Moz Q&A is closed.
After more than 13 years, and tens of thousands of questions, Moz Q&A closed on 12th December 2024. Whilst we’re not completely removing the content - many posts will still be possible to view - we have locked both new posts and new replies. More details here.
Issue in "Suggest an Edit" feature of Google My Business
-
"Suggest an Edit" feature of Google My Business is allowing the competitors to change your business details, that too without your prior permission!
I have put together a piece on the issue we faced and you can review the same here:
What are your thoughts on the same and what should be the right solution?
-
Hi Miriam,
Thanks for the link, I will report this incorrect edits to the Google My Business forum.
Thank you so much for your help.
Regards,
Varun
-
Hi Varun,
While you can't disable the suggest an edit feature, you can report incorrect edits to the Google My Business forum:
https://www.en.advertisercommunity.com/t5/Google-My-Business/ct-p/GMB
Be sure you give the complete details of the listing, the history of the edit that was made, and anything else you can think of that would help. Cross your fingers that a Top Contributor will take a look at your post and help you. Hope this helps!
-
Hi Miriam Ellis,
Thank you so much for your response.
I totally agree with you that "Suggest an Edit" is Google's feature and not a mistake. But editing done by anonymous get published without owner's permission is something could be an issue as it gives everyone the authority to destroy anyone's business as my friend had faced huge down fall in traffic and ranking as well.
In my opinion, anonymous changes should not get live until the owner approves them manually.
In my case, the changes made by anonymous were incorrect and most probably made by any of the competitors. The incorrect information got live without my friend's approval.
Considering this my question is "Is it right in Google's part to allow anyone to edit business information without owner's permission", is there any way out to prevent this?"
-
Hi Varun,
Suggest An Edit is not a mistake on Google's part, as you mention in your blog post, but rather, a feature. Here are some links for further reading on this:
Hope these help!
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Does Google prioritise local domains?
I'm in Australia targeting Australian traffic. I often see US domains in the Google SERPS and wonder if that indicates an opportunity for local (Australian) domains to rank?
Local Listings | | Lazeh0 -
Can having a google business listing harm a company selling services globally?
Hi, We are a SAAS platform offering cloud based solution for educators. We had a google business listing in India and recently added one for US as well. Our keywords rank significantly better in India than in US. Is it a good idea to remove these business listing? Also, what could be other factors that impact GEO SEO rankings for a online company like ours?
Local Listings | | WizIQMarketing0 -
Radius Size around GMB location for google local search
We are a digital marketing agency Our clients are (virtually all) retail automotive dealerships. We compete in various market places coast to coast (USA). Since Google puts retail automotive dealerships under Local SEO umbrella, is it known ( published ) how large is the radius around my client's Google My Business rooftop's address? How wide is their search 'reach' according to Google? Asked another way, in a triangular, three SEO geo area, with one city being at the epicenter of the population dispersion, and my client, versus my client's competitors being different distances from where the majority of the population emanates from, all other SERP factors being equal (assumption) between the two competitors, how far is each clients REACH from a Local Search standpoint. Is this known? Published by Google. ONE example: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/BMW+of+South+Albany,+U.S.+9W,+Glenmont,+NY/42.7662693,-73.8138088/@42.6727121,-73.7993527,12z/data=!4m9!4m8!1m5!1m1!1s0x89dde0fe8829c405:0xd915fb9b3b60bf33!2m2!1d-73.7973301!2d42.589211!1m0!3e0
Local Listings | | GaryT_SEO1 -
Yahoo Local Business Listings Hijacked
We are a solar company with three locations. When claiming our business listings on Yahoo (Yext), we noticed that one of them had already been claimed. The name of our company and our phone number were changed to a lead generation company. Upon further inspection, this company has hijacked hundreds of listings throughout the state and the country. To see the extent of it, go here:
Local Listings | | SS.Digital
https://search.yahoo.com/local/s;_ylt=A0SO8odHUOZZdVUAYwBXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTByNWU4cGh1BGNvbG8DZ3ExBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzYw--;_ylc=X1MDMTM1MTE5NTExOARfcgMyBGdwcmlkA3loNXdiQlJqVE9HMm9MdXlUSklLdEEEbl9zdWdnAzEEb3JpZ2luA3NlYXJjaC55YWhvby5jb20EcG9zAzAEcHFzdHIDBHBxc3RybAMEcXN0cmwDMjIEcXVlcnkDc29sYXIgY29ubmVjdG9yIGlydmluZQR0X3N0bXADMTUwODI4MTk4MA--?fr2=sb-top-search&p=solar+connector+irvine&fr=yfp-t- Or, just search in Yahoo's Local search section for "Solar Connector Irvine" or pretty much any city in California. On every hijacked listing, the company name is changed to "Solar Connector" and the phone number is changed to a unique local number, but all the other information is left the same. Now when people think they are calling our business, they get a shady lead gen company instead. I have submitted a request to Yext and have tried (and failed) to find a support phone number. This is a widespread, blatant fraud, and I would hope they would have interest in fixing it. Solar Connector (fake name) is associated with SolarAmerica.com, which is run by Clean Energy Experts, which was purchased by Sunrun (a publicly traded company). My specific question is, does anyone have any insight on the best method for getting help from Yahoo/Yext? Other than through their "help portal" on the website. I need to speak with a human being.1 -
HELP! Google Local dropped!
I noticed that my Google Local page does not show in any search results anymore. Looking at Moz Local, it appears that I had 250 views on August 30th and 0 after that. It just dropped overnight. I looked at Google My Business and I noticed that I had a duplicate listing (no idea where it came from). It wasn't verified though. I deleted that. I also noticed that my address has been changed to Drive instead Dr. I was very careful in making it the same everywhere, but it changed without me changing it. Perhaps someone so kindly "suggested an edit" and I didn't see that happen. Anyone have any ideas. My organic search ranking is still strong. #3 for most search terms. And we have a very strong Google Local reviews. I mean, it even shows business that have been permanently closed over me!!! And we have photos, great reviews, and regularly post to Google+. I seriously need some help. I am a small business owner that does all of my own SEO because I can't afford a good SEO. 😞
Local Listings | | CalicoKitty20000 -
Should I change my local listing Service type from Brick and Mortar to Service Area in Google? And will it affect my ranking in a negative manner?
Currently my company Big Boy Bail Bonds, Inc is ranking very well for the city it is located and, currently service type is brick and mortar. But my Company does not only service people at our location but we service the entire county of Los Angeles. And I wanted to know if you would advise me on weather I should change the service type from brick and morter to service area. and if doing that would effect me in a negative manner when it came to my ranking? Plz advice Thank you in advance.
Local Listings | | LittleDog1 -
Will changing my business location affect my ranking for localised searches in my original area?
I run a mobile outdoor personal training service in London, UK (i.e. no bricks and mortar gym). Or, rather, my business is in London (all my clients and the freelance trainers that work for me) but I'm personally due to move out to the county of Suffolk. As I work from a home office and my company's registered address is my home, that means I have to inform Companies House and various government agencies that the company has moved. Does this mean: a) I also must tell Google the company has moved, and; b) if I do will Google start to see my website as being for a Suffolk-based company? I really don't want this to happen: my clientele are mostly in London., I still want to market to Londoners. And if I want to expand the areas covered by my company, Suffolk is not high on my list. You'll excuse me if this is a simple question! Thanks for any help you could give
Local Listings | | fionadoggett0 -
How to show on Google Maps for specific areas close to me?
Hi there, Im wondering the best approach to get more consistent listings for google map searches (the pins on the map) for a business.
Local Listings | | Ampweb
Here is a small overview. My client provides storage services in London. His business is very local as customers will only want to use them if they are from surrounding local suburbs within the City. His business is showing on the map for some of the suburbs close to his business, but it does not actually show when you search for the closest location (suburb) that his business is located in, or other local suburbs. What would be the best approach to ensure google shows a pin for his search results when users search for all close-by suburbs to his business address? Is this possible or will it just happen over time? He already has landing pages on his website for each of his suburbs that he is trying to target, eg: "Self Storage Camden".0