Google Ads Shopping Audit: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide

If you're running Shopping Ads without a regular audit process, you're almost certainly leaving revenue on the table. Google's algorithms are powerful, but they're only as good as the inputs you provide—your feed, campaign setup, bidding logic, and data signals. Whether you're a Shopify merchant, WooCommerce user, or part of an in-house team, a Google Ads Shopping audit is critical to identifying hidden inefficiencies and unlocking growth.

Feel Free to Download the entire checklist covered in this blog from the link below.

Google Shopping Ads Audit.pdf

Download PDF • 1.45MB

This guide is your full blueprint to auditing every component that impacts your Shopping campaign performance, from technical configuration to strategic segmentation.

Why Google Shopping Campaigns Require Ongoing Audits

Google Shopping campaigns aren’t based on keywords—you don’t control exactly when and how your products show. Instead, Google uses your feed attributes, landing pages, historical performance, and real-time signals to decide where your ads appear.

That’s why every part of your setup—from feed accuracy to tracking implementation—needs to be audited regularly. Without it, you risk:

• Wasted budget on unqualified clicks

• Disapproved or low-visibility products

• Underperforming SKUs stealing budget from top-sellers

• Faulty tracking corrupting ROAS and bidding decisions

Let’s break down every layer of a high-performance audit.

Campaign Settings: Foundation for Google Ads Shopping Audit

Campaign settings determine your visibility, bidding, and placement across networks. Review each of the following:

Campaign Type

• Performance Max: Ideal for scaling but reduces transparency. Review asset groups, product groupings, and audience signals.

• Standard Shopping: Offers full control over negatives and search term visibility

Campaign Priority (Standard Only)

Used to control which campaign gets the impression if the same product appears in multiple campaigns:

• Low priority: General traffic

• Medium: Product-specific

• High: Branded, top-selling, or promo-focused SKUs

Networks

Check if the campaign is opted into Display. If you’re seeing low ROAS, consider turning it off or segmenting it into a separate Display campaign.

Devices

Use segment data to assess performance by device. Poor mobile ROAS may indicate landing page speed or checkout UX problems.

Ad Schedule

• Time of Day: Identify when conversions peak and reduce bids during low-performing hours.

• Day of Week: Allocate more budget to days with high conversion volume or ROAS.

Location Targeting

• Review Geographic Reports: Identify high-spend/low-return regions. Consider bid modifiers or exclusions.

• Granular Targeting: Segment campaigns by region for better budget control (e.g., separate campaign for UK vs. US).

• Exclude Non-Ship Zones: Audit settings to ensure you’re not showing in countries you don’t serve.
  

Product Feed Audit: Your Keyword List

Google’s algorithm heavily relies on the data in your product feed. This is where most Shopping issues begin.

Titles

• Front-load with Keywords: The first 70 characters matter most.

• Match Buyer Intent: Include brand, product type, model, size, gender, color.

• Dynamic Title Testing: Use feed rules or supplemental feeds to A/B test titles without platform-level changes.

Descriptions

• SEO-Friendly: Support keywords not included in the title.

• Readable & Useful: Avoid stuffing; include feature-benefit formats.

Images

• Clean Backgrounds: Avoid watermarks, promotional text, or logos.

• Test Alternate Angles: Some products convert better with lifestyle imagery.

• Mobile Optimized: Check image scaling and cropping in mobile Shopping view.

Product Type & Google Product Category

• Granular Categorization: Use the deepest-level taxonomy possible for relevance.

• Product Type Hierarchies: Improve filtering and campaign segmentation by structuring correctly (e.g., Clothing > Shoes > Men's > Sneakers).

Custom Labels

Use up to 5 for internal segmentation:

• Margins (High, Medium, Low)

• Seasonality (Winter, Spring, Promo)

• Performance (Top Seller, Low ROI)

• Inventory Status

• Price Tiers

Feed Attributes Health

Use Google Merchant Center diagnostics:

• GTIN/MPN/Brand: Missing identifiers reduce impressions and CPC competitiveness.

• Availability/Condition: Required for new, used, or refurbished items.

• Shipping & Tax Settings: Errors can lead to disapprovals or pricing mismatches.

Merchant Center Diagnostics & Policy Compliance

Disapprovals

• Account-Level Issues: Verify domain ownership, return policies, and business info.

• Item-Level Issues: Scan for "missing values," "policy violations," and "inconsistent availability."

• Price and Landing Page Mismatches: Ensure tax and shipping match between feed and landing pages.

Policy Checks

• Prohibited Content: Alcohol, medical devices, and supplements must follow strict guidelines.

• Misleading Promotions: Avoid using terms like “Best” or “Cheapest” unless backed by data.

Shopping Campaign Structure

Proper segmentation leads to better control and ROAS.

Product Grouping

• Single Product Ad Groups (SPAGs): Highest control, more setup effort.

• Category-Level Grouping: Easier management, less precision.

• Custom Label Segmentation: Organize by performance, margin, or lifecycle.

Branded vs. Non-Branded

Separate branded queries from generic to optimize bids and budget for each intent tier.

Query Sculpting with Priorities

Create multiple campaigns with different bid strategies and use negative keywords to filter traffic.

Audience & Remarketing Insights

While Shopping doesn’t use keywords directly, audience layering boosts intent targeting.

Audience Signals in Performance Max

• Customer Lists: Upload existing buyers or email subscribers.

• Affinity & In-Market Segments: Combine with asset groups for better signal quality.

• Engaged View Conversions: Analyze YouTube viewers who convert within 3–7 days.

Remarketing List Performance

Check how users from:

• Abandoned carts

• Viewed products

• Past purchasers

Create dedicated P-Max asset groups or Standard remarketing campaigns for high ROAS opportunities.

Search Terms (Standard Shopping Only)

One of the biggest advantages of Standard Shopping is visibility into search queries.

• Irrelevant Terms: Use negative keywords to exclude low-buying intent terms like “manual PDF” or “used replacement.”

• Intent Keywords: Identify winning terms and feed them back into titles, descriptions, and product types.

Tip: Use N-gram analysis to identify recurring underperforming phrases across multiple queries.

Bidding Strategy Audit

Google’s Smart Bidding is powerful, but only if supported by good data.

Bidding Type

• Target ROAS: Best for accounts with stable conversion data. Avoid if conversion volume <50/month.

• Maximize Conversion Value: Use if you're optimizing for order value over volume.

• Manual CPC: Offers control but requires more hands-on effort. Consider for newly launched campaigns.

Conversion Value Accuracy

• Check if values include tax/shipping (especially in Europe).

• Exclude Refunds or Fraud: Use conversion adjustments where possible.

Conversion Tracking & Data Layer

Conversion data must be complete, accurate, and timely.

Google Ads Conversion Setup

• No Duplicates: Ensure purchases aren’t firing twice from page load + button click.

• Conversion Windows: Review if 30 days fits your buyer journey or requires adjustment.

• Cross-Device Tracking: Ensure Enhanced Conversions or GA4 integration is in place.

Enhanced Conversions

• Use hashed first-party data (email, name) to improve attribution.

• Can be deployed via GTM or site code.

GA4 Integration

• Sync eCommerce events: view_item, add_to_cart, purchase.

• Ensure parameter mapping: transaction_id, value, currency, items.

Server-Side Tracking

• If using GTM server-side via Stape or GCP, audit for delays, missing parameters, or misfiring tags.

Device, Demographics & Placement Review

Devices

• Mobile vs. Desktop: Compare CPC, CVR, and ROAS. Optimize your mobile experience or use bid modifiers.

• Tablet: Often low-performing—consider reducing bids or excluding.

Demographics

• Age, Gender, Parental Status: Evaluate conversion trends and consider exclusions.

Placement Data (P-Max only)

• Review “Placement” reports under Insights. Low-quality traffic sources can skew performance.

Landing Page & Checkout UX

Even the best campaigns fail if your site doesn't convert.

• Speed Audit: Use PageSpeed Insights, especially for mobile.

• Checkout Flow: Test form friction, payment gateways, guest checkout availability.

• Product Page Optimization:

  • Reviews and trust badges

  • Competitive pricing

  • Clear shipping and return policies

Final Step: Reporting & Action Plan

Once your audit is complete:

• Document Issues by Priority: Sort into Critical (e.g., tracking not working), Major (e.g., unsegmented feed), and Minor (e.g., image quality).

• Create a Roadmap: Assign actions to technical vs. strategic teams.

• Benchmark Before & After: Track changes in ROAS, CTR, and conversion rate.

Feel Free to Download the entire checklist covered in this blog from the link below.

Google Shopping Ads Audit.pdf

Download PDF • 1.45MB

Conclusion

An in-depth Google Ads Shopping audit goes beyond a checklist. It’s a strategic teardown of every layer that powers your campaign performance—from the feed and campaign architecture to tracking reliability and buyer intent signals.

Whether you're spending $1,000 or $100,000 a month, this process ensures you're not wasting budget or missing growth potential.

At Flomaticx, we live and breathe Google Shopping. Need a hands-on audit or monthly optimization partner? Let’s talk. We’ll help you scale smarter, with total confidence in your data.