Changing a competitor listing from temporarily closed to permanently closed

[Shelly]

I have confirmed that one of my client's top competitors has permanently closed. Their GMB listing is marked temporarily closed and the only option I am given is to mark the business reopen.

If I want to notify Google that this business is permanently closed, do I need to reopen the business first, then mark it closed when the edits go through? Redressal doesn't seem correct because it is not spam, and my understanding is the contact form is only for issues with my listing and not competitors.

 

[abbietorres]

If I want to notify Google that this business is permanently closed, do I need to reopen the business first, then mark it closed when the edits go through?

That would be my advice if you believe the listing is not being updated by its current owner. You can also try to submit the request multiple times from different Google accounts, like your staff accounts. That sometimes escalates the request through to support. However, since the shutdown, Google My Business support has been sluggish. Good luck

 

[Yan Gilbert]

Try the trick here to bypass the reopening step:

Editing a Closed Google My Business Listing - Online Ownership

There are occasions when you need to make an edit to a closed Google My Business listing. But with a closed business listing you have to mark the listing as OPEN

onlineownership.com

 

[Shelly]

@Yan Gilbert I gave this a shot. Unfortunately, this doesn't let me change the status of the business, it only allows me to change other elements (at least from what I can see). I am going to reopen, then mark permanently closed. This is an awesome trick for down the road though!

 

[Yan Gilbert]

Oh well. Google is always updating things. Thanks for reporting back on that.