Service area business has no findable Place ID

[Caro]

Hi, I'm hoping someone can help me. I'm trying to use a WordPress plugin that displays Google Reviews. I can't get it to work because apparently it requires a Place ID to work, and Google is returning no data for businesses that don't have an actual location. I have tried the trick of inspecting the "review" button on GMB and getting the Place ID that way, and it tells me it's ChIJNUe0Fbpb1moRN4qX_7L0Ddw.

The plugin developer says:
"The plugin uses a Google Places API to show your reviews. For some time now, this Google API returns an empty answer for area/virtual places (without a physical address). I checked your Google Places ID and the answer is also empty"

In GMB we have listed the address but hidden it, and show instead the service areas. Given it's for a plumber, I would rather not display his home address.

Any ideas?

 

[djbaxter]

I haven't tried it recently but as of September 2019 this was working:

Can't Find Your Google Places ID? Learn The Trick To Find Any Place ID - Launch 2 Success

Can't find your Google Place ID? Most tutorials just tell you to search for your business on Google's Place ID Finder, and assume you'll find it. But

www.launch2success.com

 

[Caro]

Thanks, yes that's how I found the ID in my post, but the Places ID API still returns empty so the plugin doesn't work.

It's a mystery!

 

[djbaxter]

From the plugin instructions:

Instruction: how to create Google Places API key

1. Go to your Google Console

2. Click 'Create Project' or 'Select Project' button

3. Create new project or select existing

4. On the project page click 'ENABLE APIS AND SERVICES'

5. Type 'Places API' in the search area

6. Select the first result 'Places API' and click 'ENABLE' button

7. On the 'Places API' page select 'Credential' tab and 'Create credential' / 'API key' option

8. Copy created API key, paste to this setting and save

 

[Colan Nielsen]

I use this chrome extension to get a listings place ID (brick and mortar or SAB) - Company Information in Google

Install the extension, pull up the listing on maps or search and click the extension to reveal the place ID.

 

[matt_vt]

The most reliable way I've found to get the Place ID is to use the inspect tool in Chrome (or other browsers too).

1) Search the business name on Google so you get the knowledge panel (you may need to use a private browsing window/incognito window if you're logged into GMB already)
2) In the knowledge panel, right-click on the 'Write a review' button near the bottom of the knowledge panel and click 'Inspect' if you're in Chrome. It's named something similar in others as well.
3) It will open a developer console where you can view the HTML of the page. Within the code, you'll see the HTML that makes up that button. Within that, you'll see a value called 'data-pid', that's your place id.

It shouldn't matter if you're a service business or not, it'll be in the code.

 

[Caro]

Thanks Matt, yes I did try that and got the ID ok, but it still didn't work with the plugin, I think because although the business has GMB it's not listed on Maps. As it turns out I ended up forking out for the paid version of the plugin and it works a treat - apparently the free and paid versions use different google apis?! Odd...but at least it works now!