In 2018, Google launched its Comparison Shopping Service (CSS) to serve ads and product listings on Google. As a merchant, using CSS is crucial for your business. In this article, you will find out the important information you need to know about Google CSS partners!

What is a Google CSS partner?

Google CSS partners display ads like a normal Google Shopping ad. Usually, at the bottom of the small product card, you will see the term "By Google". With the partner, this insert is replaced by "By + the name of the Google CSS partner", like Feedcast, for example. Yes, we are one of the Google CSS certified partners 😉



It is important to note that only CSS can place Shopping ads. So if you want to appear in Google Shopping search results, you will have to work with a CSS. This can be Google Shopping, which is Google's CSS, or a Google partner. Google CSSs are paid per number of clicks on the ads. However, it is up to the CSS to decide how to charge merchants for their service.

Why choose a Google CSS Partner?

CSS partners have many advantages over Google Shopping CSS. The first, and not the least, is financial. Google Shopping pays 20% of the CPC (cost per click), which reduces the media budget. Let's assume that one of your offers is placed at €1 on Google Shopping. Google therefore charges a margin of €0.20, which means that only €0.80 is allocated to the ad placement. With the third party partner, the actual placement of your ad remains at €1. The third party CSS charges a fixed or variable fee, which is generally cheaper than the Google Shopping CSS.

You can also rely on the expertise of partners to advise you and manage your ads. Overall, a CSS partner can increase the ROI (return on investment) of your campaigns at a lower advertising cost.

How to choose the right Google CSS partner?

The choice of your comparison service will depend mainly on your activity, your objectives but also on the services that the CSS offers. This can range from creation, storage but also feed optimisation or multi-channel ad delivery. You can also use several CSS to find the combination of offers that suits you. Please note that all CSSs are treated the same with regard to ad placement. Advertising space is not reserved for any particular CSS.

It is also important to check that the third party CSS is a Google partner and that they offer advice on how to structure your campaigns or bidding strategies.

Working with multiple CSS: risk of duplicate ads?

Even if you use multiple CSS, your ads will not appear twice in the results. Indeed, a merchant cannot bid against himself and in the vast majority of cases, Google recognises identical products. The algorithm will therefore only show the ad once as if you were working with a single CSS. However, if Google is unable to identify the same merchant product between different comparators, then it is possible that this product will appear twice. However, this is a very rare occurrence, especially if your products use mandatory GTINs (Global Trade Identification Numbers).

However, it is not necessarily essential to work with several CSS partners. It will depend on the services you need and the offerings available on the market. At Feedcast, Google Shopping is included in our subscription, along with other benefits.

Working with a Google CSS partner has many benefits and can be a real asset to your campaigns. Google Shopping ads appear at the very top of search results which provides visibility. Partners are also more cost effective than Google Shopping and offer other services and benefits to boost your campaigns.

You can already list your products on our comparison site and manage your product feeds easily thanks to our platform. Don't hesitate to contact us if you need any advice or information 🙂

Updated on: 08/02/2024