Why do I get an error in my Google Base account saying "the expiration date was too large"?
This message is just a warning. Even if the date is more than 30 days into the future, the items will still be listed and searchable.
I am getting the error "This website URL is already in use by another Google Base account." when I try to enter my website URL in the Google Base Dashboard Settings tab.
If you do not know or no longer have access to the account in which the URL is registered, then you must contact Google Base and ask them to resolve the issue for you. Provide them with a list of accounts under which the URL may have been registered, if available. See the following Google support page for a "contact us" link: What does "This website URL is already in use by another Google Base account" mean?
What is Google Base, and how does it relate to Google Product Search?
Google Product Search is a shopping search engine. Google Base is a one-stop place to upload data of various kinds to Google properties, including your product data.
I want to submit my feed to another product search engine, do you support it?
Yes, in addition to Google Product Search, we also offer a Shopping.com data feed and an MSN Live Product Upload data feed. We are working on upgrades that will allow many more services.
Working with Google Base
I submitted my feed through your system, now what?
Check the status in your Google Base account. If it says "success", then they have successfully processed the feed.
I submitted my feed, but the status doesn't appear in Google Base.
It can take up to five days for processing status to appear in Google Base.
Google Base status says "invalid file name", how do I fix this?
Set the filename property in your feed settings, and make sure this exactly matches the filename configured in your Google Base account.
I emailed Google Base technical support, but have not heard from them.
Google Base technical support always replies, but it can take up to two weeks for you to receive a reply.
Google Base said my feed is invalid because my images must end in GIF, JPG, or PNG.
This is an error on Google's part. They will accept your images regardless of extension, as long as the MIME type header of your image URLs indicates an image. Yahoo store images have no extension, but they have the correct MIME type. You simply need to reply to them and let them know the images are correct.
What does beta mean?
As of Jan. 2006, Froogle is still a beta software product. This means it has been made more widely available, but more problems can be expected than from a released product.
Google Product Search Listings
Is it possible to change my product descriptions before they are sent to Google Product Search?
This is not possible. Our system passes your Yahoo store product description exactly to Google Product Search, after stripping HTML tags. Google Product Search requires that the description submitted match the description displayed on your site. In order to make changes, you must edit the product descriptions or store templates of your Yahoo store.
My product listings now appear in Google Product Search, but not all of my images.
Images thumbnails are shown after the products are listed. It can take days for their system to process all your product images into thumbnails.
How can I make my products appear higher in the search results?
We do not offer any optimization services, and can not influence your ranking. Please see Optimizing Your Data Feed for more details.
I'm getting errors even though my feed was previously working fine and the settings are correct.
Please check our system status page. You can also check your Google Base account, contact Google Base support, or contact us.
Data Feed Files
What is a data feed file?
The data feed file is simply a text file containing your product data, in a format suitable for upload to Google Base. A data feed file may also be referred to as a product feed, data feed, bulk upload, or file.
Where is my data feed file?
Our system automatically creates and uploads your data feed file to Google Base.
Can I download my data feed file?
In case you want to download the file generated by our system, you can submit a processing request to generate your data feed file for download. There is a small fee for this service. The file will be available for download for 30 days. You can regenerate a new file anytime. Your latest store data will be retrieved (if necessary) before creating the file. A new file will be generated everytime, even if data in your store is unchanged. Once the processing completes, the file information and download button will appear on the Data Feed File page.
Product Count Alerts
What is the product count alert service?
The product count alert service notifies you when a search in Froogle returns a particular number of results. You can customize the search terms, product count threshold, and check frequency.
What can the product count alert service be used for?
This is useful for Yahoo stores to monitor their product count in Froogle. A store could set up an alert to notify when the product count of their store goes below a certain number.
Another use is to notify when a search for a particular product name returns more than zero results. This can be used to monitor competition in the search results for that product.
What is the cost of the product count alert service?
The alert service costs $0.05 for each check. It can be scheduled to run daily, tri-weekly, weekly, or monthly.
Can I set up an alert for other Google Base item types besides products, such as jobs?
Currently, only searches on products are supported. Please contact us if you would like to search other Google Base item types.
Can I download alert results?
Yes, you can download alert results going back up to three years in comma-separated values (CSV) format.