Google & YouTube

The app is fine if you only run an online store. But the moment you try using Local Inventory Listings, it becomes a complete rabbit hole.

On the Shopify side everything appears fine, mostly because there is barely any control or visibility into what is actually happening behind the scenes.

Meanwhile Google Merchant Center keeps complaining that there is no local inventory feed configured, even though the Google & YouTube app gives the impression that local inventory is supported. Eventually Merchant Center starts threatening suspension warnings.

Then starts the endless cycle with Google support. Most support agents do not seem to understand how the Shopify Google & YouTube app actually works with Merchant Center. Replies are mostly copied templates, and every response takes days. After 2 weeks you usually get an answer that does not solve anything, and then you start the whole process again from scratch.

What makes it worse is that almost every app that actually handles local inventory feeds properly is paid.

It is honestly disappointing that Google created an official Shopify app for navigating their already confusing Merchant Center ecosystem, but only implemented half the functionality needed for physical retail stores.

Totally annoying and unclear

The Google & YouTube app for Shopify works well for basic setup, but there is a major limitation with enhanced conversions and Google Ads tracking.

The conversion value sent to Google Ads includes only the product subtotal and does not include shipping and tax. Because of this, the actual order value is underreported, which results in a lower ROAS in Google Ads, especially for stores with higher shipping or tax amounts.

There is currently no clear option in the app to switch conversion value from subtotal to total order value. This creates confusion for advertisers who rely on accurate revenue tracking and ROAS optimization.

The app is good for beginners, but advanced advertisers will need GA4 or GTM workarounds to track the real total purchase value.

It would be great if Google adds an option to include shipping + tax in conversion value or clearly documents this limitation inside the app.

Other Merchants should know Google will suspend you for misrepresentation and don't have to give a full explanation of this blanket reason. I have bent over backwards to accommodate Google to no avail. They continue to suspend me for something that I don't even know what it's for because I haven't in any way shape or form done the things that are in the explanation of this charge. They are unfair and are crippling American entrepreneurship with something that is supposed to weed out scammers, fraud and terrorism. It has disappointed me severely because I used to believe in Google and their company.

I can only rate 2 stars so far. I just started using populated store but no sales have happened so not sure of the advantage yet or if there will be one.

Great idea, but the local feed partnership files doesn't clear old products, and also if you clear it, never rebuilds with exisitng products. No way to trigger a full sync etc.

koppeling is lastig al paar keer gedaan maar hij blijft zeggen dat ik moet koppelen, is frustrerend, verder moet ik de profijten ervan nog zien

Finora esperienza molto deludente con Google Merchant Center & Google Ads: dopo aver perso molto tempo a impostare i dati richiesti dal Merchant Center e da Google Ads (tramite un sistema poco intuitivo e tutt'altro che user friendly), Google mantiene bloccata la pubblicazione dei prodotti ogni volta rilevando nuovi errori o mancanze di dati che non venivano segnalate precedentemente. Spesso risulta difficile capire come intervenire per risolvere, in quanto l'errore non viene specificato ma viene descritto in maniera molto generica. Anche apportando le integrazioni richieste e dopo aver ricevuto le loro email di conferma della risoluzione del problema, continuano a bloccare l'account. Tra i diversi errori, ad esempio, segnalano la mancanza dei dati d'inventario quando invece in Shopify i dati risultano tutti in ordine (probabilmente dipende da malfunzionamenti dell'API). Per non parlare di alcune policy sui prodotti: ad esempio Google chiede di eliminare dal negozio di gioielli di Shopify dei semplici ciondoli a forma di croce perché potrebbero essere "offensivi". Insomma, l'integrazione finora lascia molto a desiderare.

Yes, it's easy to install. BUT it doesnt report the transactions correctly, have noticed duplicate transactions on many occasions. I've disabled the app and using another app to better manage analytics..

App was easy enough to set up - but once completed the 'customer events' app pixel still says 'disconnected' when every part of the app set up has been complete and they all say 'connected' because of this we went 12 hours with no data running from our store to Google ads/analytics etc.

No explanation or help on how to get the app pixel to 'connect'