Fixing Misrepresentation as a result of Domain name on Google Merchant Center

Shopify Discussion
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After spending over 70 hours on trying to figure out my misrepresentation violation and why my products aren’t approved on Google Merchant— reading posts, reviewing policies multiple times, and getting Incepted into tutorials within tutorials within tutorials—I finally hit a wall. I spoke to a Google representative today, but unfortunately, he wasn’t very helpful. He suggested that the misrepresentation issues and disapproved products are due to my domain name ending in “.club” (https://birdclub.club). He couldn’t specify which domain endings are allowed or provide further details. He just recommended switching to .com or .org, but he didn’t sound confident.

I asked him to review the rest of my Shopify site, and he confirmed everything else looked good. When I inquired about the best way to fix the issue, he advised me to ask my developer. I explained that I am the developer and didn’t have the answer, but he had no further suggestions.

So, my question is: Can I switch the domain I use for Merchant Center to my Shopify domain, https://birdclub-club.myshopify.com? I suspect this might not resolve the issue since site links are created using my primary domain in Shopify (currently birdclub.club).

Are there any other solutions? Or should I just switch my primary domain to https://birdclub-club.myshopify.com and have birdclub.club redirect there? I worry that this will have a major effect on SEO and all the other Google search work I’ve been doing.

Has anyone been through similar? Thank you for your help!

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There is no issue with the domain URL. Honestly Google will not tell you the real reason when you are suspended for misrepresentation.

To me, it looks like you are print on demand, and unfortuantely if you don’t have a very high review count and trust ratings, you will not get approved for this reason: https://support.google.com/merchants/answer/6150127#:~:text=Unavailable%20promotions

However, i’m not 100% sure it’s POD, it just looks like it. And that can be enough reason for Google to think the same. Ofcourse they will not tell you.

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Wow. That’s huge to hear that it’s not the URL. Thanks so much for responding, and I trust you way more than the Google guy I spoke with today. It’s not print-on-demand but it is apparel and accessories for birders and ornithology enthusiasts. All sustainable but more embroidery and cut-and-sew than printing. I’ve only had the shop open for a couple months, and I’m slowly releasing products every couple of weeks. If the issue is needing more ratings—that is a major relief. All I need is a little time. Is there anything special to do to get Google to pay attention to aggregate rating? And are trust ratings the same as reviews? Side note, I was just accredited by the Better Business Bureau if that helps in any way for Merchant Center. Thanks so much for the response.

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Trust ratings means, anything to do with demonstrating you are a trustworthy business, including BBB, valid paypal details and linked, real address etc etc.

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