October 14, 2022 - While having a Google Business Profile (GBP) is a must for boosting your insurance agency’s search engine rankings, having an account can come with complications.
Your GBP can become suspended if you’re not adhering to Google’s guidelines. It is also possible for your account to face suspension due to an internal problem at Google. Even more frustrating is that Google often won’t provide any clear reason for why your account may have been suspended — leaving you to troubleshoot things on your own.
Check out these possible reasons your GBP may be suspended, the types of suspensions you may face, and how to resolve any issues that arise.
Potential Reasons for GBP Suspensions
While some GBP suspensions may be the result of a bug, some common reasons a GBP may be suspended include:
- Mistakes or variations of your business name online: Make sure your business name is free of typos and appears consistently across the web. Your business name should also match the signage of your storefront.
- Recent changes to contact information and websites: This usually can be fixed by re-verifying your business.
- Your contact information doesn’t match your directory listings: Make sure your contact info is consistent across different listings.
- You have multiple listings for the same business or location: You can’t have more than one listing for the same business and location.
- Keyword stuffing: While you should add keywords to your business description, stuffing keywords to artificially boost your ranking can end in a suspended profile.
- Your site is linking to a landing page or forwarding URL: Always make sure you’re linking directly to your website.
Types of Suspensions You May See
While your profile can be suspended for a variety of reasons, there are also a few different types of suspensions that can affect your account.
- Soft suspension: this may happen if your business has been labeled as unverified and your listing will be temporarily hidden. While people will still be able to view your listing, you can’t publish changes on your profile or address reviews until you can reverify your account. If this ever happens, you should see a notification of the suspension when you log in and instructions for fixing it.
- Hard suspension: When this happens, it means that Google has determined your listing violates their guidelines or is ineligible. This is more serious since your listing will be completely removed from GBP. When this happens, you won’t be able to log into your account and will receive a removal notification.
- Manager account suspension: If you’re a listing manager on your account, this type of suspension won’t allow you to manage any listings in GBP. Although you’ll still be able to see your listings when you’re logged into your account, you won’t be able to make any edits.
- Owner account suspension: This means your entire account will be removed from GBP, including all listings and reviews. While you may be able to successfully reinstate your account and listings, it’s possible that you may also lose your reviews.
What To Do If You Face a Suspension
If you face a suspension, you will have to fill out a reinstatement form. Make sure to fix any potential issues if possible, and review GBP’s terms of service and guidelines to ensure you aren’t in violation. Depending on the severity of the issue, Google can take up to several days to several weeks to review your reinstatement form and make a decision.
Thankfully, at Melon Local, we are happy to manage your GBP and can help you resolve account suspensions. If you’d like to learn more about our digital marketing services, sign up for a demo today!