Has your e-commerce company gotten on board with Google Shopping?
If the answer is “no,” you’re not alone.
Despite the tremendous potential of Google’s transactions platform to get products in front of purchase-ready consumers, many brands and retailers still may not have taken the steps to sell on Google.
For those who do decide to get with the program, there’s the potential for stronger performance, which can be extremely rewarding.
No one knows this better than Rocky Brands.
At a time when some e-commerce companies are watching the Google Shopping program unfold from the sidelines, this manufacturer decided to dive right in. The company’s story is an inspiring one, and we want to be sure you don’t miss it.
Discovering the downside of fast growth
As a seller of premium outdoor footwear, Rocky Brands has been building up a powerful e-commerce presence for years. The company’s online sales team has managed to maintain strong relationships with retailers while selling direct to consumers, which in itself is a big achievement.
But that’s not all the brand has accomplished. The manufacturer has also cultivated strong sales on marketplaces like Amazon and eBay, and developed a loyal following by acquiring an impressive line of brands — including Durango, Georgia Boot and Lehigh Outfitters — in addition to its own unique boots, gear and apparel.Â
In other words…
When it comes to finding e-commerce strategies to emulate, Rocky Brands should be at the top of your list.
Even so, those decades of growth didn’t come without challenges.Â
To cover that much ground, the company had to build up an extensive supply chain. And having a vast supply chain meant it was becoming increasingly difficult to preserve the brand’s authenticity across various channels.
As a result, consumers were starting to get inconsistent, mixed messages. The wholesale internet account sales manager, Michael Harper, describes the difficulties this way:
“[We] would have so many different drop-shippers who would list products for us on those websites. Customers would get a mixed signal of what, exactly, the product was, and what it was used for.”
Overcoming odds with an all-new approach
It was around this time that Harper and his colleagues decided to take back control of the company’s product content. They wanted to be sure they were consistently surfacing the right product listings for the right consumers — ones that not only enticed people to buy, but were also in stock and ready for immediate orders.
That’s where Google Shopping came in.
“[Google is] the largest search engine in the world,” Harper told ChannelAdvisor in a recent interview. “Why not have your products listed there?”
Harper understood a phenomenon that many brands and retailers are still catching on to:
It’s not enough to simply upload products on Google.Â
To reach consumers where, when and how they prefer to shop — whether through voice-assisted searches or a quick comparison of product prices — it’s imperative to have a strong presence across all of Google. That means Google Search and the Google Assistant are just as imperative as standard listings on Google Shopping.
Rocky Brands knew there was only one way to list effectively across the entire Google ecosystem. By launching with Google Shopping, the manufacturer was able to reach some big, early milestones at a remarkably fast rate.
“When we started, we were doing roughly a thousand dollars a month,” says Harper. “Now we expect to do hundreds of thousands of dollars a month. We’re growing at such a rate that we’re literally doubling month after month after month.”
Wondering how your e-commerce company can achieve similar results? Download the eBook, Google Shopping Actions: Why You Need to Join Now. This free resource covers the many benefits of Google Shopping, as well as tips for getting started.
