A European law went full effect that Google will now notify businesses if their local listings have been suspended. Businesses would have had to log into their Google Business Account to find out if their listings had been suspended or noticed a change in their call volume, web traffic, or conversions. A Google My Business expert, Ben Fisher says “Every day a listing is down, opportunity and revenue are lost,” he continues, “The suspension [usually] happened days before it was discovered.” In addition to a potential loss of calls, traffic, or revenue, it often created “a feeling of betrayal when [business owners] would discover a suspension.”
Under the new law and policy
Should your local listing be suspended, business owners will be notified by an email, however, they will not offer any additional information on why it has been suspended, which is a little frustrating. Google will, however, provide links to their guidelines and Google My Business reinstatement request form for Google to review.
Types of suspension
According to Ben Fisher, there are two types of Google My Business suspensions, a “hard suspension” will have the business removed from search and Google Maps which is the most common one. A “soft suspension” will allow your listing to stay online, but unfortunately, the account owner, will not be able to make adjustments such as update hours, reply back to reviews, create Google posts, and so on. It is to believe the reason for Google’s explanation for its logic for suspension is to prevent people from making fake accounts and spam Google Maps.
Why this is important
Although it is frustrating to know the reason why for local listings suspension, we should take this procedure as a step forward as being notified by email will allow us to tackle the issue right away, especially if you are an owner of multiple locations.
If this has happened to you, do not panic. This can be typically resolved within 72 hours, the worst thing you could do is removing the listing and starting all over again. You will lose a lot of credibilities you’ve worked so hard for. If you’re a local business owner who is struggling to get found in your town, consider speaking to the SEO experts at Boston Web Marketing on how we can get you to where you need to be. Contact today to learn more about our services!