Prepare your business and website for Merchant Center onboarding and reviews

Build credibility through transparency and external validation.

Distinct purpose: If you operate multiple websites, ensure that each has a unique purpose and clearly discloses affiliations (for example, 'Subsidiary of [Parent company]').
Business headquarters: Clearly state your main operational hub (city, state/country). Provide a verifiable street address that perfectly aligns with your formal business registration, ensuring uniformity across your homepage and contact pages.
Legal clarity: Display the full legal business name if possible. For businesses located within the European Union, ensure that your official tax identifiers (such as VAT or CRN) are clearly visible in the website footer.
Clear disclosure of terms: Check that any conditions or variables that alter the customer experience or purchase agreement are explicitly stated prior to checkout.
Social media activity and third-party presence: Maintain active, professional social media profiles that allow users to contact you. Ensure that your business is visible on external review sites.
Communication integrity: Make sure that the phone number is active and the email address is hosted on your shop's domain.

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Manage customer expectations regarding delivery and policies.

Delivery transparency: Clearly state where products are dispatched from and identify fulfilment partners.
Warehouse origins: List the specific regions or countries where your inventory is housed and dispatched from.
Delivery specifics: Clearly state handling and transit times on product and checkout pages and make sure that these match your Merchant Center delivery settings. Delivery details (for example, handling times, carrier info, costs) should be plainly noted in your delivery policy.
Return and refund transparency: Verify that your policies are accessible, comprehensible and strictly adhered to. Eliminate deceptive 'hassle-free' assertions. Clearly delineate the eligible time frame, the designated return method and the party responsible for delivery costs. Return protocols (for example, restocking fees or return merchandise requirements) must be listed exclusively in your return and refund policy.
Regional compliance: Comply with regional requirements, an example of which is the 30-day return window for European Union merchants.
Fair return windows: For international delivery, ensure that the return window begins after the estimated delivery date, not the purchase date.

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Focus on a professional, distinct and high-quality user experience.

Original imagery: Replace stock photos with high-quality, authentic images of your actual products.
Unique copy: Have original narratives for your 'About us' section and individual product listings. Avoid duplicating text from competing shop fronts and use original brand-specific storytelling. You may also use specifications provided by the manufacturer as long as you explicitly acknowledge where it comes from or note that you are an authorised seller.
Visual authenticity: Utilise search tools to confirm that your media is not being used across other sites. If you are leveraging assets provided by the manufacturer, make sure that you say that you are affiliated with the brand. You can do this within the product details or on a dedicated page verifying your status as an authorised seller.
Security standards: Maintain a valid SSL certificate (HTTPS) on every page without exception.
Functional integrity: Scan for and repair all broken links (404 errors) and non-functional navigation elements. Make sure that all search bars, buttons and navigation links are fully operational and lead to valid content rather than placeholders or error pages.
Ethical marketing: Remove fake countdown timers, artificial stock warnings and intrusive pop-up overlays.
Professional finish: Remove all 'Lorem ipsum' text, placeholder images and 'Under construction' banners. Eliminate all placeholder text from delivery, return and privacy policies; customise them to your operations.

If you need guidance on high-quality website templates and design best practices, you can refer to the landing page requirements and how to check if your online shop is fully functional.

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Prevent counterfeiting and ensure product consistency.

Counterfeit prevention: Strictly vet suppliers to ensure that no counterfeit goods are sold.
Brand clarity: If selling 'alternative' or similar items to famous brands, clearly state the actual manufacturer and that it is not the official brand.
Quality control: Implement checks to ensure that the physical product matches the online listing quality.

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