requirements regularly, so check current labels against Google's documentation. Infinall AI does not place media or manage your spend, and it does not guarantee Merchant Center approval.
How to Run Google Ads for Ecommerce (Merchant Center, Shopping and Performance Max)
Create a Merchant Center account and verify and claim your website
In Google Merchant Center, add your business details, shipping and returns information, and verify and claim your store domain. Missing or inconsistent shipping, returns and contact details are a common reason for account issues, so make sure they match what is on your site. If you use Shopify, WooCommerce or a similar platform, check whether the official Google channel or app can connect the account and sync products for you.
Build a clean product feed and fix every disapproval
Submit your products through the platform integration or a feed file. Each product needs accurate titles, prices, availability, images and identifiers such as GTIN where they exist. Put the most important terms (brand, product type, key attribute) at the front of the title, and use clean images on a plain background. Open the Diagnostics area in Merchant Center, work through disapprovals and warnings, and re-check after your site's prices or stock change, because mismatches between feed and landing page are a frequent cause of disapproval.
Set up purchase conversion tracking with transaction value
In Google Ads, create a Purchase conversion action and install the Google tag (and, where your platform supports it, enhanced conversions) so each order reports its value and currency. Place a test order and confirm it appears in the conversions column. Link your Google Ads account to Merchant Center under the linked accounts settings. Without value tracking, automated bidding by return on ad spend cannot work properly, so do not skip this step.
Choose Shopping or Performance Max and create the campaign
In Google Ads choose a Sales objective and select the Merchant Center feed. Performance Max can serve across Search, Shopping, YouTube, Display, Discover and Gmail from one set of assets, while a standard Shopping campaign gives you more direct control over product groups and bids. If you use Performance Max, create asset groups by product category with images, headlines, descriptions and, ideally, video, and consider limiting to a feed-only setup at first. Brand exclusions are available in Performance Max, so use them if you want to keep branded searches out of the campaign.
Set the budget and bidding to match your data
Start with a daily budget you can leave alone for two to four weeks. For a brand new account with little conversion history, Maximise conversion value without a target, or a manual-style approach, usually gives the system room to learn; add a target ROAS only once there is enough conversion data, and set it from your real margins rather than a number copied from a blog. Know your break-even ROAS (1 divided by your gross margin) before you judge any campaign.
Review search terms and product performance, then iterate
After a couple of weeks, review the search terms report and add negative keywords for irrelevant queries such as free, jobs or DIY where they do not fit your products. Review performance by product and category: split out best sellers into their own campaign or asset group if they dominate, and pause products with spend but no sales after a reasonable sample. Refresh images and titles in the feed rather than constantly changing campaign settings. Infinall AI can draft new headline, description and image variations for asset groups, which land in an Approval Queue for your edit before export.
Frequently asked questions
Should an ecommerce store start with Shopping or Performance Max?
Both are valid starting points. Standard Shopping gives you simpler, more direct control over products and bids, while Performance Max reaches more Google surfaces and relies more on automation and the assets you provide. Google has been steering advertisers toward Performance Max, so check the options currently available to your account. If you have a small catalogue and limited data, many advertisers begin with the simpler structure and expand once conversions accumulate.
Does Infinall AI manage my Google Ads campaign or product feed?
No. Infinall AI prepares campaign research, strategy, copy and creative drafts for your review, and you configure and manage the campaign, feed and spending in Google Ads and Merchant Center. It does not place media, manage live ad spend or guarantee that Google approves your products. Free is $0 with 1,000 credits/month and Full Campaign in Lite mode; Pro is $30/month and adds video generation and real-data research.
How much should I spend on Google Ads for a new store?
There is no universal figure. Work backwards from your average order value, gross margin and a realistic conversion rate to see how many clicks you need to see a handful of sales, then set a budget that lets you gather that data over several weeks. A budget so small that the account sees only a few conversions a month makes automated bidding hard to evaluate. Treat the first period as a data-gathering phase rather than a profit target.