Google Base Went LIVE Today

As @!! announced and as @Dani and @chalimac asked, here’s a compact, practical primer on what Google Base is and how to use it right away.

Google Base is a Google-hosted repository for structured items — think products, classifieds, events, recipes, articles — that you submit directly instead of waiting for Googlebot to crawl your site. Submissions use item types with named attributes (price, date, location, etc.), which helps Google present and filter listings more accurately than plain pages.

Basic workflow (high level): use the single-item web form for one-offs and testing; use bulk uploads/feeds (tab-delimited or XML) or the API for catalogs. For every item include a clear title, a unique identifier (SKU or ID), an absolute link back to the source page, one good image URL, and the appropriate item-type attributes (price/availability for products, date/location for events, etc.). Test a few items first, then scale.

Quick checklist and common pitfalls:

• Start small: submit 5–10 items first to confirm fields map correctly and images resolve.
• Use descriptive, unique titles and non-duplicated descriptions — duplicated site content can reduce usefulness.
• Include currency codes and numeric prices; don’t mix formats.
• Use persistent IDs so updates replace existing items rather than create duplicates.
• Watch for broken image URLs, required attributes left blank, or fields formatted inconsistently — those cause rejects.
• Expect a delay before items are visible; monitor the Base account for upload errors and rejection notes.

A few cautions: don’t rely solely on Base for organic indexing of your main site; don’t submit spam or copyrighted material. The links posted by @!! above are the official how-tos for the single-item form and upload options — use them to match required field names exactly.