MerchantCircle Debuts ‘Verified Listings’ Program

MerchantCircle, which now claims 385,000 members, is introducing a program it calls “MerchantCircle Verified.” It places a badge on the profiles that merchants whose information has been expanded and confirmed and who pay the $2.99 per month fee.

The program attempts to distinguish particular merchants and, for MerchantCircle, aims to increase participation of more merchants, as well as generate a small amount of incremental revenue. (I suspect the fee however is less about revenue than the perception of value from the merchant perspective.) In some respects it’s very similar to Local.com’s prior “Local Verified” program. (Yahoo! also has a merchant verification program.)

Here are the benefits as presented by MerchantCircle:

• A special badge on your listing showing that your business has been verified
• Higher ranking on MerchantCircle search results targeted to your business and community
• More consumer trust and more exposure for your business

And here’s the verification process:

“MerchantCircle Verified” is based upon a three-pronged verification process that includes: submission of detailed business information, aggregated reviews and ratings across the web, and peer-to-peer endorsements from other local business owners. Merchants who qualify for the “MerchantCircle Verified” program will receive a special badge on their business listing, indicating a higher level of trustworthiness.

Here’s how it looks on a merchant profile and in a search result (although this on is for the specific business).