Google messed up my categories

[dnp]

Hey everyone,

How do you deal with Google changing your categories without reason? They either swapped the main one with the additional category or completely replaced it with another one. The other info, e.g. description and other attributes, was also removed from the listing...

 

[ElizabethRule]

Categories, and other info on GBP listings, can sometimes get changed by Google if you have an API connected with authorization to make edits to your profile. You can check if you have authorized any here.

If there is no API connected, contact support and explain to them the issue. They should be able to get the categories to stick.

 

[dnp]

Thank you for the info @ElizabethRule! I don't have anything connected except Semrush, with no editing capability and just for reporting purposes. I'm assuming it's just Google messing up

 

[Nyagoslav]

Hi dnp,

When you claim a business's Google Business Profile (GBP), you can add or edit information to that profile. That information will be displayed publicly, sometimes subject to extra verification. However, information provided via a verified owner account doesn't represent the only source of truth. Google "scans" the Internet and looks for mentions of the business. It may then suggest (or straightaway execute) changes to the GBP profile.

It is possible that there are listings for the business, on other business directories, that feature the same or similar categories to those Google keeps adding to the GBP. In most cases Google will ask before executing a change like that, but in certain cases, Google may decide to automatically update the information on the GBP.

If you are certain it has not been another owner/manager of the GBP that has made the changes, my suggestion would be that you conduct a thorough listings check-up. If you find any instances where an incorrect category is assigned to a listing for the business, make sure to edit it.

I hope this helps.

Cheers,
Nyagoslav

 

[dnp]

Thank you so much for the thorough explanation, @Nyagoslav! I suspect the update was because of customer reviews on Yelp.

The funny thing is, I chatted with one of the GBP reps this morning, and they didn't seem to understand why the system automatically updated my category, nor did they provide a solution to get the category to stick.

They first wanted to escalate my issue to the tech team for further investigation but then offered to help me change the category back to the original within 5-7 business days lol totally nonsense! I did it myself, and it took me less than 15mins. I must say that their chat customer service isn't the best