Constantly rejected by Google Merchant Center. Any help is appreciated.
I’ve spent so many hours going through products on our Google Merchant Center. Each time I submit it gets rejected for misrepresentation. I’ve checked the shipping and return policy to make sure it matches the website. We don’t accept returns of jigsaw puzzles because we can’t resell opened puzzles. Not sure if this might be the issue. Maybe we’re not being clear enough about this on the website.
https://goodfortunepuzzleco.com/
If anyone notices something that stands out that might the reason for the misrepresentation it would be greatly appreciated.
We’re using the Shopify Google connector for the data feed.
Additional note:
Shopify data feed made duplicates of each product for Canada and United States. Not sure if this is best practice or the issue with misrepresentation.
The short answer is:
The primary issue causing your Google Merchant Center rejections for misrepresentation is likely the lack of clear, consistent, and easily discoverable information regarding your return/refund policy for non-resalable items like open jigsaw puzzles, as well as potential data inconsistencies arising from the Shopify Google connector’s duplication of products for different regions.
You must ensure your website’s policy pages are explicitly clear about the “no returns on opened puzzles” clause, and this policy must be visible on the landing page for all affected products.
To gain granular control over your product data and avoid the duplication and synchronization issues inherent in third-party connectors, you should transition to using a custom integration built around the Merchant API (specifically the Products service) and the Content API for Shopping.
This approach allows you to programmatically submit precise, region-specific product data and policy links directly to Google, bypassing the connector’s limitations and ensuring a single source of truth for all required attributes, thus resolving the misrepresentation flags.
The long answer is:
Your constant rejection for misrepresentation points to a disconnect between the data Google Merchant Center receives and the user experience on your site, which includes product data, shipping, and return policies.
The most significant concern is the policy about not accepting returns on opened jigsaw puzzles.
Google’s policy on misrepresentation mandates that the return and refund information must be easily accessible and unambiguously clear to the customer.
While your policy may be technically present, if it is hidden in a long document or not directly addressed on the product landing page for a potentially non-returnable item, Google’s automated and manual reviewers will flag it as an attempt to mislead.
You must ensure that the specific “no returns on opened puzzles” clause is bolded, clearly visible, and linked from the main policy pages and, ideally, noted near the purchase button on all relevant product pages on your Shopify store.
The secondary issue of the Shopify Google connector duplicating products for Canada and the United States, while often a mechanism to target different feeds, introduces complexity and potential for inconsistency.
If the policies, pricing, or currency are not perfectly aligned across these duplicates, it can contribute to the misrepresentation flag.
To eliminate this kind of data feed ambiguity and gain the necessary control, the most robust and cost-effective long-term solution is to migrate away from the simple Shopify connector to a direct, server-side integration utilizing the Merchant API (or the overarching Content API for Shopping).
You can host this integration on a platform like Google Cloud Platform (GCP) or a private server-side GTM setup using Stape to orchestrate the calls.
The Merchant API provides endpoints that allow you to programmatically manage your product catalog, including the ability to specifically define product attributes like shipping and custom policy links for each region and product, ensuring your data adheres perfectly to Google’s strict requirements, bypassing the limitations and duplications of the default Shopify feed connector.
This direct API management is cost-effective because it reduces manual reconciliation time, prevents costly ad spend on rejected products, and provides an immediate mechanism for submitting correct, well-structured product data, dramatically reducing the likelihood of misrepresentation rejections.
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