Question on Business Moved or Relocated

[Don Berthiaume]

I've got a client in Colorado with a music store that has already closed at one location and will be reopening at it's new location right before Thanksgiving. I've informed them of the challenge ahead of them NAP wise even though it is only the address that is changing (they were at the old location for years....)

I'm trying to explain to my client how things like this do not happen in a vacuum, or simply a switch that gets turned on or off. And while I suggested they get started on this process as soon as possible, they think they will be able to "time it" so that their new location will begin appearing in the pack about the same time they actually open their new doors.

I'm thinking just putting in the new listing, getting it verified, etc might be at least the 10 days I think Google says it takes to get "the card" back. Though I was graciously expedited by Google on another recent verification but I think that might not be the case for this type of change.

How long does it take Google to remove a closed listing anyway? Has anyone had a similar recent experience they might be able to share? Will the current state of the Google Battlefield add to what used to be a "typical period of time" for something like an old address, GP/G+L page to be removed and a new one added?

Am I also correct in thinking that while the old listing would be 'deleted' via the Google Places account that any new listing would simply be created within G+L? This listing had not yet been merged with any G+L account.

And let me add a few other twists and turns, if I may...

• Not only has this store moved, it has also changed ownership.
• The old GP account was associated with / tied into the old owners gmail account. So any "new listing" creation will need to be with an account associated with the new owner.

In light of the merging of GP and G+L, is there anyone out there who can provide some insight as to the proper sequence of steps that should be taken?

Am I missing anything? I feel that I am...

Thanks

 

[Linda Buquet]

Hi Don I have lots to share but no time. Going into training session for rest of day, gone tonight. Will try to circle back on this tomorrow.

One thing to note you can't do listing for a business that isn't open yet. So timing in how you do things is critical.

Ineligible Business Models

Businesses that are under construction or that have not yet opened to the public are not eligible for a listing on Google Places.

Anyone else feel free to jump in with tips in the meantime.

 

[Colan Nielsen]

How long does it take Google to remove a closed listing anyway? Has anyone had a similar recent experience they might be able to share?

Hi Don,

I have seen listings that are marked closed/relocated go away within a couple weeks. On the other hand, I have a client that has an old listing that has been marked closed/relocated for several months now and it's still hanging around.

What's REALLY odd is that it not only comes up in searches in Google Maps, it also ranks when searching keywords in it's city...

 

[Linda Buquet]

Closed listings are not supposed to go away by design. The standard scenario is 'supposed' to be they will only rank for direct name searches and not KW searches, so your example is unique Colan.

I think it's like this. If I search for a specific restaurant not knowing they've closed down, Google does not just want them gone from the index, because if just can't find them in Google then it appears to be a bad or missing search result. If I'm looking for that business, Google wants to show me they do indeed have a record of that business and then inform me that it's now closed. (Or possibly has moved - now with the new improved label.)

Gotta run, more on the other Qs tomorrow...