Google just announced that they notify owners when a Google My Business Listing is suspended. Until now, you may not have known that your listing was suspended until you noticed a drop in your phone calls. It’s good news that Google will notify you. But, the email doesn’t tell you what is wrong with your listing, so it’s up to you to research it.
Common Grounds that Google My Business Listing is Suspended
There are several common reasons why a Google My Business listing is suspended. As you most people know, Google strives to maintain accuracy in GMB listings. Many mistakes are fixable in a short time. Potential mistakes that you should check and/or resolve immediately are:
- Business information (name, address and phone number) varies online. If you don’t subscribe to a service that automatically establishes consistency in your online listings, contact PUMC listing variation report. Then, you have an option to subscribe to our service or fix those variations in the report yourself.
- Same address and contact information is used for multiple businesses. Google considers each business location as a unique entity. A great example is a medical office building. It has the same street address, but each business has its own suite or office number.
- Multiple listings are found for your business. This most frequently happens when there is a discrepancy in the name or address.
Your website URL in your GMB listing is a landing page or a forwarded URL. Google expects you to link to a valid website. - Keyword stuffing or inaccurate service/procedure listings are not allowed. If Google’s algorithm flags your listing as potentially providing incorrect information to improve your search results, you may be suspended.
There are additional reasons, but the ones above are the primary ones we see for our plastic surgery and medical spa accounts. So, this is a great place to start your research.
Submit Request if Listing is Suspended
After you correct your listing, you must tell Google and request reinstatement of your account. Sometimes, reinstatement is not granted because there is still something that violates Google’s guidelines.
Consider automating your approach and get fresh eyes to evaluate your listing. PUMC is here for you when your Google My Business listing is suspended. Our marketing experts can handle online listings and reputation as well as strategy, SEO, website development and more. You choose how much help your practice needs. Contact us.