Google plans to phase out its classic Merchant Center platform by September and replace it with the new Merchant Center Next for all retailers.
Key Changes & Features
Merchant Center Next introduces several new elements:
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Product Studio: An AI-powered content creation tool, currently limited to merchants in select countries including the US, UK, Canada, Australia, India, and Japan.
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Consolidated Analytics: A new tab combining various data tools, including pricing reports and competitive visibility metrics.
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Redesigned Interface: Google claims the new design is more intuitive, with features like pre-populated product information and customizable homepages.
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Unified Product Management: Online and local product listings can now be managed in one place.
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Built-in Ad Creation: Basic automated ad campaigns can be created within Merchant Center Next.
Transition Challenges
The switch to Merchant Center Next involves several changes that may require adjustment:
- Merchant Center Next will automatically add product data crawled from merchants’ websites.
- The platform introduces a centralized system for managing international sales configurations.
- For businesses with both online and physical stores, Merchant Center Next combines management of online and local inventory.
- The new version consolidates recommendations into a central hub on the homepage.
- Merchant Center Next introduces a new approach to diagnostics, which Google claims will prioritize issues more clearly.
- Advanced features like supplemental feeds and feed rules will remain available, though their implementation in the new interface may differ.
What Does This Mean?
This mandatory upgrade affects all retailers using Google’s platform for product listings.
While Google asserts that the changes will improve functionality, the transition may pose challenges for businesses accustomed to the classic interface.
Google has stated that features currently in use will be automatically activated in Merchant Center Next. The company also provides transition resources, including guides and FAQs.
As the September deadline approaches, retailers are advised to start preparing for this change to their product management processes on Google.
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