https://googledata.org Everything Google: News, Products, Services, Content, Culture Thu, 02 Apr 2015 17:58:43 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=4.1.1 https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/attaching-files-to-your-google-base-items/ https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/attaching-files-to-your-google-base-items/#comments Fri, 04 Aug 2006 05:57:00 +0000
Today we launched a feature on Google Base that will let you attach certain types of files to your Google Base item. You can still upload pictures of your item and we'll display them in a picture show when people view your item page. But now you can also attach most types of digital documents, like Portable Document Format (PDF), Microsoft Word (DOC), and plain text (TXT). You can attach up to 15 separate files per item, with a total size limit of 20 megabytes (MB). Naturally, you can only post files that you're legally allowed to distribute, and for now this only works for one-at-a-time item postings -- not for bulk uploads.

For this launch, we also redesigned the uploader widget. Over the past few months I've been working with Donal Mountain, our user experience researcher for Google Base, to understand the existing usability problems and correct them with new designs.

The old uploader tool:


The new uploader tool:


The old upload tool definitely had problems. It wasn't clear to some of our testers that to add a picture from their computer, they had to click the "Browse" button to choose a file. Once people figured that part out and picked a file, they didn't realize that they had to click the "OK" button to get the file from their computer to Google Base.

Of course this stuff is confusing! If you're trying to upload or attach a picture, why on earth should you click a button that mysteriously says "OK"? Or if you're trying to tell the website which picture you want from your computer, why would a button called "Browse" be the right one to click? Most testers who figured this out were people who have been using the Internet for a while and have learned that "Browse" (secretly!) means "Choose a file from your computer."

In response to the issues that our testers uncovered, the Base engineers -- Karthik and Deepak -- and I built new designs to make the upload widget clearer and more obvious. We added some new mini-features that make a lot of sense -- for example, you can now add captions to your photos and select a main photo, which is the one that appears in search results and as the default image on your item page. And of course, we changed the "OK" button to say "Attach." (The button is disabled until you actually pick a file, to help make what you're doing more clear.)

In addition to the usability fixes, we also added a virus checker, support for the Mac OS Safari web browser, and a feature that lets you queue up files for uploading -- so you don't have to wait for one file to finish before adding the next.

The Base team is always looking for your feedback, so contact us whenever you find something about Base that bugs you or that you like. We also have a few more improvements on the way for the digital content uploader, so keep watching.

]]> https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/attaching-files-to-your-google-base-items/feed/ 0 https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/optimizing-base-items-to-get-more-eyeballs/ https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/optimizing-base-items-to-get-more-eyeballs/#comments Thu, 20 Jul 2006 01:27:00 +0000
A lot of you are asking about how to optimize Google Base items and bulk uploads and increase traffic to your items. Here are some quick tips on how to get maximum exposure.

- Submit items with as many pre-defined attributes as possible. We only show items with these attributes on Google.com and Froogle. Learn more

- For your items to be displayed in all location-based searches, specify precise locations with a street address and Zip code.

- Refresh your bulk uploads to keep your data up to date. Our algorithm will demote items that are not refreshed regularly.

- Use Google Checkout as a payment option if you're posting a product item that you want Google to host. Product items that don't have "buy" buttons are far less likely to be sold than those which do.

- Want more traffic? Create ads for your items and set a maximum bid. We'll run your ad on Google search when people search for queries relevant to your Google Base items.

Still want more help? Please drop us a line and we'll be happy to help.

]]> https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/optimizing-base-items-to-get-more-eyeballs/feed/ 0 https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/experimenting-with-navigation/ https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/experimenting-with-navigation/#comments Wed, 28 Dec 2005 02:53:00 +0000
As you may have noticed, We've changed the navigation on Google Base, so that you can first view an item details page before clicking on to the Item URL page.

This change allows us to experiment with how you browse and search on Google Base and see related items. The item details page enables you to see all the attributes and labels attached to the item and provides links to items with similar labels. We want to measure how this navigation changes the number of searches and other ways people will use it. In the future we plan to test a number of other navigation changes in order to optimize the Google Base experience. By the way, search results that display Google Base items on Froogle, Google Local and Google will continue to point directly to item URL.

]]> https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/experimenting-with-navigation/feed/ 0 https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/getting-off-first-base/ https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/getting-off-first-base/#comments Tue, 22 Nov 2005 21:13:00 +0000
Two weeks after launching Google Base, things are still very hectic around here. We're learning from user feedback and working on improvements. What better time to inaugurate the Google Base blog and say hello? This is a place where we'll showcase interesting additions, announce updates, and answer some of your questions. (You might want to add it to your Google Reader.)

Even early on, we're very excited to see some interesting content appear, including links to satellite maps that have already been posted. My favorite queries over the past couple of days have been:

Events in san francisco
Cake recipes

We are experimenting with a navigation scheme that uses labels and attributes that help you easily perform searches such as [beef curry recipes that take less than 15 minutes] or [events happening this week in new york]. We will be tweaking this interface to try and improve it so we really appreciate getting your suggestions and feedback.

We also want to show you some of what's in Google Base on other Google properties. For example, we just announced a feature on Froogle that allows shoppers to search locally. Besides searching for deals from online merchants, now you can search across the inventory of nearby brick and mortar stores and see the results overlaid on a map. To see this at work, check out these queries:

diamond ring in minnetonka, MN
ford mustang oklahoma city

I'm sure you can think of some yourself.

]]> https://googledata.org/google-merchant-center/getting-off-first-base/feed/ 0