Suspension - First one in a long time

[Link Rep]

At least in Tim's case because he's following the rules, he shouldn't have to stress or worry about the possibility of it not being reinstated. I think that makes following the guidelines worthwhile, in my opinion.

Tim > Was there any other edits that were still pending when you changed the URL?

I have a totally legit GMB listing suspended and finally, after 2 weeks this is the response I got (see below). This is a restaurant that has been in business for over 10 years, it's very popular in the community and was even featured on the TV show Drive Ins, Diners and Dives with Guy Fiery.

https://hwy61roadhouse.com/

They had hundreds of reviews (real ones), hundreds of photos, posted regularly. I can not fathom why they would not be eligible. This happened shortly after I entered a short name for them (as suggested by Google). This business did everything by the book - I just don't get it.

Also, here is my case number
5-8968000026891


Hello,
Thank you for contacting Google My Business team.
We've looked at your account and it looks like your business is not eligible to display on Google Maps per our quality guidelines. Check out our guidelines for representing your business on Google to see what types of businesses are eligible to be on Google Maps.
If you have any further questions please consult the Google My Business Help Center.

Thanks,
Google My Business Support

 

[JoyHawkins]

I just do it the next time I'm working on the client, so no specific time frame.

 

[Link Rep]

In many cases, we can just express disgust over how ham-handed and clumsy Google is when they make mistakes like this. However, in these cases, the affected businesses are actually being harmed by being unreasonably and unfairly excluded from the SERPs and losing out on potential revenue for that reason.

In other words, in this case, Google is actually harming the affected businesses, not just being almost amusingly but benignly incompetent as is so often the case.

Tim, I feel like we are in the same boat, let's grab an oar and start paddling. My question is this - Would bringing some attention to this via local news stations and media help right the sinking GMB ship?

 

[Tim Colling]

My question is this - Would bringing some attention to this via local news stations and media help right the sinking GMB ship?

I think not. They must not care about this because if they did, they surely must have the technical resources to fix it. And they're too big to care about negative publicity.

Don't waste your mental energy on ideas like that. Focus on what you can control, which is certainly not Google. Be pragmatic about it.

 

[DavidH]

Hi all. I had my own personal business listing suspended well over 6 weeks ago. I wasn't bothered at first, as I was having a break, and just assumed it was coming back online, but this is now absolutely ludicrous. GMB is crucial for small extremely local service type operations like little old me.

I've tried FB and just keep getting copy and paste generic responses which sound nice but never do anything. Does anyone have a phone number that actually results in something? I can't keep hoping that I'll get reinstated, I may have to just switch to purely organic SEO and all the fun that brings.

 

[JoyHawkins]

@DavidH,

Currently every support channel will just tell you to fill in the reinstatement form. That's what chat support and phone support and social support will tell you if you contact them about it. Have you already filled in the form? Due to the number of suspended listings, they're not allowing anyone to skip the super-long-backlogged line.

 

[DavidH]

@DavidH,

Currently every support channel will just tell you to fill in the reinstatement form. That's what chat support and phone support and social support will tell you if you contact them about it. Have you already filled in the form? Due to the number of suspended listings, they're not allowing anyone to skip the super-long-backlogged line.

Thanks for the response Joy.

Almost interestingly, for the first few weeks, it didn't let me use the "proper" appeal. It just showed a blank line type of affair at the bottom of the form and didn't confirm anything had been sent - it was weird.

Then around 3 weeks ago I had access to the form "proper" and sent it, after addressing the issue (not listing as a mobile service-based business).

Nowt to do but wait I guess.

Made me a hell of a lot less flippant about just changing details on there for sure! In the words of a certain J Mitchell - "You don't know what you got 'till it's gone!"

 

[Link Rep]

I think not. They must not care about this because if they did, they surely must have the technical resources to fix it. And they're too big to care about negative publicity.

Don't waste your mental energy on ideas like that. Focus on what you can control, which is certainly not Google. Be pragmatic about it.

So an update - no email or response from Google outside of the first one saying my appeal was rejected. Then out of nowhere a new listing shows up - I claimed it and client is back online.
*** All their reviews, events, photos and posts from the prior listing are gone?
THings that make you go "Hmmm?"

 

[Conor Treacy]

Here's my update for the night;

****** SUCCESS ******

Finally, we are now 100% back to normal for our final client.

The client logged into the Google.com/business, and under the HELP area, there was a phone number to call. So he called that, left his number for a call back, and a few minutes later, someone called him (amazing!).

The person said "I'm not seeing a submission form" (even though we filled one out & the client tried to, but got the notice that a form was already filled). So the Googler sent a link to a new form, the client filled it out, updated in the notes that he had swapped out photos, and the Googler instructed him to enter "I have spoken to a Google rep". This appears to be one of the keys to kick it up the chain.

The next thing was the Googler changed the URL for the site from "Website Domains Names & Hosting | Domain.com" to "Website Domains Names & Hosting | Domain.com" which they said should always contain the WWW (even though the site doesn't show with WWW).

The client was instructed that someone from Google would re-call him to verify info. This was on Friday. No word from Google over the weekend or on Monday. Today (Tuesday), we received an email saying that the account was unlocked and no further action was needed (generic form response email via Google).

Business is now back in the maps - 6 weeks later!

SO, did the address have something to do with it (adding WWW), or did someone on the phone kick it up the chain? Unknown. But if you're having issues still, and you don't have your domain listed as WWW, maybe that'll help?

 

[Lanerizz]

I have a client now in week 5 of suspension. I submitted the Business License 4 weeks ago, made all changes requested at the same time. I somehow have three different case numbers. I just keep getting told to wait.

They of course say to not submit multiple forms but at what point do I submit another just for any sort of hope of anything ever happening? Maybe my request got lost in the shuffle?

 

[JoyHawkins]

You might want to call Google to see if they can confirm they received it?

 

[Lanerizz]

I've called nearly every other day, I swear I've confirmed that but it doesn't hurt to try again I suppose and lead with that question...

 

[Tim Colling]

I have two listings that have been suspended for five or six weeks. One of them finally received a response to the reinstatement request with a nonsensical assertion that the listing was not eligible for Google Maps. That's completely wrong.

Today I called the GMB support number as was suggested by someone else here in the LSF. I did not have the same luck as he did, but the support tech DID tell me something I did not know before now. She suggested that I reply to the email that we received that denied the reinstatement request, rather than file a second reinstatement request. She also suggested sending one or more photos showing the location with signage, etc.

I will try that, and we will see what happens.

If her suggestion is valid, maybe that will be a way to more effectively pursue the problem with Google than just filing a new reinstatement request.

 

[DavidH]

Excuse the language, but god damn this is a complete and utter shambles. I didn't have many reviews on my listing (and getting those was a PITA), but I'm starting to think that it may just be easier to start afresh and put this frustrating saga down to experience.

Everyone who has had success seems to have had it in different ways, and when those ways are replicated, other people get nowhere.

Does anyone know if starting another listing with the same address will flag up any potential banana skins on their side?

 

[DavidH]

I think not. They must not care about this because if they did, they surely must have the technical resources to fix it. And they're too big to care about negative publicity.

Don't waste your mental energy on ideas like that. Focus on what you can control, which is certainly not Google. Be pragmatic about it.

Best advice I've seen so far. I'm hitting the streets, old school. I'm refusing to let this monolith wreck my income and then sit tight and pretend it's doing everything it can when it clearly isn't.

 

[Tim Colling]

Today I called the GMB support number as was suggested by someone else here in the LSF. I did not have the same luck as he did, but the support tech DID tell me something I did not know before now. She suggested that I reply to the email that we received that denied the reinstatement request, rather than file a second reinstatement request.

Here's an update: that Google rep's recommendation was completely WRONG.

When we tried to reply to the email in which "local-help" said that our suspension would not be lifted because the listing is "not eligible for display on Google Maps", the email immediately bounced, with this information:

local-help@google.com​

7:21 PM (3 minutes ago)​

to siteadmin1​

​

Looks like you tried to email the Google My Business Support team. Unfortunately, we did not receive your message because the email address you used is not in service.​

​

To help us resolve your issue, go to the Google My Business Help Center. If you have an open case with us, please respond on it so that we can help resolve your issue.​

​

We look forward to hearing from you.​

​

Regards,​

The Google My Business Support team​

So, in other words, she either was incompetent or else she lied to get me off the phone.

 

[MonicaH]

Nope: we never received a response to the initial request, nor did we receive a notice of the suspension in the first place.

Sadly, it's beginning to be a close call between Google and Yelp as to which is the more high-handed, arbitrary and capricious in the way it treats businesses.

Tim, that's exactly the issue I'm dealing with right now. It's been over a month since the account was suspended for "quality violations" after I changed the URL to the new domain name (which, in hindsight, may have been a bad idea - although I'm not sure what else I could've done since the old domain is no longer active). We never got an initial confirmation of the appeal and every subsequent attempt to contact Google has returned a canned response saying "reply to the initial confirmation". So we're stuck in a never-ending wait while the client's business loses customers (and the client blames me). And, btw, I used the client's account when making the URL change. At least I take some comfort in knowing I'm not the only one in this situation...

 

[Tim Colling]

We never got an initial confirmation of the appeal and every subsequent attempt to contact Google has returned a canned response saying "reply to the initial confirmation".

Yep. Catch 22.

Arrggghhhh....

 

[keyserholiday]

I have asked Google to fix this and start sending out confirmations acknowledging that they have received the reinstatement request.

 

[HoosierBuff]

So, what if I just created a new listing for my client? Would that work?