Project Overview
A client from Whitewater Tours needed a Google Shopping XML product feed for approximately 50 products on their WordPress website.
The website used custom WordPress fields to store product information, and the client wanted that information converted into an XML feed that could be used with Google.
The project was a good example of how a custom XML feed can be built around an existing WordPress data structure rather than requiring the client to manually maintain a separate product feed.
Project Requirements
The main requirements were:
- Create a Google Shopping XML product feed.
- Generate the feed from WordPress custom fields.
- Support approximately 50 products.
- Make the feed accessible through a dedicated XML URL.
- Ensure newly added products could automatically appear in the feed.
- Provide a solution suitable for submission to Google Merchant Center.
The initial project budget was $50, with a three-day delivery requirement.
Understanding the Client’s WordPress Structure
The client explained that the products were already managed through WordPress and that the required information was stored in custom fields.
Instead of creating a completely separate product database, the approach was to work with the existing WordPress content and transform the available product information into the required XML feed structure.
This is an important consideration when developing feeds for WordPress websites.
A feed should ideally work with the website’s existing data rather than forcing the site owner to maintain product information in multiple places.
Creating the Custom XML Feed
A custom WordPress XML feed solution was developed specifically for the website.
The feed was designed to collect the relevant product information from WordPress and make it available through an XML endpoint.
The resulting feed was intended to provide a direct URL that could be supplied to Google Merchant Center.
The client also asked whether the feed would automatically include a new product when it was added to the website.
The answer was yes.
This meant the client would not need to manually recreate the XML feed every time a new product was published.
WordPress Plugin Installation
Because the website was running as a WordPress multisite, the plugin installation required some additional coordination.
Initially, the required permissions were not available for installing the plugin directly.
The client therefore uploaded the provided plugin package, after which the feed could be tested and refined.
This is a common practical issue when working on client websites: the technical implementation may be straightforward, but access permissions and hosting configuration can affect the development workflow.
Testing and Refinement
The plugin was not considered finished immediately after installation.
The client asked whether the work was complete once the plugin had been uploaded.
The response was that the feed still needed to be checked and refined before being considered final.
The goal was to make sure that the generated XML could be used as the feed source and that the client could subsequently submit the feed URL to Google Merchant Center.
The client also confirmed that they would test the implementation and report any issues.
Automatic Product Updates
One of the useful features of the implementation was that the XML feed was connected to the site’s WordPress product data.
The client specifically asked:
If a new product is added, will it auto go to the XML feed?
The answer was yes.
This makes a custom feed considerably more useful for an active website because the feed can continue to reflect the site’s product catalog without requiring the site owner to manually edit an XML file every time a product is added.
Expanding Beyond Google Shopping
After the initial XML feed work, the client asked about another Google integration: Google Things to Do.
This introduced a different type of feed requirement involving event and activity information.
The discussion moved toward JSON feeds and customized data for individual events.
The client was informed that the data structure on the website would need to be customized for each event and that the work could be started with a single event to verify the output before expanding the implementation.
This demonstrated another advantage of working with custom feed development: once the underlying WordPress data and feed requirements are understood, similar structured-data integrations can be evaluated and developed around the same website.
A Later Check: Feed Endpoint No Longer Available
More than a year after the original implementation, the old Google feed URL was checked again:
whitewatertours.com/google.xml
The endpoint is currently returning a Page Not Found response.
This does not necessarily mean that the original feed implementation failed. Websites are frequently redesigned, plugins are removed, URLs are changed, or WordPress configurations are modified over time.
Because the current endpoint is no longer available, the next step is to determine whether the client still requires the Google Shopping feed and, if so, what has changed on the website since the original implementation.
A follow-up was therefore sent to the client offering to investigate the issue and restore the feed if it is still required.
Key Takeaways
This project highlights several important considerations when creating custom XML feeds for WordPress websites.
1. Work With Existing WordPress Data
Using the website’s existing custom fields can eliminate unnecessary duplication and allow the feed to stay connected to the site’s product information.
2. Automate Feed Updates
Automatically generating the XML output means that new products can be incorporated into the feed without manually editing an XML file.
3. Consider WordPress Multisite During Development
Multisite installations can introduce additional permission and plugin-installation considerations that should be accounted for before development begins.
4. Test Before Submitting the Feed
A feed should be checked and refined before its URL is submitted to Google Merchant Center.
5. Feed Maintenance Matters
Even a working feed can become unavailable later because of website changes, plugin removal, URL changes, migrations, or other configuration changes.
For this reason, an XML feed should be treated as part of the website’s ongoing technical infrastructure rather than a completely one-time task.
Conclusion
The Whitewater Tours project started with a straightforward requirement: convert approximately 50 WordPress products stored using custom fields into a Google Shopping XML feed.
A custom WordPress feed solution was developed, installed on the client’s multisite environment, and prepared for testing and use with Google Merchant Center.
The project also opened the door to discussing additional structured-data integrations such as Google Things to Do.
The later discovery that the original /google.xml endpoint is no longer available also illustrates an important aspect of feed development: ongoing website changes can affect previously working integrations.
For businesses relying on XML feeds for Google or third-party platforms, periodic testing of the feed URL is therefore a useful part of website maintenance.
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