John Mueller Talks About Product Price As A Ranking Factor

Google’s John Mueller recently discussed product pricing as a ranking factor and whether or not it could impact an online business’ ecommerce SEO rankings in the search engine results pages (SERPs). The topic discussion happened in one of the Google SEO office-hours hangouts, which took place on 8 October. Given the rising cost of goods nowadays, it’s a timely topic for the SEO community.

As a result of rises in operational expenses, scarcity of components and materials, and other factors outside their control, many businesses are finding themselves in the unenviable position of having to increase prices.

Let’s assume that two businesses are selling the same product online, but one must increase the price due to extenuating circumstances. The product they were offering for £100 is now sold at £500, but the other company continues to sell it for £100.

Is there a possibility that the price difference has an impact on rankings? After all, it’s only natural to assume that Google would want to send consumers to the lower-priced option. But according to Mueller, this assumption is incorrect.

Google’s John Mueller On Price As A Ranking Factor

It’s no secret that Google can identify prices on sale pages. Structured data has been developed for that purpose, and SEOs frequently see prices included in search results. Although Google can compute the price of a product, it does not include this information in the product’s ranking.

Mueller said that they wouldn’t attempt to identify the price on a page and use it as a ranking factor from a web search perspective. Google would not rank the cheaper product higher than the more expensive one solely on the basis of price. That wouldn’t make sense at all.

He explains that product pages are also included in Google Shopping results, which are different from the company’s regular search results.

When it comes to shopping results, Mueller claims he has no idea how they’re arranged. He explained that these items could appear in the SERPs, which could be because companies submit a feed or because Google recognises product information on these sites and ranks them in some manner. He also added that it’s possible for Google to take the price into account when conducting Google Shopping searches, but he doesn’t know for sure.

The most important takeaway is that price is not a consideration for web searches. However, users may certainly sort the products on Google Shopping by price. So, that’s something to bear in mind when it comes to the items’ prices.

Mueller doesn’t rule it out as a factor for search shopping, but he also admits that he can’t confirm anything. He claims that Google doesn’t consider the price of items, but it’s theoretically feasible from a product search standpoint.

As an SEO, the difficult part is that these various search elements are frequently mixed together in one search results page. Searchers would see normal web results and possibly product review results on the side, or a combination of both.

A Similar Discussion On Twitter

Mueller had actually answered a similar question in 2016.

On Twitter, an SEO asked Mueller whether or not product price is a ranking signal. He instantly replied, saying that it does not impact web search rankings.

It’s a straightforward response, but SEOs might want to consider the items’ costs on Google Shopping since customers may filter products by price. Mueller’s reply has stayed the same after several years.

How To Rank Higher On Google Shopping

As for businesses that use Google Shopping, here are three quick tips to improve their rankings.

Step 1: Optimise Your Product Feed

The first step is to update your product feed. Ensure you fulfil all of the criteria, rename your products, and provide SKU-level cost data to improve your product feed.

Step 2: Segment Campaigns

Another method to boost your rankings is to segment your campaigns carefully. Using a logical segmentation structure, one can direct the greatest amount of spend possible to extremely precise search terms. Doing so raises the possibility that the items will show up when those terms are searched.

Step 3: Drive Spend to Valuable Ad Groups

In most situations, you’ll want to start bids for more specific or important phrases higher than generic or less valuable terms. However, you’ll need to maintain bids after the campaigns have run to preserve profitability.

The Importance Of Product Pricing

Product pricing is a critical marketing decision for any online business, even if it is not a ranking factor in the search results. It’s not just about the cost of producing a single item; it’s about what a business can get in return from its consumers.

The basic definition of SEO marketing is “placing the proper product in the appropriate place, at the best price, at the right time.” One of the essential parts of SEO commerce is product pricing.

The price is always linked to value. However, the price must also take into account the previous pricing in the industry. If the products are too costly, no matter how appealing they are, they will not sell. If they are too cheap, however, profit margins will suffer.

Finding a balance between sales and profits is tough. There’s a bit of a pendulum swing with pricing items: lower prices encourage more purchases, but higher prices result in bigger profits. An online business must determine the ideal equilibrium based on its marketplace and lead generation methods.

Pricing is important, and e-commerce site owners must carefully analyse pricing options to ensure that they can provide products and services while still earning a profit.

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Businesses looking to improve their ecommerce SEO must evaluate their website and client requirements regularly. Failing to recognise the significance of SEO may result in your site’s traffic decreasing, which will lead to missed business opportunities.

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