Everything Local Stores Need To Know About Google Local Inventory Ads

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There’s no denying that shopping in physical stores is losing its charm. After all, what’s the point in visiting a store when you can buy online in a couple of clicks and have it delivered to your home. A recent study by Kibo found that 80 percent of consumers won’t even visit a store if thei website doesn’t have an inventory of their products.

The rise of eCommerce has been nothing less than a nightmare for traditional mom and pop retailers. It looks like there’s no way to compete with the convenience of online shopping.

But Google has a solution that might help: Local Inventory Ads.

 

What are Google Local Inventory Ads?

Local Inventory Ads let small, local businesses display their products at the very top of Google to searchers who are looking for a particular product. If those users click on the ad, they are directed to a local storefront.

The local storefront is a Google-hosted page that acts as an online version of a brick and mortar store. Buyers can see the product, how many you have in store, how much it is and where exactly your store is. They can even be directed to it using Google Maps.

 

What are the Benefits of Local Inventory Ads?

There are several big benefits to small local stores using Local Inventory Ads.

 

1. Take your physical store online

This is a great way to attract searchers when you don’t have a website or any kind of online store. Best of all, the people searching are actually looking to buy this item quickly and are willing to visit a local store to do so.

 

2. Showcase your products

It can be hard to get your products to show on the front page of Google when you are a small physical store. Even is you use Google Shopping it can mean paying huge ad costs. But that’s not the case with Local Inventory Ads. Because the ads are specific to a particular area, the costs aren’t as high and there isn’t as much competition.

It’s also a great way to build trust in your store and show that you have a great selection of products. If people go out to visit a store they want to know they have the products that they need. At the same time, even if they don’t visit your store then and there, you’ll be in their mind the next time they want a similar product.

 

3. Stand out against competition

The chances are that most of your competitors aren’t using Google Local Inventory Ads just yet. So this is a great opportunity to set yourself apart and win all of the local traffic in your area.

 

How To Set Up A Local Storefront on Google?

Local Inventory Ads are only available to stores in the US, UK, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Norway, and Switzerland.

There are also several criteria that you must meet to qualify.

  • Owns a physical store which is open to the public
  • Sells physical products which shoppers can buy without having to pay for anything else (i.e. membership)
  • Physical store must be located in a country where ads will be targeted to
  • Store owner must take precautionary and active measures to secure their customers’ Personally Identifiable Information (PII)

If that’s you then you’re good to go! Start setting up Local Inventory Ads today!