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Google wants your website to be as transparent as possible, so they crawl your website for the following policy pages:
- Terms and conditions page
- Privacy policy page
- Shipping Policy page
- Returns and refunds policy page
- Contact Us page
These Ecommerce legal pages are fundamental to your site. Not having these pages on your store will result in your Google Merchant Center account getting suspended by Google.
So in this post, you’re going to learn how to create Google-compliant Shopify legal pages.
Ecommerce Terms and Conditions
The Terms and Conditions page is not really a confirmed requirement for Ecommerce stores. However, it’s widely agreed that Google checks this page to see if you are really transparent about your expectations on how users are going to interact with your site.
There are two methods you can follow in creating your Terms and Conditions page:
- You can have a lawyer draw the Terms and Conditions page based on your Ecommerce store, products, or services.
- Use a template or online policy generator.
Many start-up Ecom store owners choose the second method because it’s fast and convenient, and they can easily find free templates and generators online like the Shopify Terms and Conditions Generator.
Ecommerce Privacy Policy Page
Google requires Ecommerce stores to have a Privacy Policy page on their website because they want their users to feel safe when providing their information online. Google wants you to be transparent about how you handle all collected data from customers. So if you don’t have an Ecommerce Privacy Policy page in your store, Google can stop sending traffic to your site and your Merchant Center account could also get suspended.
If you don’t have the time to write this up yourself or you have no idea what legal items to include, you can use some free templates online or quickly generate a policy using the Shopify Privacy Policy Generator.
Ecommerce Shipping Policy Page
Ecommerce stores without a shipping policy, or a non-compliant policy, risk placing their site to the point of suspension. To ensure transparency, Google requires you to have a dedicated page outlining every piece of information that every buyer should know about shipping.
On this page, you have to clearly spell out:
- where you ship to
- where you DON’T ship to
- the costs of shipping
- and the shipping time
Once you’ve planned out all the critical information above, you can then draw out your policy using a free Shopify Shipping Policy template here.
Ecommerce Returns and Refunds Policy Page
No one enjoys processing return and refund requests from customers. However, the Returns and Refunds Policy page is one of the heavily scrutinized pages by Google. That is why you really need to make sure that you outline this page based on Google’s requirements.
It’s also important to note that while Google requires you to have an Ecommerce Returns and Refunds Policy on your site, you are not required to accept returns. It means you can basically set up a policy where you tell buyers that all sales are final and no refunds will be given.
You can quickly generate your policy using the Shopify Returns and Refunds Policy Generator.
Ecommerce Contact Us Page
If you’re aiming for transparency and compliance, your Contact Us page is where you can tell Google that you’re a legitimate business. Now there are elements that you must have on this page:
- Business name
- Business address
- Phone number
- Email address
Business name
Just adding your domain name as your business name is not enough. You need to clearly put the name of your business on the Contact Us page. If your Ecommerce store’s name is ABC LLC, then that is the name that should be on this page.
Business address
This must be the physical address where your business operates. Don’t ever try to trick Google by adding a random or fake address because they can easily map your location and confirm if it’s the right address.
Phone number
This number should be wholly dedicated to your business. And if customers try to call you, they should feel like they reached your business and be able to hear your business name when answered. Most importantly, customers should be able to leave a message for your business if no one is available to answer.
Email address
Majority of today’s online shoppers prefer the text-based method of communication. Instead of having to call your store, they are more comfortable sending you an email. So make sure that you have this on your Contact Us page.
One important tip I can give you is to make your email address into a link. This way, when customers click it, they will automatically be directed to their emailing app and immediately start writing their message.
How to Add Policy Pages to your Ecommerce Store
When you’ve already drafted all the required Shopify policy pages, the next step is to create new pages and add each policy on your Shopify store. Here are the steps:
1. Log in to your Shopify dashboard.
2. Navigate to the Pages tab and click Add Page.
Once you click Save, your policy will go live on your website and you can link it to your footer so your customers can easily see them wherever they may be on your website.
How to Link Shopify Legal Pages in Footer
The best way to maximize your website footer is to add all the important links including your privacy policy pages.
To do this, just follow the simple steps below:
1. Make sure that all your policies have already been added as new pages on your Shopify dashboard.
2. Go to Online Store > Navigation > Footer Menu.
3. Click on Add Menu Item.
4. Add the name of the policy page you want to connect and choose the link.
5. Repeat all of these steps for each Shopify legal page you have in order to make it easier for your customers.
Google-Compliant Policy Pages
Google’s eyes are wide open 24/7 to ensure all merchants are following their guidelines when adding legal pages to their Ecommerce website.
It’s so important to be compliant with Google’s policy, and you have to do it page by page if you don’t want to increase your risk meter to the point of suspension.
Tell Google that your store is legitimate by making sure that all your legal pages are in compliance with their policies and guidelines.
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