Google to highlight selected online stores as “trusted”

Google launched its Trusted Stores Program today which is aimed at giving online shoppers assurances that participating online retailers are trustworthy.

Online retailers who choose to participate in the program will be able to display report cards on their sites that rate the stores’ overall service and the reliability of their shipping services.

“The Google Trusted Store badge is awarded to ecommerce sites that demonstrate a track record of on-time shipping and excellent customer service,” Google said on its blog.

“When visiting a qualifying store, shoppers can hover over the Google Trusted Store badge and see metrics on the store’s shipping and customer service performance.”

In addition to the badge, Google will also highlight the trusted stores’ ratings on its search results pages.

Google first announced the program in October last year and has been testing it with about 50 online stores since then.

Google says on its blog that there is no fee or charge for the free purchase protection and the protection means that consumers can ask for Google’s help if there is an eligible issue with the order which the retailer cannot resolve.

The program is only available to online stores in the US so far and Google has not revealed yet if the program will be expanded to Australia.

Kate Mason, global communications and public affairs manager for Google, told SmartCompany there was “nothing to announce from an Australian perspective”.