Margaret Ornsby
Local Search Expert
- Joined
- Jul 22, 2013
- Messages
- 510
- Reaction score
- 238
Wow. Just had a shattering 40 minutes on the phone with support.
Short and long of it is this -
Apparently last week an update was rolled out which disallows service area businesses to have any more than one listing. Not per location, not per city/state/whatever. Just one listing. ( I missed that somehow - must have blinked or slept or something...)
Here are the sentences in the guidelines I believe are being enforced -
"Businesses that operate in a service area, as opposed to a single location, should not create a page for every city they service.
Businesses that operate in a service area should create one page for the central office or location and designate service areas"
I swear I haven't seen those sentences before. Does anyone have a screenshot from say a month ago so I can check to see if I'm crazy?
What's so incredibly awful for this one customer in particular, is Google has disabled the primary service area page for this business with the explanation of "malicious activity" and the page is ineligible to be reactivated. That's it. End of story.
Fortunately for me the support rep has understood the "wha????!" in my response and is asking for further clarification. Whether we get it or not remains to be seen.
I'll be damned if I have the slightest idea what could have triggered this "malicious activity" accusation. AFAIK the listing hasn't been touched for a long time. And without any ability to appeal, this is guilty until proven innocent on a page that has been fine for years. Okay my feelings are hurt, I admit it. Deep breaths.
I totally support Google's desire to get rid of spam. And I am endlessly frustrated, as are you all, that so many businesses get away with spammy listings even though listings are constantly being reported with all the supporting evidence needed. Yet the review team still deny the listing has a problem.
Too many of the big providers are coming together at the moment with the same sorts of attitude to service area businesses for this to be a coincidence. Apple maps, Phil mentioned Yelp just recently updating their policy, and now this edict from Google.
This does not bode well at all for genuine service area businesses in local search.
Short and long of it is this -
Apparently last week an update was rolled out which disallows service area businesses to have any more than one listing. Not per location, not per city/state/whatever. Just one listing. ( I missed that somehow - must have blinked or slept or something...)
Here are the sentences in the guidelines I believe are being enforced -
"Businesses that operate in a service area, as opposed to a single location, should not create a page for every city they service.
Businesses that operate in a service area should create one page for the central office or location and designate service areas"
I swear I haven't seen those sentences before. Does anyone have a screenshot from say a month ago so I can check to see if I'm crazy?
What's so incredibly awful for this one customer in particular, is Google has disabled the primary service area page for this business with the explanation of "malicious activity" and the page is ineligible to be reactivated. That's it. End of story.
Fortunately for me the support rep has understood the "wha????!" in my response and is asking for further clarification. Whether we get it or not remains to be seen.
I'll be damned if I have the slightest idea what could have triggered this "malicious activity" accusation. AFAIK the listing hasn't been touched for a long time. And without any ability to appeal, this is guilty until proven innocent on a page that has been fine for years. Okay my feelings are hurt, I admit it. Deep breaths.
I totally support Google's desire to get rid of spam. And I am endlessly frustrated, as are you all, that so many businesses get away with spammy listings even though listings are constantly being reported with all the supporting evidence needed. Yet the review team still deny the listing has a problem.
Too many of the big providers are coming together at the moment with the same sorts of attitude to service area businesses for this to be a coincidence. Apple maps, Phil mentioned Yelp just recently updating their policy, and now this edict from Google.
This does not bode well at all for genuine service area businesses in local search.