Google Base

People post a lot of “stuff” online – information, goods, services, resumes, images, songs, and everything else.  Google Base is a free service Google designed for this purpose.  It works in conjunction with other Google services, such as Google Product Search – people post to services such as product search through Google Base.

How it Works

Google Base offers a simple interface for someone who adds their items, even existing listings on sites like eBay.

This is how it works:

  • Sign up and log into Google.
  • Select a category, or create a new category.
  • Add details – they differ depending on the information type.  For example:
    •  If the item is a product information is the name, price, location, accepted payment type, whether the price is set or negotiable, and user defined fields for additional information types.
    •  If the item is an event information is the date, time, cost, venue, and location.
    • If the item is a job listing the information includes salary, requirements, industry, location and other information.

People can also upload data feeds – these are large item lists so people don’t have to add them one by one.

One excellent feature is Store Connections, where people connect their eBay , Yahoo or osCommerce stores to Google searches.

Users manage all their items through a simple dashboard interface.

Google Base connects to different Google front ends depending on the information type.  For products, searches connect to Google Product Search, essentially becoming a free alternative to people listing on message boards such as Craigslist.com.  For events, Google Base has its own front end with search criteria that are event elements – dates, location, venue, and others. 

Advantages

 The main advantage of Google Base is that through it, users guarantee better listing in the Google database.  Connecting a store, like an eBay store, to Google Base means more traffic forwarded to the eBay store, and hopefully more sales.  For people seeking information, the specific search types deliver better results than the normal Google search delivers.

For example, someone looking for baseball related information (games, teams, or other information) in Chicago (60638 zip code):

Google Base returned fast pitch Wiffleball in Oak Forest, the minor league Schaumburg Flyers, and tickets to Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs games.

Google Web Search returned links to the White Sox and Cubs home pages, the Chicago Baseball Museum (http://www.chicagobaseballmuseum.org) and University of Chicago Baseball.

Categories: Glossary
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