The Google Merchant Center has introduced a new feed label for advanced users that removes the concept of one target country being the primary country for a feed.
The old way. Until recently, Merchant Center feeds required users to select a “primary country of sale,” and “additional countries” could then be added later. The “primary country of sale” was the first country selected when you created the feed and would serve as the country the feed was formatted for and directed to. The “additional countries” were places where the feed could also target.
Removing the primary country. Google has now removed the one-country targeting requirement. The “primary country of sale” and “additional countries” field names would go away. Countries that were named in those fields will be moved to a new general label called “target countries.”
Additional feed label changes. Google has also announced a new feed setting named “feed label.” The feed label allows you to create a feed with a label of your choice, up to 20 characters, used to group offers that are intended to be targeted in Google Ads.
Country code targeting. Feed labels for campaigns previously using the “primary country of sale” labels will now allow a 2 letter country code, which gives advertisers the ability to target countries similar to what already exists. Google says “for existing feeds, the feed label will automatically be set to the 2 letter country code of the original ‘primary country of sale’ field, ensuring that any existing targeting continues uninterrupted.”
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Additional Merchant Center help. You can read the announcement on the country targeting change here. Help with feed labels can be found here.
Why we care. Advertisers who use a merchant feed to promote their products to multiple countries can now use a single, streamlined feed with simple country codes to organize their campaigns. You can also use feed labels for languages, making campaign set up easier and more manageable.
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Nicole Farley is an editor for Search Engine Land covering all things PPC. In addition to being a Marine Corps veteran, she has an extensive background in digital marketing, an MBA and a penchant for true crime, podcasts, travel, and snacks.
