Datafeed optimization

How to improve my ranking with better data feeds for Google Shopping, AdWords and price search engines?

What is a Data Feed

A data feed (engl. Data Feed) is a file – usually in CSV or XML format – that contains product information in e-commerce. This file is exported from your shop system or ERP and transmitted to platforms like Google Shopping, AdWords, price comparison engines (e.g. idealo), or marketplaces (Amazon, eBay). There, the data is used for product display and marketing.

The Challenge: Standard Exports Are Often Not Enough

Although every shop system offers an export function for product data feeds, in many cases the ability to customize export formats is very limited. This makes it difficult to meet the exact requirements of platforms like Google Shopping. Faulty feeds are quickly rejected by the Merchant Center – or in the worst case – can lead to your account being suspended. With Synesty, these problems can be automatically fixed.

Common problems include:

Incorrect or missing column labels
Incomplete mandatory fields such as GTIN, brand, or availability
Incorrect number formats, e.g. comma instead of period as a decimal separator
Outdated or conflicting price information compared to the shop page

Optimizing Data Feeds and Why It’s Worth It

An optimized data feed improves your visibility on Google Shopping & co., increases your click-through rate (CTR), and lowers your cost per click (CPC) through better data quality. Tools like Synesty help you specifically improve data feeds and keep them updated automatically.

Examples of Effective Data Feed Optimization

By applying targeted optimizations to your product data feed, you can increase the visibility of your offers and boost sales opportunities on platforms like Google Shopping, idealo & co.

Title & Description

Enrich product titles with relevant keywords
Limit title length (e.g. max. 150 characters)
Remove special characters and line breaks

Filters & Corrections

Filter out items without an image URL
Remove products with €0.00 prices
Exclude content with prohibited terms

Dynamic Pricing

Price adjustments based on manufacturer, brand, or channel
Repricing rules to compensate for sales commissions

Technical Optimizations

If-then logic (like in Excel)
Category mapping in Google taxonomies
Export to the desired target format (Google, idealo etc.)

Example of a Faulty Feed in Synesty

In the screenshot you see a snippet from the spreadsheet preview in Synesty. The target system requires at least two of the three attributes – brand (marked green in the image), MPN, and GTIN (marked red in the image) – to be correctly filled in.

Keep Your Data Up to Date

Always make sure that especially prices, availability, and delivery times match the information on your shop’s product page. Google can read your website and will detect when data in the feed differs. In the worst case, this can lead to your Merchant Center account being suspended.

Automatically Optimize Data Feeds with Synesty

With Synesty, you can automate the entire process of creating, optimizing, and transferring data feeds. The quality of the optimized feed largely depends on the quality of your source data. Thanks to intuitive tools, you can implement many optimizations yourself. The key is to know exactly which improvements are necessary.
The Google Merchant Center provides valuable information on errors and issues that you should address specifically. Once set up, the data feed transmission runs automatically – usually via FTP or URL, depending on your Merchant Center settings.

Example Template Data Feed for Google Shopping

Here’s how to proceed step by step:

1. Analyze source data: What is the structure of your raw data?
2. Define the target: What are the requirements of platforms like Google Shopping?
3. Plan the transformation: What changes are necessary to get from source to target format?

If you can describe this process clearly like a recipe, it can be automated in Synesty. Thanks to direct integration with shop systems like Shopware, Magento or plentymarkets. Connections via CSV/XML and FTP are also easily possible.

In a Nutshell

What can I do with Synesty?

With Synesty, you can automatically create, optimize, and transfer product data feeds to Google Shopping, marketplaces, or advertising platforms – without manual intervention or programming knowledge.

How does it work?

Using drag & drop, you combine different building blocks (Steps). Synesty reads your product data, cleans and formats it, enhances titles and descriptions, applies rules, and transfers everything automatically to the right platforms. Once set up, the process (Flow) runs fully automatically.

What are the benefits?

You save time, avoid errors, and keep product information, prices, and availability up to date. Optimized feeds increase visibility, click-through rates, and ad performance while ensuring reliable data flows.

Conclusion: Better Data = Better Ranking

An optimized product data feed is the key to more visibility, higher click rates, and better conversion rates. Take advantage of automated feed optimization with Synesty to sustainably improve your performance on Google Shopping, AdWords, and price comparison engines.

Tutorial: Fixing a Broken Data Feed
Want to get started right away? In our tutorial, we show you step by step how to fix a faulty data feed and optimize it for Google Shopping & co.

Try it now for free

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