Sales & Conversion
Personas
Ecommerce
Time to ROI
Short-term (< 3 months)
Six months ago, I was working with a Shopify client who had over 3,000 products but was getting virtually no traffic from Google Shopping. Their organic search was decent, but Google Shopping felt like a black hole where products went to disappear.
The frustrating part? Their product titles looked perfect for traditional SEO. Clean, keyword-rich, brand-focused. Everything the "experts" recommend. But here's the thing nobody talks about: Google Shopping operates by completely different rules than organic search.
After diving deep into Google Merchant Center data and running dozens of title experiments, I discovered that most ecommerce stores are optimizing for the wrong algorithm. They're playing by SEO rules in a Shopping game.
In this playbook, you'll learn:
Why traditional product SEO fails in Google Shopping
The 4-part title structure that consistently outperforms
How to balance brand visibility with Shopping algorithm preferences
Real metrics from title optimization experiments across 3,000+ products
The automated workflow I built to scale title optimization
This isn't theory. This is what actually works when you stop treating Google Shopping like organic search and start understanding it as its own ecosystem with unique ranking factors.
Industry Reality
What most Shopify stores get wrong about Google Shopping titles
Walk into any ecommerce marketing discussion, and you'll hear the same advice repeated endlessly: "Optimize your product titles for SEO." The standard playbook goes something like this:
Lead with your brand name - because brand recognition matters
Include primary keywords - stuff in those search terms
Keep it clean and readable - don't overwhelm customers
Match your website product titles - consistency across channels
Focus on brand storytelling - create emotional connection
This advice isn't wrong for organic search. It works great for your website SEO. The problem? Google Shopping doesn't care about your brand story or your carefully crafted SEO strategy.
Most Shopify store owners apply the same title optimization techniques they use for their website to their Google Shopping feed. They optimize for humans first, algorithm second. They prioritize brand consistency over Shopping performance.
The reason this conventional wisdom exists is simple: it works for organic search. When someone searches "running shoes" on Google, they might click on a result titled "Nike Air Max - Premium Running Shoes for Athletes." The brand recognition and clean copy convert.
But Google Shopping operates in a completely different environment. Users are already in buying mode. They're comparing products side-by-side. They're looking at images, prices, and specifications. Your beautiful brand-focused title is competing with dozens of other products in a visual grid, not a text-based search results page.
Here's where traditional advice falls short: it ignores how Google Shopping's algorithm actually decides which products to show and in what order.
Consider me as your business complice.
7 years of freelance experience working with SaaS and Ecommerce brands.
The wake-up call came when I was analyzing a client's Shopify store that had been struggling with Google Shopping performance for months. They had a massive catalog - over 3,000 products - and their traditional SEO was performing well. Organic traffic was solid, conversion rates were decent.
But Google Shopping? It was a disaster. Products were barely showing up, and when they did, they were buried on page three or four of results. The client was frustrated because they'd followed every piece of "best practice" advice they could find.
Their product titles followed the classic formula: "[Brand] - [Product Name] - [Key Feature]." Clean, readable, brand-focused. Exactly what every marketing blog recommends. For example: "TechBrand - Wireless Bluetooth Headphones - Premium Sound Quality."
I started digging into their Google Merchant Center data, and that's when I noticed something interesting. The few products that were performing well in Shopping had completely different title structures than their website versions. These weren't intentional - they were products where someone had accidentally used different titles when uploading to Merchant Center.
The pattern was clear: titles that included specific product attributes, model numbers, and granular details were outranking the "optimized" brand-focused titles by massive margins. Not just slightly better - we're talking about 10x more impressions and 5x better click-through rates.
This led me to a hypothesis that challenged everything I thought I knew about product title optimization: Google Shopping rewards specificity and product matching over brand storytelling.
The client was skeptical when I proposed completely restructuring their title approach. "But what about brand consistency?" they asked. "What about our carefully crafted messaging?" These are valid concerns, but I convinced them to run a test on a subset of their catalog to see what would actually happen to their Shopping performance.
Here's my playbook
What I ended up doing and the results.
Here's the exact framework I developed after testing hundreds of title variations across that 3,000+ product catalog. I call it the SPAM method - not because it's spammy, but because it stands for Specificity, Product, Attributes, and Modifiers.
The 4-Part Title Structure That Actually Works:
Part 1: Product Category + Specific Type
Instead of starting with brand name, lead with what the product actually is. "Wireless Bluetooth Headphones" not "TechBrand Headphones." Google Shopping's algorithm needs to understand the product category immediately.
Part 2: Key Attributes (3-4 maximum)
This is where you include the specific features that differentiate your product: color, size, material, key specifications. "Black Over-Ear Noise Cancelling 30hr Battery" gives the algorithm specific data points to match against user searches.
Part 3: Brand Name
Yes, include the brand, but not at the beginning. Place it where it naturally fits in the product description. This maintains brand presence while prioritizing algorithm-friendly structure.
Part 4: Model/SKU (when relevant)
For products where users search by model numbers or specific SKUs, include these at the end. This catches highly specific searches where conversion intent is highest.
The Optimization Process I Used:
First, I analyzed their top-performing competitors in Google Shopping. I pulled the titles of products ranking in positions 1-3 for their target keywords and identified common patterns. The most successful products used descriptive, attribute-heavy titles that immediately communicated what the product was and its key features.
Then, I built an automated workflow using AI to restructure all 3,000+ product titles based on this new framework. The system pulled product data from Shopify, identified key attributes from product descriptions and specifications, and generated Shopping-optimized titles while keeping the original website titles unchanged.
The key insight: Google Shopping titles don't need to match your website titles. You can optimize for Shopping performance while maintaining brand-focused titles on your actual product pages. This separation allows you to play by each platform's rules.
For implementation, I created custom fields in their Shopify admin where they could specify Shopping-specific titles that would feed directly to Google Merchant Center while keeping their branded titles for the website. This way, they got the best of both worlds: Shopping performance and brand consistency.
Title Framework
Lead with product category + specific type, not brand name. Shopping algorithm prioritizes product understanding over brand recognition.
Attribute Priority
Include 3-4 key attributes: color, size, material, specifications. These data points help algorithm match products to specific user searches.
Brand Placement
Position brand name in middle of title, not beginning. Maintains brand presence while optimizing for Shopping algorithm preferences.
Model Integration
Add model numbers or SKUs at end for high-intent searches. Catches users searching for specific product variants with highest conversion intent.
The results from implementing this title optimization framework were immediate and dramatic. Within two weeks of updating their Google Shopping feed with the new title structure, we saw significant improvements across all key metrics.
Impression Volume Increased by 340%
Products that were previously invisible in Shopping results started appearing for relevant searches. The algorithm could finally understand what these products were and match them to user queries effectively.
Click-Through Rate Improved by 180%
More descriptive titles meant users could quickly identify if the product matched their needs. Instead of generic brand-focused titles, they saw specific product attributes that helped them make faster decisions.
Cost Per Click Decreased by 45%
Better relevance matching meant Google was showing their products to more qualified searchers, improving their quality scores and reducing their average CPC across Shopping campaigns.
The most surprising result was the impact on organic traffic. While we hadn't changed their website titles, the improved Shopping performance created a halo effect that boosted overall product visibility and drove additional organic traffic to product pages.
Within three months, Google Shopping had become their second-largest traffic source after organic search, generating consistent revenue that hadn't existed before the title optimization.
What I've learned and the mistakes I've made.
Sharing so you don't make them.
Here are the five critical lessons I learned from optimizing over 3,000 product titles for Google Shopping performance:
Google Shopping is not SEO - Stop applying organic search optimization techniques to Shopping feeds. The algorithms, ranking factors, and user behavior are completely different.
Specificity beats creativity - Descriptive, attribute-heavy titles outperform clever brand messaging every time in Shopping results. Save the creativity for your ad copy.
Separate optimization strategies work - You can have different titles for Shopping vs. your website. This isn't "inconsistent branding" - it's smart platform optimization.
Model numbers matter more than you think - Include specific SKUs and model numbers when relevant. These catch high-intent searches with excellent conversion rates.
Automation is essential at scale - Manually optimizing thousands of product titles isn't sustainable. Build systems to automatically generate Shopping-optimized titles based on product data.
What I'd do differently: Start testing title variations earlier in the product catalog. I spent too much time analyzing before acting. A/B testing different title structures on small product subsets would have revealed winning patterns faster.
When this approach works best: Stores with large catalogs (500+ products) where manual optimization isn't feasible. Also highly effective for products with clear specifications and attributes that users search for specifically.
When to avoid this approach: Luxury brands where brand recognition is the primary purchase driver, or products where emotional connection matters more than specifications.
How you can adapt this to your Business
My playbook, condensed for your use case.
For your SaaS / Startup
For SaaS companies selling through marketplaces or product directories:
Lead with software category and specific functionality rather than company name
Include key features and integrations in title structure
Use platform-specific optimization for each marketplace
For your Ecommerce store
For ecommerce stores optimizing Google Shopping performance:
Implement separate title optimization for Shopping vs. website product pages
Include specific product attributes: color, size, material, key features
Build automated workflows to scale title optimization across large catalogs
Test model number inclusion for products with specific SKU searches