How Can I Optimize My Feed Based on Actual Search Queries and Performance Data?

When it comes to eCommerce success, I’ve always been a firm believer in using actual search queries and performance data to optimize product feeds. If I only relied on guessing how customers search, I’d be leaving major revenue on the table.

Instead, I prefer taking a query-driven, data-focused approach. It is one of the biggest factors I have seen for boosting visibility, click-through rates, and conversions in shopping campaigns.

Why Actual Search Queries Matter

When shoppers go to Google or another search engine, they rarely type in your exact product name; they enter whatever term comes to mind at that moment.

Sometimes it is a very specific query like “Nike men’s dri-fit breathable shirt size medium,” and other times it is a vaguer search like “workout shirt blue.” In either case, the search terms show how buyers are finding and later purchasing your products.

I learned this firsthand while assisting an online store that specialized in wireless headphones.

They assumed most potential buyers searched for “Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones” and labeled their items accordingly. However, when I checked their search terms report, I discovered that many buyers used phrases like “best noise-canceling headphones for travel.”

By missing these search queries, we were overlooking real sales. Once we added those query-based terms into the product titles, descriptions, and even feed rules, our click-through and conversion rates improved dramatically.

If you are just starting out with feed optimization, it would be a great idea to use a feed optimization tool, to get a baseline to work with before expanding further.

The Power of Query-Level Feed Optimization

Query-level feed optimization means you are not just setting your product data once and forgetting about it. Instead, you continuously adjust feed attributes based on the actual search terms that are producing results.

This approach makes sure that your product listing details clearly reflect what buyers are typing in.

Imagine your feed is like a static billboard at a busy intersection. You know people pass by every day looking for something you sell. But if your billboard never changes, you risk advertising the wrong message. Rotating your billboard copy to match the trends or phrases bringing in daily traffic is what this optimization is like.

My Step-by-Step Implementation Process

I usually break query-level feed optimization into four main steps. This method helps me consistently identify and include winning search terms:

1. Analyze High-Performing Queries: First, I check the search terms report in Google Ads or whichever platform I use. I sort the data by conversions, cost per conversion, or ROAS. This allows me to see which specific queries are producing the best results, while also noting any underperformers.
2. Compare Queries to Product Data: Next, I compare these well-performing queries to the product titles and descriptions in my feed. I look for differences between the language buyers use and the wording in my feed. For example, if buyers frequently type “travel-friendly headphones” but my feed only uses “wireless headphone,” there is a mismatch.
3. Incorporate High-Converting Keywords: Then, I update my product titles and descriptions to include the proven terms. If a product is often bought by people searching for “lightweight travel headphones,” I add “lightweight travel” into that product’s feed attributes. Now my feed matches what buyers actually say.
4. Feed Rules for Automation: Finally, to manage large inventories, I set up automated feed rules in Google Merchant Center or my feed management tool. These rules automatically include high-performing keywords in product titles when specific conditions are met (for example, if a product has more than a certain number of conversions from a given query). This way, I avoid manually updating thousands of individual SKUs.

Simple? Absolutely. Effective? Extremely.

Expert Strategies for Feed Optimization

I combine query-level optimization with several other data-driven techniques. Over time, I have seen these methods significantly improve feed performance, especially for brands in competitive markets.

1. Title Optimization

Titles are at the heart of feed performance because they affect how your products match relevant searches and how attractive they look in search results. Industry research shows that well-crafted, relevant, and category-specific product titles bring in better traffic and conversion rates.

I have tested this on items ranging from electronics to athletic apparel, and time after time a carefully optimized title beats a generic one.

Implementation example: If I am selling a Nike shirt, I don’t settle for the basic option. Instead of “Nike Blue Shirt,” I might use:

“Nike Men’s Dri-FIT Breathable Blue Athletic T-Shirt - Medium”

This revised title includes the brand, gender, key features, color, product type, and size. When buyers type queries containing any of those words, the product has a much better chance of showing up in relevant search results.

2. Dynamic Pricing and Repricing

Many retailers overlook the importance of including dynamic pricing data in their feeds. Buyers compare prices across sites, and if your price is too high, they may skip your listing. If you miss updating prices quickly, you might lose potential profit.

Key ways to put dynamic pricing into practice include:

• Connecting a competitive price monitoring tool with your feed so it updates alongside market changes.
• Setting automated rules so that if a competitor drops their price by a dollar, your listing responds automatically to stay competitive.
• Using custom labels to separate products based on pricing strategy. As an example, label items by price segment to bid more aggressively on some products while being more cautious with others.

In one case, I reviewed a feed for a sporting goods store. Their ads competed with a major rival offering the same items for a dollar less. By automating a small price adjustment on key SKUs, we observed a 15% rise in conversions while maintaining profit margins.

3. Improving Visual Assets

Let’s talk about images. A strong product photo can be the deciding factor between a click and a scroll. I have worked with brands that initially used low-resolution images or generic shots. The performance improvement after replacing them with clearer, more appealing images was remarkable.

• Use images that are high-resolution.
• Provide multiple views if the platform allows.
• Show the product in context when possible (for example, a person wearing the shirt).

I remember working with a brand that switched from a plain product photo to one showing a runner wearing the shoes on a scenic trail. Their click-through rate jumped by nearly 20%. Clear and relevant images give buyers extra confidence in what they are purchasing.

4. Using Product Identifiers

Google and other shopping engines depend on GTINs (Global Trade Item Numbers) and MPNs (Manufacturer Part Numbers) to match your products to search queries. If you leave these fields blank, your product might not get noticed. Whenever possible, include these standard identifiers:

• GTIN: Helps Google identify the exact product.
• MPN: Connects the product with its specific part number.

When listing a popular electronics item, I always include the GTIN so that Google recognizes it as the exact model of “Sony WH-1000XM5 Wireless Noise-Canceling Headphones.” This extra detail often increases impressions for searches like “best headphones” or “top noise-canceling headphones.”

Measuring Optimization Impact

I do not simply implement changes and hope for the best. An important part of my process is tracking how each feed optimization tweak affects performance.

Here is my approach:

• Incremental Impact Analysis: I isolate a group of products or a specific time period, then compare performance data before and after the feed changes.
• Detailed Analytics: I rely on Google Analytics (or a similar tool) to track changes in ROAS, conversion volume, cost per conversion, and average order value.
• Feed-Focused Metrics: When available, I examine product-level click and impression data in Google Merchant Center as it relates to the feed modifications.

It is also useful to run a split test: optimize the feed for half of your products and leave the other half unchanged. After a few weeks, you may see the optimized group having a 25-40% lower CPA compared to the control group.

Custom Labels for Strategic Bidding

If you want to improve your performance in Google’s Standard Shopping or Performance Max campaigns, custom labels can be very useful. I often tag products based on margin, stock level, or audience segment to make bidding more precise.

• Profitability Label: Mark high-margin items as “HighMargin” and lower-margin items as “LowMargin.” This helps in bidding more on higher-margin items.
• Seasonal or Promotional Label: For example, label a winter clothing line as “WinterSpecial” so you can adjust bids during that season.
• Stock Label: Identify best-sellers, clearance items, or products that need to move quickly.

Even though adding labels takes some extra setup, it can be very rewarding. I once worked with a furniture retailer that used labels to mark its premium range as “HighMargin” and its budget range as “LowMargin.” By bidding more on the premium items, they increased profit without unnecessarily raising their ad spend on the budget line.

A Real-World Anecdote: Adding “Travel-Friendly” to Suitcases

Let me share a story that shows how small feed tweaks can have a big impact. A luggage retailer I worked with struggled for months in a very competitive market. Their product feed featured plain descriptions like “hard-shell suitcase” or “four-wheel suitcase.”

When I checked the search terms report, one phrase stood out: “best carry-on suitcase for travel.” So we tested adding phrases like “travel-friendly” or “carry-on approved” to the product titles. We also noticed many queries included the term “lightweight.” After incorporating these keywords into the feed, impressions increased, click-through rates improved, and conversions went up by nearly 30%.

Quick Bulleted Recap

• Use actual search terms instead of relying solely on your original product titles.
• Update titles with terms that match the language buyers use, including brand, use case, and product type.
• Set up feed rules to automatically update titles without manual effort.
• Include GTINs and MPNs to improve the chances of your product being correctly identified.
• Improve images to boost click-through and conversion rates.
• Apply custom labels to group products for more precise bidding.
• Keep track of metrics like conversions, ROAS, and incremental changes.

Potential Impact of Key Feed Attributes

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Working With Limited Resources

If you are a small business owner or have a limited budget, feed optimization can still be manageable. While you can update your feed manually, I normally suggest getting a reliable feed management tool. Such tools can help set up rule-based improvements, which means you do not have to continuously work with CSV files. Even a basic setup that automatically adds top-performing queries to your product titles can offer a significant benefit.

If a full tool is too expensive, you can still:

1. Download search terms reports.
2. Identify the top-performing terms.
3. Manually update your product titles.
4. Upload these changes as feed updates at least once a month.

This process helps you stay close to real customer queries even without advanced automation.

Testing Advanced Techniques

If you want to further refine your feed optimization, consider some advanced techniques:

• A/B Testing Duplicates: Some advertisers run two versions of a feed for the same products, each with a different optimization strategy (for example, one version with Title Variation A versus Title Variation B). Take care to follow Google policy and watch for potential conflicts.
• Query Sculpting in Campaigns: Combine feed-level keyword adjustments with campaign-level negative keywords to steer certain search terms toward specific products. This can offer more control over bid allocation.
• API-Based Repricing: Connect real-time stock and competitor information to update both the feed price and shipping details automatically.