2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

[amy.inbound]

2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

Hi everyone!

First I would like to say how much I learn from this forum every single time I look around! It's amazing. This is the first time I've actually posted.

Second, I am wondering how I get rid of this listing and/or if it is affecting our local rankings?

In our Google Places dashboard, I have 2 listings showing. 1 is the correct listing with all the correct information and everything optimized properly, the 2nd is a listing that shows it's unverified and when I try to edit, it gives me a big nasty red message across the top of the page saying: "You cannot update this listing because it has been marked as a duplicate of another." This listing has all the exact same information as the correct listing.

This listing recently showed up. I hadn't marked anything on mapmaker or otherwise as a duplicate. I've also never seen this duplicate in G+ Local or in G+ Pages. What I'm wondering is if this listing is affecting our local rankings as we bounce above and just below them but haven't been able to rank IN the 7-pack yet.

In addition, our Google PAGES dashboard lists this duplicate as well. The dashboard of pages shows a big red circle sign over the profile pic of this page. Upon editing this page is gives me the same message. When I go to the bottom and click "delete this page" another big nasty red massage shows at the top of my screen that says: "Your page has been blocked since it has been identified as possible spam. To unblock your page, please verify it."

So, I click Verify and it takes me right back to the editing page that says

"We're not showing this page because it's a duplicate of another."

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... Which is all greyed out because I cannot edit it.

If I delete this page by hitting "delete this page" and saying yes to the warning message, will it go away for good? Is this the entire reason we don't rank? Or a part of it? Is this the proper way to delete a page? Do I remove the listing through Google Places dashboard or Google Pages dashboard? Google places gives me the option to delete but it gives me that warning message that: "[our company name] may continue to appear in search results on Google, Google Maps, and Google+ Local." OR am I being paranoid about this listing and maybe it's not affecting anything?

And maybe this is a mystery... but where did this extra duplicate come from? A hidden dupe that Google sorted out on it's own and added to our account for us to see?

Thank you in advance for anyone who takes their time to answer, I appreciate it.

 

[Colan Nielsen]

Re: 2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

Hi Amy,

It's difficult to offer optimal advice without seeing screenshots or links to the pages.

The unverified page should not be contributing to your ranking issue.

Can you share links to the pages in question? Maybe a screenshot of the dashboard?

 

[amy.inbound]

Re: 2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

Yes of course!

https://plus.google.com/+BoulevardexteriorsCa/about - the completed listing

The following is what I see when I try to edit the duplicate unverified listing in local:




The following is the business pages dashboard: (I believe the one in the middle is from our YouTube page??? Just has the name and youtube account on it)


I also verified another listing that was marked as closed but had an old company name and same address ph# that was in a previous account in order to delete it as well (https://plus.google.com/115476834013666283357/about) but I'm wondering if it's that listing (that was marked as permanently closed and verified under a different account) or this Duplicate marked as spam listing in my account that's causing our local search woes. The MCM Home could be found through searching our phone number so that was why I thought it should be trashed once and for all instead of keeping it marked as closed. We got it released from the old account through a google rep.

This is our google+ local dash: (the bottom one was verified today by phone so that I can delete it... hopefully?)


Hopefully this all makes sense... I figured there has got to be something with these listings that's messing with us! Just don't know the proper way to go about fixing it!!

 

[Colan Nielsen]

Re: 2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

Why did you reverify the closed listing - https://plus.google.com/115476834013666283357/about (that is probably hurting you)

The unverified listing that has the strike through it in the G+ dash can be removed.

 

[amy.inbound]

Re: 2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

I thought that it was causing duplicate listing issues because it was verified with another account before (we don't know which account or who owned it ever) but marked as permanently closed - as it was still showing up when I searched for our address or phone number.

So I should have left that listing alone? And the other duplicate in our account is not hurting us either? If so that is a relief... sort of because now I have no clue what's causing our ranking issues! haha.

Thanks a lot for your help I really appreciate it!!!!

 

[Linda Buquet]

Re: 2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

Hi Amy, and welcome.

You'll find some helpful info about this problem in the G+ Local IMPORTANT section of the forum as that's where we notify you in advance about issues like this (G+ L Updates, bugs, etc). (Be sure to subscribe to that section if nothing else so you don't miss anything critical.)

Here are 2 long threads for that section that explain IN GENERAL what's up, but I don't have time to look at your case, it could be slightly different.

<a href="http://localsearchforum.catalystemarketing.com/google-local-important/15170-warning-email-re-google-places-duplicate-listings.html">Warning Email re Google Places Duplicate Listings</a>

<a href="http://localsearchforum.catalystemarketing.com/google-local-important/13765-google-attempting-rectify-dual-claimed-local-listing.html">Google Attempting to Rectify Dual Claimed Local Listing Problems w Email Warnings</a>

Don't worry about the email warning parts of title above but I think this is going to get to at least part of your problem.

If you MANUALLY created a G+ page and merged (back when we were warning folks not to) this is the end result. Once Google auto-upgraded Place pages to G+ then you end up with an extra duplicate.

(Sorry in a rush working on big project and no time to read your post and look at screenshot. Just from the 1st part of your post it sounded like that was the issue.)

 

[Linda Buquet]

Re: 2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

The info above was re the dupe in dash.

Amy I think this may be part of your ranking issue: http://goo.gl/maps/EjJpV

I've mentioned to Colan and others that often lately when I see a listing that looks penalized and is disconnected from the 7 pack and won't rank - it's turns out to be like this one and there is another business listing at the address that's marked closed.

When a listing is closed - it pulls it out of search.

Since these both had the same address, phone and categories - I think the closed one is suppressing the other and basically saying to Google "The business at this address is closed."

Additionally like looks like a home address so it's a major violation to have the address visible. You need to do the setting right in the dashboard to hide the address. (Ask if you don't know how.)

But hiding the address won't take care of the closed problem because Google still sees the address that's in the dashboard.

 

[amy.inbound]

Re: 2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

Thank you Linda!!!!! So to get rid of this issue can I simply delete the MCM home listing from G Local dash? I'm actually not certain on how to delete a listing properly.

 

[Linda Buquet]

Re: 2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

Oh it's still in dash??? That's a problem.

But no deleting from dash does not get the listing off maps at all. Just gets it out of dash.

I'm so sorry I don't have time to explain it at all. Hoping someone else can help you. Dealing with that Closed listing will be tricky!

I've been helping Google with the launch of the big update. DID YOU SEE???

<a href="http://localsearchforum.catalystemarketing.com/google-local-important/18964-google-my-business-launching-now-goodbye-google.html">Google "My Business" Launching Now! Goodbye Google+ Local! HUGE Update!</a>

So I'm really buried and will be for the next month. Need to totally re-do my training due to that update. I'm out of business til I get it done, so no more free consulting for me here in the forum. Again I'm sorry but I work 50+ hours a week helping everyone for free and now I need to work on my own business.

But hopefully one of the many pros here at the forum can help you tomorrow.

 

[amy.inbound]

Re: 2 Listings showing in Places Dashboard, Can't edit one - "Marked as Duplicate"

Thank you very much Linda I really appreciate you taking to time to respond... I don't know how you do it!! I did see the GMB post yesterday morning! I actually came rushing back to this forum as soon as I logged into a client's dashboard and saw the new GMB page and had a mini freak out!!!! haha.