Google Local Product Inventory
Overview
Section titled “Overview”Local inventory ads and free local listings show shoppers what a nearby shop has on the shelf, with the price and availability for that particular location.
Local Product Inventory is what keeps those listings accurate. It works alongside your product catalog rather than replacing it: the catalog describes the product, and local inventory describes what is in a given shop today.
Because it reflects stock, it is only useful if it is kept current. Stale inventory sends people to a shop for something that has sold out. For the catalog itself rather than shop-level stock, use Google Product Catalog.
Supported sources
Section titled “Supported sources”Sources supported by Google Local Product Inventory
| Category | Supported |
|---|---|
| Warehouse |
Prerequisites
Section titled “Prerequisites”Before connecting Google Local Product Inventory, make sure you have:
- A Google Merchant Center account with Local Product Inventory uploads enabled.
- The Merchant Center account ID.
- A Google account with permission to manage that Merchant Center account.
- A product catalog already in Merchant Center. Local inventory describes items that exist there, so without the catalog there is nothing for it to attach to.
- A Datahash Studio account with the target project selected.
- A source connected in the same project with Local Product Inventory selected as its data type, holding your inventory data.
Authentication
Section titled “Authentication”In Studio, open Destinations, find Google, and click the Local Product Inventory tile. This connector uses single sign-on.
- Click Sign in with Google.
- Select the Google account associated with your Merchant Center and click Continue.
Configuration
Section titled “Configuration”- Select the Merchant Center Account ID from the dropdown.
- Click Finish.
A finished setup shows as Completed.
Manage instance
Section titled “Manage instance”One instance covers one Merchant Center account. Writing to a second account needs a second instance.
To add another, open Manage Instances and click Add Instance. To change one, open it from Manage Instances, use the menu in the top right and choose Edit, update the fields and click Finish. Cancel keeps the previous configuration running, so updates apply only after you finish.
Data & identifiers
Section titled “Data & identifiers”Signals reads the inventory data your source provides and delivers it to Merchant Center. This destination carries inventory data rather than personal data, so nothing is hashed and no customer identifiers are involved.
Five attributes do the work: the store code, the product ID or SKU, the quantity, the price and the availability. The store code and product ID have to match what Merchant Center already holds exactly, because that pairing is how Google knows which product in which shop you are describing.
A mismatch on either does not error loudly. It simply fails to update anything, which is why inventory that looks connected can still be wrong.
Best practices
Section titled “Best practices”- Match store codes and product IDs to the Merchant Center catalog exactly. A near-match updates nothing.
- Update frequently. Daily is a reasonable floor, and more often where stock moves quickly.
- Check the instance reached Completed rather than Pending. A Pending instance is not delivering.
- Watch Merchant Center diagnostics after the first sync, since item-level problems surface there rather than in Studio.
Troubleshooting & FAQ
Section titled “Troubleshooting & FAQ”The instance shows Pending. Setup was exited before finishing. Click its name to resume and complete it.
No Merchant Center accounts listed. The authenticated Google account cannot manage any, or Local Product Inventory uploads are not enabled. Check both in Merchant Center.
Inventory is not updating. Usually the store code or product ID does not match the catalog. Both must match exactly for an update to apply.
Availability is out of date. The source is not being read often enough for how fast your stock moves.
Some products update and others do not. The ones failing are not in the Merchant Center catalog, or their IDs differ. Check Merchant Center diagnostics.