Promotions is an add-on feature available in Merchant Center for Shopping ads and free listings. This article explains the benefits of using promotions and how it works.
On this page
- Benefits
- Eligibility requirements
- How to create a promotion
- Promotions Preview
- Promotion criteria
- Policies
- Automated promotions data source
Benefits
Promotions allow you to distribute online offers across different Google properties like Google Search, the Shopping tab, Google Chrome, and more. When you add promotions to products that you sell on Google, shoppers will view a “special offer” link (for example, 15% off or free shipping) that can increase the appeal of the products you show and encourage more shoppers to buy.
The deals page on Search
In the US, Google also has a deals page on Search that shows on-sale products from merchants across the web. When you create promotions that are eligible to be shown on Search, your products will appear on the deals page. No additional action is needed from you.
Shoppers can access the deals page by searching “shop deals.” They can look for deals in specific categories by searching “shop electronic deals” for example.
Eligibility requirements
To be eligible for the Promotions add-on, you must meet the below criteria:
- You have offers in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, Netherlands, Spain, the UK, or the US.
- You aren’t connected to a marketplace, an online platform that provides a place for multiple individual merchants to sell their products.
- You have an active Merchant Center account, with at least one active product and one claimed URL.
If you're currently ineligible for promotions, you may still need to meet one or more of the eligibility requirements. Contact us for help enrolling in promotions.
Activate the Promotions add-on
The Promotions add-on may be automatically activated to eligible accounts. If you're eligible but the add-on wasn't activated automatically, follow these steps to activate Promotions manually:
In your Merchant Center account, click the Settings & toolsicon
.
Select Add-ons.
Locate the “Promotions” add-on card under the “Discover” tab.
Click Activate.
The Promotions add-on will now be activated for your account. You may skip these steps if the add-on was automatically enabled.
How to create a promotion
If the add-on is enabled, “Promotions” will appear in the navigation bar of your Merchant Center Next account. To create a new promotion:
Go to Promotions
in your Merchant Center account.
Under the “All Promotions” tab, click Add promotion.
From here, you can add promotions in 3 ways:
- Add each promotion individually with the promotion builder tool .
- Submit a promotions data source .
- Upload promotions via the Content API .
Promotion approval process
Before your promotion can show on Google, it will go through a Policy review and SKU review to ensure it meets all Editorial requirements and Promotions policies .
This process is typically completed within 12-24 hours of the promotion effective start time (the time that your promotion becomes active on your site). Learn more about the Promotion approval process and find answers to FAQs about Promotion Status .
Promotions Preview
Promotions Preview in Merchant Center gives you a sneak peek of how your promotion will look before they go live. This feature helps create more effective promotion by enabling you to preview in real-time.
Promotions Preview is available within the promotion builder tool, and used as a reference only. While creating your promotion, the current version only shows a preview for Google Search. However, your promotion will appear on all the relevant Google channels. To create promotions and check their preview:
Go to Promotions
in your Merchant Center account.
Under the “All Promotions” tab, click Add promotionthen select Create promotion.
On the “New promotion” page, follow the instructions to provide country and language, how you want to show the promotion on Google, Promotion category, Promotion type, and Promotion details.
Click Next.
On the “Add promotion assets” page, add Products, Promotion title and ID, Promotion code (optional), Event (optional), and Event URL (optional).
- Note:Check the Preview panel on the right side of the page. As you add more information while creating your promotion, Preview may update assets, titles, and formats to reflect your promotion.
Click Submit.
Note:Currently, only selective Percent off or amount off shopper incentive having no additional conditions enables the Preview panel. This may change in the future as Preview capabilities are expanded.
Promotion criteria
To use promotions, they must meet the following criteria:
- Be redeemable at checkout or by the time of purchase
- Expire within 6 months (183 days) of the date the promotion starts
- Comply with promotions policies and editorial requirements
- Adhere to the account's limit on the total number of active promotions
You also need to create promotion types that are usable for anyone who shops on Google.
Promotion types allowed
You can use the following promotion types:
Must have valid redemption code
Exception: No redemption code necessary when combined with another permissible promotion (for example: free shipping + 10% off)
Promotion types not allowed
You can't use the following promotion types:
Cash back in percent and reward points aren't allowed.
Exception: If combined with a permissible promotion
Policies
Google’s policies provide important guidance for retailers participating in promotions. To make sure you understand the expectations, review the editorial requirements and policies . Google disapproves promotions that don't comply with these requirements and policies.
Automated promotions data source
The automated promotions data source helps you automatically share your live promotions with Google without having to manually create them in your Merchant Center account.
Google will extract eligible live promotions from your products’ webpages (also referred to as the Product Detail page) so that they'll be automatically showcased on free listings and Shopping ads on Google.
Learn how to Manage automated promotions .
