Google Merchant Center, PayPal, and Free Shopping Listings

What do you get when you connect your PayPal account with your Google Merchant Center account to “gain access” to those Free Product Listings on Google Shopping?

When Google officially began rolling out Free Product Listings on the Shopping tab, they simultaneously announced a new Platform integration for Google Merchant Center in PayPal.

PayPal Google Merchant Center Integration

Nestled in Merchant Center under “Linked Accounts,” the integration was pitched as a way to “speed up our onboarding process and ensure we’re surfacing the highest quality results for our users.”

Integrate PayPal with Google Merchant Center

But, what does that actually mean? We reached out to our Partner Managers at Google in hopes to dispel any rumors or at least to clarify what the PayPal integration with Merchant Center can do for you as a retailer.

It’s Optional, But Potentially Beneficial

POINT BLANK: You do not need to integrate your Merchant Center with your PayPal account (if you have one) to gain access to Free Google Shopping listings.

“The idea is to share quality signals with us. By linking their PayPal accounts, merchants with an existing Merchant Center account may improve eligibility to participate in free listings on the Shopping Tab.”

So, to put it simply, the integration could have a positive impact on not only eligibility, but also the actual surfacing of those free listings on Google Shopping.

If you dig a little deeper though, this PayPal integration is also related to what are now known as Enhanced listings for Surfaces across Google, the name of the program that affords retailers the opportunity for free product listings:

Enhanced Listings Surfaces across Google

Quality & Trust Signals

Outside of speculation or assumption, the PayPal integration for Merchant Center is essentially an opportunity for Google to gather more information about your products and your business in an effort to improve the Surfaces across Google experience as it relates to free product listings on the Shopping tab of Google.

Along with the integration or without it though, retailers STILL “must adhere to surfaces across Google policies, Shopping ads policies, and provide Google with high-quality product information to ensure a positive consumer experience.”

We are looking forward to seeing some data behind the integration – maybe your products will show more often? 

Only time with tell….


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