Solved: Google Shopping Campaign Clicks, But No Conversions

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out!

Happy to give you some initial thoughts on your Google Shopping campaign. Getting 200+ clicks with no sales after a couple of days is definitely a bit worrying, and you were right to pause it and take a closer look. A lot of people will tell you to just "let it run" and "trust the algorithm", but that's often just an excuse for burning through cash without a proper strategy.

The truth is, while campaigns do need a bit of time to optimise, 200 clicks is more than enough data to tell us that somethings probably broken further down the line. It's rarely the ads themselves that are the single point of failure. More often than not, the problem lies with the destination: your website. Let's walk through what's likely going on.

We'll need to look at your customer's journey, not just your clicks...

Right now, you're focusing on the very top of the funnel: you're paying Google to send people to your shop. And it's working! You're getting the clicks. The problem is what happens next. Think of it like spending a fortune on fancy invitations to a party, but when guests arrive, the door is locked, the music is terrible, and there are no drinks. They're going to leave, and they won't be back.

Your 200 visitors are leaving for a reason. Our job is to figure out why. In my experience with countless ecommerce campaigns, the issue usually falls into one of two buckets: the store itself is turning people off, or you're accidentally inviting the wrong people to the party in the first place. Tbh, it's usually the first one.

Here’s a typical journey for an online shopper. Look at where the numbers drop off. Your 200 clicks are just the first step. You've had 200 people walk in the door, but none of them even made it to the checkout, let alone bought anything. This tells us the problem is likely happening on your product pages or even your homepage.

I'd say you need to fix your shop before your ads...

Before you unpause that campaign, you need to do an honest, brutal audit of your website. Put yourself in the shoes of a skeptical first-time visitor. What would make you leave? What would make you feel uncomfortable pulling out your credit card?

Here's what I'd be looking for:

1. First Impressions and Trustworthiness

When someone lands on your site, they make a snap judgement in about three seconds. Does it look professional and legitimate, or does it look like a hobby project thrown together over a weekend? This is where trust is won or lost.

• -> Homepage Clutter: Is your homepage clean and focused, or is it a mess of different fonts, colours, and pop-ups? It should instantly communicate what you sell and why someone should care. If visitors land on the homepage and get confused, they'll just leave.
• -> Load Speed: If your site is slow to load, especially on mobile, you've lost the sale before you've even had a chance. People are impatient. Use Google's PageSpeed Insights to check your performance. A slow site feels untrustworthy.
• -> Trust Signals: This is a big one. Why should anyone trust you with their money? You need to show them you're a real, reliable business. This means having clear contact information (an address and phone number are great), customer reviews or testimonials, links to social media profiles, and maybe some trust badges for secure payments (like PayPal, Stripe, etc.). Without these, you look shady.

2. The Product Page Autopsy

This is where the sale is actually made. Since you're getting clicks but no conversions, your product pages are the most likely crime scene. A visitor has shown interest by clicking your ad; something on this page is scaring them away.

• -> Product Photography: Are your photos crisp, clear, and professional? Or are they blurry, poorly lit, and taken on your kitchen table? For ecommerce, your photos ARE your product. People can't touch or feel the item, so the photos have to do all the work. Show multiple angles, show the product in use, maybe even have a short video. I remember one client selling handcrafted jewellery whose sales tripled when they replaced their flat-lay photos with pictures of models actually wearing the pieces. It makes a huge difference.
• -> Product Descriptions: Do you even have them? "Blue T-Shirt" is not a description. You need to write persuasive copy that sells the benefit, not just the features. Why is your t-shirt better? Is it the material? The fit? The story behind the design? This is your chance to connect with the customer and answer their questions before they even ask them. A lack of detail makes customers nervous.
• -> Pricing and Value: Is your pricing clear? Are there unexpected shipping costs sprung on the customer at the last minute? How does your price compare to competitors? If you're more expensive, you need to justify *why*. Is it better quality? Better service? Faster shipping? You have to make the value proposition obvious.
• -> Call to Action (CTA): Is your "Add to Cart" button big, bold, and obvious? Or is it hidden away? Don't make people hunt for it. It should be the most prominent thing on the page.

Most of the time, fixing these on-page elements has a far bigger impact on sales than any amount of fiddling with ad campaigns. I've seen campaigns with terrible results turn into winners overnight just by rewriting product descriptions and taking better photos. It really is that important.

You probably should check if you're getting the right traffic...

Okay, let's assume you've audited your site and it's looking much more trustworthy and persuasive. The second possibility is that your Google Shopping campaign is attracting the wrong kind of people. Google is doing its job and finding people who will click, but they aren't people who will *buy*.

This often comes down to search intent. In Google Shopping, you don't bid on keywords in the same way as Search ads, but the search terms people use to trigger your ads are still massively important. You need to look at the "Search Terms" report in your Google Ads account to see what people are actually typing in.

• -> Informational vs. Commercial Intent: Are people searching for things like "how to clean leather boots" or are they searching for "buy men's size 10 leather boots"? The first person is looking for information, the second is looking to buy. If your ads are showing up for informational queries, you'll get lots of clicks from people who have no intention of purchasing. You'd want to add words like "how to", "reviews", "ideas", "free" to your negative keywords list to stop your ads showing for these searches.
• -> Mismatched Product Titles: Your product titles are one of the most important factors for Google Shopping. They need to be descriptive and contain the keywords people are actually using. If you're selling a "Handmade Oak Dining Table", your title should be something like "Solid Oak Wood Dining Table for 6 People - Farmhouse Style" not just "Cool Table". Be specific. This helps Google match you to the right searches and pre-qualifies the clicker.
• -> Brand vs. Generic: If you sell Nike trainers, are people searching for "Nike Air Max 90" or just "running shoes"? The first search is much higher intent. While you want to capture both, it's important to understand the quality difference. Clicks from very broad, generic searches are less likely to convert immediately.

Getting the right traffic is about aligning your product data and campaign settings with the mindset of someone who is ready to make a purchase. If there's a disconnect, you'll pay for clicks that go nowhere.

You'll need to understand the numbers that actually matter...

Right now you're worried about getting zero conversions from 200 clicks. That's a valid concern. But the bigger question you should be asking is: "How much can I actually afford to pay for a sale and still make a profit?"

Most new advertisers are obsessed with low-cost clicks or a low cost-per-conversion. But that's the wrong way to think about it. I'd rather pay £50 for a customer who spends £200 than pay £5 for a customer who only spends £10. It's not about cost; it's about Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) and profitability.

From our experience with ecommerce clients, a typical conversion rate is somewhere between 2-5%. So, out of 200 clicks, you might reasonably expect between 4 and 10 sales in a well-optimised campaign. The fact you got zero means your conversion rate is currently 0%, which confirms something is fundamentaly broken. A good cost per purchase in developed countries can range from £10 to £75, depending heavily on your product's price and profit margin. A campaign we ran for a women's apparel brand achieved a 691% return, while another for cleaning products saw a 633% return. This is possible when you know your numbers.

To figure this out, you need to stop guessing. This calculator will help you see how different metrics impact your actual profit. Play around with the sliders. See how a small increase in your product price or a decrease in your cost of goods can dramatically change how much you can afford to spend on ads.

Once you know this number, it changes everything. You're no longer scared of a high Cost Per Click (CPC), because you know exactly how much a customer is worth to you. This is the maths that unlocks intelligent, aggressive growth and stops you from panicking and pausing campaigns too early (or letting broken ones run for too long).

This is the main advice I have for you:

You've got a classic "leaky bucket" problem. You're pouring water (traffic) into a bucket (your website) with huge holes in it. Your number one priority is to patch the holes before you turn the tap back on. Don't spend another pound until you've gone through these steps.

Getting paid ads to work isn't just about flicking a switch and letting the algorithm figure it out. It's a systematic process of building a high-converting user experience on your site, and then sending highly qualified traffic to it. The campaign you paused isn't a failure; it's a very valuable piece of data. It told you, for the cost of 200 clicks, that you have a conversion problem on your website. That's a much cheaper lesson than finding out after spending thousands.

Fixing these foundational issues is what separates the ecommerce stores that succeed with paid ads from those that just burn cash. It takes work, and it requires looking at your own business with a critical eye, which can be difficult.

This is where expert help can make a huge difference. We spend all day, every day, diagnosing and fixing these kinds of problems for our clients. We can quickly spot the conversion roadblocks you might be blind to and implement strategies that not only get you sales but make every pound you spend on advertising work harder for you.

If you’d like to have a chat and get a second pair of expert eyes on your store and your ad account, we offer a completely free, no-obligation initial consultation. We can walk through your website together and I can give you some more specific, actionable feedback.

Regards,

Team @ Lukas Holschuh