Knowledge base
Sales channels
A sales channel is a destination that consumes a product feed and turns it into listings, such as Google Shopping or a Meta catalogue. Each channel page here lists the attributes that channel accepts with the requirement level for each, its accepted feed formats, how often it refetches, and the differences that catch Shopify merchants out.
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Google Shopping
Google Shopping is the surface where Google displays product listings from a merchant's catalogue, fed by a product feed uploaded to Google Merchant Center. Google's product data specification is the most detailed of the major channels, and the one whose attribute names the other channels tend to borrow.
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Meta
Meta's product catalogue is the data source behind Facebook and Instagram Shops, Advantage+ catalogue ads and dynamic retargeting, populated by a product feed uploaded to Commerce Manager. Its attribute names largely mirror Google's, but its accepted values and its handling of variants differ enough to break a feed copied straight across.
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Microsoft Advertising
Microsoft Advertising runs product ads across Bing, Yahoo and the Microsoft Audience Network from a catalogue uploaded to Microsoft Merchant Center. Its feed specification is closely modelled on Google's, which makes it the cheapest additional channel to launch once a Google Shopping feed already exists.
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OpenAI
OpenAI ingests a merchant product feed so ChatGPT can surface products in shopping answers and complete purchases through Instant Checkout. It is the one major channel that does not fetch a feed URL you host: you push full catalogue snapshots to an OpenAI SFTP endpoint, and the most recently processed snapshot is retained for up to 14 days.
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Pinterest
Pinterest turns an uploaded product feed into Product Pins, which are shoppable pins that carry live price and availability from the catalogue. Its feed specification borrows Google's attribute names, and its distinguishing requirement is that every item needs a genuinely usable image, because the image is the entire unit of discovery on Pinterest.
Frequently asked questions
Can one feed serve every sales channel?
One mapping can, but one file usually cannot. The attribute names overlap heavily, so most of the work carries across, but requirement levels and accepted values differ enough that each channel needs its own output. Meta requiring condition on every item where Google does not is the clearest example.
Which channel is easiest to add once Google Shopping is live?
Microsoft Advertising. Its specification mirrors Google's closely and it reuses the Google product taxonomy, so an existing mapping usually needs very little adjustment.