Account Suspended for being in same building as virtual office (should I now close account?)

[Reva]

Hi Everyone,

I am looking for some advice please. Unfortunately we moved office to a building which advertises being a virtual office, but also has hot desking and rents out small office. After changing address we were suspended. We've tried submitting evidence to Google that we actually rent an office here but our account reinstatement has not been accepted.

We've accrued a good collection of Google reviews on the account so would really like to keep it.

After trying the above, we tried removing the address entirely but Google have said we are not strictly a local business so will not reinstate the account.

The business offers SAAS software so not strictly local, but we do meet clients at our office.

My questions is - where do we go from here?

I'm not 100% sure but the suspension seems to be negatively affecting our rankings too.

Would you suggest cutting our losses and closing the account, if so what is the safest way to do this?

Thanks in advance for any help you can give.

Reva.

 

[JoyHawkins]

Hey Reva,

I would try moving it to your home address, make sure the address is cleared, and then apply for reinstatement. You also need to convince the GMB support team that you see customers face-to-face which means you would meet with them in-person at their location if you don't have a physical office.

 

[Reva]

Hi Joy,

Thank you for taking the time to respond. I will give your suggestions a try.

One thing - I don't seem able to put both an address and list the business as a service area business. I know previously you were able to add the address then 'hide it', but I can't see this option anymore.

Is this what you mean by 'I would try moving it to your home address, make sure the address is cleared, and then apply for reinstatement.'? Sorry if this is obvious!

Again - thanks for your help!

Reva

 

[JoyHawkins]

For instructions on how to clear your address from your listing, see the "remove your address on Google My Business" section in this help center article: Add or edit your business address - Computer - Google My Business Help

This might be tricky if the listing is suspended currently. You might have to first add the address, then remove it.

 

[Reva]

Hi Joy,

Thanks for your response, ok I will give that a go.

Fingers crossed we have success - I will let you know how it goes.

Thanks,
Reva

For instructions on how to clear your address from your listing, see the "remove your address on Google My Business" section in this help center article: Add or edit your business address - Computer - Google My Business Help

This might be tricky if the listing is suspended currently. You might have to first add the address, then remove it.

 

[Reva]

Hi Joy,

Thanks for your help on this a couple of months ago.

I just wanted to let you know how the issue has progressed and if you had any further help.

We moved our business to our home address and have sent Google proof of this using a utility bill. We've also explained what type of business we are an how we have meetings at our address and our clients offices. We also meet business at their address to help with installation - especially if it is a school or similar. We offer cloud backup services, which we can do remotely but also sometimes it's easier for the client if we do their 'bit' for them from their location.

We've asked a couple of times for the account to be reinstated but we keep getting the same message that someone from their specialist team will get back to us. We have been waiting since August 25th for someone to get back to us, but no one has.

In our messages to them, we've clearly put the whole history of what has happened since we were suspended. All of it as far as I can see is within their guidelines now.

I wondered if you knew any way of reaching out to GMB. We can't really wait much longer as it has really impacted our rankings.

If there is no way of getting in touch with GMB, I think we will close the account. Do you know anyway of doing this safely without hurting our rankings further? It will be a shale to lose years of built up good reviews but maybe this is the best next option.

Thanks for any help in advance.
Reva

 

[JoyHawkins]

It sounds like it's possible Google has deemed that your business type isn't allowed to have GMB listings. What industry is this in?

 

[Reva]

Hi Joy,

Thanks for getting back to me again.

The industry is cloud computing (Saas) I guess. We've put 'data recovery service' as a category as it was the choice that fit best.

Perhaps your right and they don't think it could be classed as a local business. I can see why, although it's actually a bit of both online and local.

We've spent a long time trying to resolve this and I think we're ready close the account at the cost of losing our reviews.

Is there a best practice for doing this - I don't want to make anything worse than it is already?