[update 09/11/09] @dtunkelang Endeca co-founder & chief scientist departs to Google
In a move that will send shudders through the established eCommerce Search providers, Google has launched Google Commerce Search.
- Retailer access to the same, fast, Google search technology we know and love, to surface their own retail data
- A scalable hosted [cloud based] solution that aims to meet seasonal volume spikes and drops, in a cost efficient way
- Search grouping
- Search driven promotions
- Display configuration and customisation
- No additional administrative cost for deployment and maintenance
- Configurable reports
- Integrated Google Analytics
The result?
- Visitors can find the right products faster
- Visitors can filter results by category, price, brand or other attributes
- User-friendly spelling options and synonyms
- Increased website conversions and sales
- Easy deployment in days, and scale effortlessly
Yes there are many features missing when compared to the Enterprise / eCommerce search capabilities of an Endeca, Autonomy, Omniture or SLI Systems.
Yes uploading product data to the Google Merchant Center is not going to work for some.
But I wouldn’t want Google on the patch my product operates! Not when you bear in mind the impact they can have by providing information services for free – just ask Garmin or TomTom.
And yet already the blogosphere is a-wash with speculation that this is another ‘building block’ in allowing anyone (i.e. not necessarily a company) to create their own online shop. Where does that leave the SME merchant or the eCommerce Platform provider who focus on SMEs and the lower end of the midmarket?
Google Shop = Commerce Search + Checkout + Analytics + ???
We are in a fascinating era where technology innovation is fueling idea creation and disruption. Great isn’t it?
Filed under: Retail, Technology, e-commerce, eCommerce, google , Google Analytics, Google Checkout, Google Commerce Search


Crikey. News stories are coming through thick and fast out of Salmon HQ. And this is quite incredible. Halfords have surpassed their one-millionth “Reserve and Collect” milestone. Yes. 1,000,000.
Today we announced the formalisation of a long standing relationship, in the form of a commercial partnership with 