Are you a product seller interested in marketing your products on Pinterest? Here is a useful guide about Product Pins and how to apply for Pinterest’s Verified Merchant Program.
This post will cover what the Pinterest Verified Merchant Program is, who can apply to be a verified merchant on Pinterest and the application process. We’re also covering why you might be rejected, and what to correct!
Are you ready to learn all about Pinterest’s Verified Merchant Program? Let’s get started!
What is the Verified Merchant Program on Pinterest?
Pinterest launched the Verified Merchant Program in March 2020 in response to COVID-19 and the changing landscape of e-commerce.
Verified merchants go through an application process and review, and then receive a blue checkmark on their profiles to show they are a Verified Merchant.
Perks of the Verified Merchant Program include:
- Increased distribution through the shopping experience
- Conversion Insights Tool (analytics covering conversions and measuring impact for organic and paid Pins)
- Dynamic retargeting capabilities (Pinterest Ads/browsers who viewed your site but didn’t buy)
Here’s an example of Quay Australia’s Verified Merchant Badge and “Shop” tab to easily shop their products right on Pinterest:
Who Can Apply?
According to Pinterest, “As of Q3 2020, the VMP Program is only open to businesses located in the US. We have plans to expand to businesses in other countries in the future and will be sure to keep businesses informed when we have expansion updates to share.”
That means if your business is in the United States, you have early access to the program.
Selling on Pinterest in International Markets
Even if you don’t have access to the Verified Merchant Program, you can still take advantage of shopping on Pinterest!
Simply add the Pinterest tag to your site for in-depth analytics and reporting.
Then it’s time to upload a Pinterest catalog and create Product Pins.
The Pinterest Verified Merchant Program Application Process
Guess what? There’s only three application requirements for the Verified Merchant Program (besides meeting the Pinterest Merchant Guidelines!) You must:
- Connect your product catalog to create Pinterest Product Pins
- Install the Pinterest tag on your website to get analytics
- Pass the merchant review to receive your blue checkmark
If you use Shopify for your business, you can use the Pinterest for Shopify App to automatically create and connect your catalog. It also automatically installs the Pinterest tag.
According to Pinterest, once everything fully connects in the Pinterest for Shopify app, you’re ready to apply.
Application Review (What Happens Next!)
Now what? After you submit your application, wait for an email notification. You’ll get one whether your application has been accepted or rejected.
What to Do if You Are Not Approved
The most common reasons for being denied is usually due to issues with your landing page.
Since Pinterest sets high standards for website quality in the Verified Merchant Program, you’ll want to check for the following:
- Grammatical errors, spelling errors, or excessive typos
- Forcing users to visit another page that is not yours
- Fuzzy, pixellated, or non-high quality images
- Multiple ads or popups you can’t close
- Unoriginal content in page sections or product descriptions
- Stock images
- Out of date/ out of season content (example: Christmas sales in February)
- Out of stock products
- Your shipping policy, return policy, and terms and conditions are not prominently displayed
Another reason for your application being rejected could be related to your brand presence. Check for the following:
- Your business name and social media name aren’t consistent
- Social media posts are just memes or quotes
- Social media accounts haven’t had new content posted in the last 30 days
- Your Pinterest account isn’t at least three months old
- Your website domain doesn’t match the verified site on your Pinterest profile
But don’t be discouraged! You can take steps to correct any errors and reapply to the Verified Merchant Program in 30 days.
If you’re confident that your application was denied in error, you can reach out to Pinterest and open a support ticket. Here’s how:
- Go to Pinterest’s Contact Page
- Select Businesses and Advertising
- Select Shopping
- Select Verified Merchant Program
Schedule Your Product Pins with Tailwind!
Did you know that when you have Rich Pins set up, you can save new product-focused Pins to Pinterest as usual, and your product information like price and description is pulled over automatically? No extra work required.
And don’t forget, Pinterest wants fresh content, so you’ll want to focus on creating and saving new products and blog posts to Pinterest consistently.
We’re a Pinterest-approved Partner and our scheduling tool helps you Pin right when your followers are most likely to engage with your Pins.
Get a free trial of Tailwind for Pinterest to get access to all our Pinterest publishing tools.
