Create your Online Store using the Google Checkout Store Gadget

Google Labs has introduced one of the coolest gadget, that would help just about any one set up their own onilne store in minutes. The Google Checkout Store Gadget works in hand with the Google Docs Spreadsheet and according to me is Google’s best hand forward to budding SMBs.

Here is the official word from Google about the Checkout Store gadget,

The Google Checkout store gadget allows you to quickly and easily create an online store using a Google Docs spreadsheet. No complicated coding or technical tasks are required. You can get your first online store up-and-running in under five minutes.

So how to set one up?

Be it your blog or site, the integration of the checkout gadget is quiet easy and as Google says it takes less than five minutes to do so.

• The first step is to sign up for a Google checkout merchant account. This is very important as checkout offers great fraud security.
• Next you have to use the Google spreadsheet to list the products and Google also allows you to add additional information that can be of great use to the buyers. The template for the spreadsheet can be found here.
• The third and the final step is to embed your gadget to your site or blog. Google offers different templates for each and detailed information for these can be found here.

And thats pretty much it, your online store is built. These three simple steps would help you set up your store and get you going.

So what does it mean to sellers/merchants?

The reason I stated that this gadget is one of the coolest from Google labs is because this helps budding small business owners and bloggers, who would like to sell, to easily create their online store and make it big without worrying about the technical issue of starting an online store, maintaining inventory lists, payments and so on. It offers great features and especially for start up online businesses this is a welcome solution to all their e-commerce problems. Though still in beta, this gadget can be used but make sure to not implement it in a big online established store as you may not know when Google pulls its leg out of it.

What does it mean to Google?

Its another step in attracting more and more people around the world to start using their services. Its free, its easy and its useful, so why not use it you may ask? And thats exactly what Google wants you to do. (hmm so was wondering again, will google be the next skynet??…)

I would surely recommend experimenting with this feature and for bloggers and budding SMBs this feature is a must try.

Helpful links

• Google Checkout Store Gadget API overview

Disclaimer: The post is completely based on individual thoughts and SEO Services Group bears no responsibilities for the thoughts reflected in the post.