Fighting spam on Google Maps

[Jason_Taylor]

"Suggest an edit" on Google Maps works occasionally and so does Google's Redressal Form. Sending a DM to @GoogleMyBiz on Twitter does too. But it seems like the vast majority of spammy businesses that I report, go unnoticed by Google. I'd really appreciate hearing from some other SEOs on how they remove crap from the map, with better results. Thanks.

[Ben_Fisher]

So there are a few points to clarify here.

1. You cannot report spam on social to GMB anymore.
2. Your Local Guide level will not impact your results, it is all about the quality of edits. (look at your ratio of applied/not applied)
3. The turnaround on sam removal is 1 -2 weeks. Anything not removed has been either missed or deemed valid. (Submit it again)
4. You can't submit spam to the GMB community, it will be removed due to privacy concerns.

Check out this article I wrote on getting stellar results from spam fighting https://www.brightlocal.com/blog/how-to-use-googles-spam-redressal-form-to-level-the-local-playing-field/

[Jason_Taylor]

No, I haven't reported anything to the Google Help forum in a while. Got a link?

[MiriamEllis]

Good follow-up questions, Jason. I did the work in that article from a non-Google Local Guide account, so it would not be biased in any way. I also did all of the reporting myself, without asking for any backup support from folks suggesting additional edits, though that technique can sometimes be helpful. So, in this case, I don't believe my success was unusual or based on some unique factor.

Like I said, many Google processes are running really slowly right now. Have you reported the spam to the Google Help forum?

[Jason_Taylor]

Miriam,

Thanks for sharing the two articles. I'm curious to know what your Google Local Guide Level is?  In your Moz article, it appears you had very good results. Currently my guide level is a 5 and I'm thinking that has something to do with why I don't see the kinds of results you're seeing. Also, I am pretty much a team of one. Do you have a team of others who also click the "suggest an edit" button when you've identified spam?

[MiriamEllis]

Hi Jason,

Good topic! The pandemic has resulted in lowered responsiveness from Google in many areas, so that's one thing to keep in mind right now. Persistence is the best strategy for fighting entrenched local spam. You sometimes have to report things repeatedly, and when that doesn't work, if you uncover what appears to be a large network of spam, publicity can sometimes move Google to action when nothing else will.  Here are a couple of good articles, in case you've not seen them:

https://moz.com/blog/simple-spam-fighting

https://www.sterlingsky.ca/ultimate-guide-fighting-spam-google-maps/

But you are so right that Google doesn't have a realistic approach to managing spam in their index. The problem is large, ongoing, and poorly addressed. Good luck!