Frequently Asked Questions About Feed Optimisation for eCommerce

Overview: what feed optimisation solves

Feed optimisation refers to the process of structuring, enriching, and validating your product data so shopping channels (Google, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft Advertising, etc.) can read it accurately and represent your products to buyers. This FAQ collates practical answers to frequent issues US-based store owners, growth managers, and performance teams encounter when optimising feeds for Shopify, WooCommerce, and custom platforms.

Why does feed quality matter for revenue?

High-quality feeds reduce disapprovals, improve ad relevance, and increase click-through and conversion rates - which drives better return on ad spend (ROAS) and lower customer acquisition cost (CAC). Feed optimisation focuses on revenue impact over raw traffic by prioritising accurate product titles, correct GTIN/MPN values (where applicable), and category mappings that match buyer search intent.

Common feed fields and best-practice formatting

• title - 50-150 characters; front-load brand, product type, and key attributes (color, size).
• description - clear, benefit-led, avoid promotional language that can trigger disapprovals.
• gtin/mpn/brand - required for many categories in US shopping feeds; use manufacturer values when available.
• availability/price/currency - ensure price format uses $ for US listings and matches your storefront exactly.
• image_link - high-resolution, consistent background, unique per SKU if possible.

How do I prioritise which SKUs to optimise first?

Start with SKUs that already have traffic or margin headroom: best-sellers, high-margin items, and SKUs in campaigns with frequent impressions but low conversions. Use a data-driven approach to rank SKUs by current revenue contribution, conversion rate, and search impression share. If you use Shopify, mapping and enrichment are quicker when your base product data is consistent - see our services overview for feed management options: Prebo Digital services.

Channel-specific quirks in the United States

Each channel enforces different rules. Google Merchant Center is strict on GTINs and price matching; Meta (Commerce Manager) expects accurate variants and shipping settings; Amazon has its own catalog and ASIN matching logic. Consider a channel-specific attribute layer on top of your canonical product data so you can adjust titles and categories per channel without fragmenting your master inventory. For a quick reference to our approach to channel-first optimisation and integrations, see the Prebo Digital homepage: Prebo Digital.

How to validate and test feed changes safely

Use a staging feed or a small, controlled campaign to test title and price changes before rolling them broadly. Run A/B experiments where possible (split campaigns or draft campaigns) and measure outcome metrics in the funnel (impressions → clicks → add-to-cart → purchases). Ensure you have server-side or pixel fallbacks to reduce attribution loss during tests.

Quick mapping diagram (product feed → ad channel)

Frequently asked questions - detailed answers

1. How do I handle variants (sizes/colors) in feeds?

Variants should be distinct feed items when they have different prices, images, availability, or GTINs. Use consistent SKU naming and include variant-specific attributes like size and color in the title and the variant fields supported by each channel. Proper variant structure improves user experience and reduces disapprovals.

2. Do I need server-side tracking for feed-driven campaigns?

Server-side tracking (or conversion API implementations) reduces attribution loss caused by browser restrictions and improves conversion matching for feed-driven campaigns. For US advertisers using Google Ads and Meta, pairing a well-optimised feed with server-side events leads to cleaner attribution and better optimisation signals. Prebo Digital documents recommend pairing feed work with tracking audits - learn about our technical-first approach in more detail: About Prebo Digital.

3. What are common compliance and policy pitfalls in the US?

Common issues include mismatched prices between feed and landing pages, improper use of promotions (coupons, sale tags), and non-compliant product claims. For regulated categories (e.g., supplements, CBD) additional channel approvals and documentation are often required. Always validate shipping and tax settings for US states where you operate.

4. How often should I refresh feeds?

Refresh frequency depends on inventory volatility. For fast-moving catalogs, hourly or every few hours is common. For stable catalogs, daily updates are usually sufficient. Ensure your feed process can push incremental updates to avoid full re-uploads when only prices or availability change.

5. What metrics should I track after optimisation?

• Impression share and disapproval rate
• CTR and CPC by product group
• Add-to-cart and conversion rate per SKU
• Revenue per click and margin-adjusted ROAS (focus on profitability)

Funnel breakdown (TOF → MOF → BOF) for feed campaigns

• TOF - Discovery: broad titles and category targeting to capture high-intent shoppers.
• MOF - Consideration: enriched attributes, better images, promotional messaging where allowed.
• BOF - Conversion: ensure price parity, variant clarity, and checkout experience to convert traffic into orders.

Tools and workflows

Common workflows use a canonical product database, a transformation layer for channel-specific attributes, and validation scripts to catch errors before upload. Many teams integrate with feed management platforms or use ETL pipelines and server-side tracking for robust attribution. If your team needs ongoing feed management as part of a growth program, our retainers combine strategy, build, test, scale, and reporting stages - reach out to coordinate next steps: Contact Prebo Digital.

Wrap-up and practical checklist

• Standardise product attributes at the source (SKU-level consistency).
• Create channel-specific title and category layers.
• Validate with automated checks and a staging feed.
• Pair feed work with server-side tracking to preserve attribution quality.

Explore the framework above and test changes incrementally. Feed optimisation is a revenue-focused discipline: small, correctable errors across thousands of SKUs compound into measurable gains in conversion rate and profitability.

Sources

• Google Merchant Center product data specification
• Meta Commerce product feed documentation
• Shopify product CSV and feed guidance
• Schema.org Product schema for structured data