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What is a Product Set?

Product sets group SKUs for targeting and reporting. Learn how to build sets by category, margin, and lifecycle to improve performance.
Brief Definition

A product set is a filtered group of SKUs from your product catalog (e.g., “Running Shoes,” “Last Season −25%,” “High-Margin Kitchenware”). Sets control which items your catalog ads can serve and how you report performance. Good sets turn a big catalog into targeted, testable groups. They give you control over which items get spend and make reporting by strategy straightforward.

Understanding Product Sets

Sets are the bridge between feed data and campaign strategy, translating product attributes into controllable groups. With clean attributes and custom labels, you can define tight sets that align to audience segments, promos, and goals. When sets mirror how you sell—by margin tier, season, and category—you’ll see clearer signals and steadier delivery. This structure enables apples‑to‑apples tests across creative and placements. Sets also simplify reporting by rolling SKU performance into meaningful buckets.

Strong sets prevent the algorithm from concentrating spend on the wrong items. Separating full‑price from sale, or high‑margin from low‑margin, protects POAS. Align creative templates to each set so price, review, and promo overlays fit the offer. Keep sizes large enough to learn each week but narrow enough to stay relevant. Refresh logic as inventory and seasons change to maintain accuracy.

Why Product Sets matter

Product sets matter because they give you direct control over which products get budget and how results are read. Without sets, algorithms can drift into low‑margin or out‑of‑stock items that harm outcomes. Sets align buyer intent, creative, and measurement so optimization becomes repeatable.

  • Control: Keep low-margin or OOS items out of spend.
  • Relevance: Map audience segments to the most relevant SKUs.
  • Clarity: Report winners/losers by category and lifecycle.

How Product Sets work

Product sets work by filtering the product catalog on attributes (category, brand, price, availability) and custom labels (margin tier, seasonality, new/last‑season). You assign sets to campaigns and ad sets so only those SKUs can serve, giving you precision over spend. Templates can reference set‑level rules—like showing sale overlays only for sale sets—to keep creative aligned. Consistent naming and logic let you reuse sets across platforms with minor mapping. Keep set sizes sufficient for stable learning but not so broad that relevance fades. Review performance weekly and adjust membership to reflect inventory and demand shifts.

Meta Information

  • Primary Keyword: Product Set
  • Secondary Keywords: catalog product sets, product groups, feed filters
  • Target Word Count: 900–1,100 words
  • Meta Title: What is a Product Set? Target the Right SKUs in Catalog Ads | Marpipe
  • Meta Description: Product sets group SKUs for targeting and reporting. Learn how to build sets by category, margin, and lifecycle to improve performance.
  • URL: marpipe.com/ad-glossary/product-set

# What is a Product Set?

A product set is a filtered group of SKUs from your product catalog (e.g., “Running Shoes,” “Last Season −25%,” “High-Margin Kitchenware”). Sets control which items your catalog ads can serve and how you report performance.

Good sets turn a big catalog into targeted, testable groups. They give you control over which items get spend and make reporting by strategy straightforward.

Understanding Product Sets

Sets are the bridge between feed data and campaign strategy, translating product attributes into controllable groups. With clean attributes and custom labels, you can define tight sets that align to audience segments, promos, and goals. When sets mirror how you sell—by margin tier, season, and category—you’ll see clearer signals and steadier delivery. This structure enables apples‑to‑apples tests across creative and placements. Sets also simplify reporting by rolling SKU performance into meaningful buckets.

Strong sets prevent the algorithm from concentrating spend on the wrong items. Separating full‑price from sale, or high‑margin from low‑margin, protects POAS. Align creative templates to each set so price, review, and promo overlays fit the offer. Keep sizes large enough to learn each week but narrow enough to stay relevant. Refresh logic as inventory and seasons change to maintain accuracy.

Why Product Sets matter

Product sets matter because they give you direct control over which products get budget and how results are read. Without sets, algorithms can drift into low‑margin or out‑of‑stock items that harm outcomes. Sets align buyer intent, creative, and measurement so optimization becomes repeatable.

  • Control: Keep low-margin or OOS items out of spend.
  • Relevance: Map audience segments to the most relevant SKUs.
  • Clarity: Report winners/losers by category and lifecycle.

How Product Sets work

Product sets work by filtering the product catalog on attributes (category, brand, price, availability) and custom labels (margin tier, seasonality, new/last‑season). You assign sets to campaigns and ad sets so only those SKUs can serve, giving you precision over spend. Templates can reference set‑level rules—like showing sale overlays only for sale sets—to keep creative aligned. Consistent naming and logic let you reuse sets across platforms with minor mapping. Keep set sizes sufficient for stable learning but not so broad that relevance fades. Review performance weekly and adjust membership to reflect inventory and demand shifts.

Best practices

Keep the list short enough to manage and large enough to learn. Refresh logic monthly so sets track inventory and seasonal shifts.

  1. Start with 4–8 sets that reflect strategy: top sellers, promo items, premium, clearance, new arrivals.
  2. Maintain a “high-margin” set to protect POAS.
  3. Exclude low-converting/out-of-stock SKUs automatically.
  4. Schedule sale sets and corresponding creative templates.
  5. Review set performance weekly; reallocate budget to winning sets.
Related Terms
Related Blogs
FAQs
How many product sets should I start with?
Enough to reflect strategy without starving volume—usually 4–8 product sets.
Do product sets impact learning?
Yes—cleaner product sets help the algorithm find consistent value signals.
Should I mix full-price and sale items in a product set?
Keep separate—goals, templates, and buyer intent differ within each product set.
How granular should a product set be?
Granular enough to reflect margin tiers and lifecycle, but not so narrow that delivery stalls; aim for product sets with enough volume to learn each week.
How often should I revisit product set logic?
Monthly or whenever inventory and promotions change—tie updates to your merchandising calendar for each product set.