Google is Limiting GMB functionality due to the COVID-19 virus. Here is the introduction from their official announcement.
During the unprecedented COVID-19 situation, we are taking steps to protect the health of our team members and reduce the need for people to come into our offices. As a result, there may be some temporary limitations and delays in support as we prioritize critical services.
Our current focus is on the quality and reliability of information on Google Search and Maps. We want to ensure users and business owners have access to essential features like whether the business is open or has special hours. Learn about best practices for affected businesses, and what you can do to keep your customers informed.
Google will prioritize reviews for edits critical to health-related businesses. At this time, they will also prioritize reviews for open and closed states, special hours, temporary closures, business descriptions, and business attributes edits for other verified businesses.
Their support team will manually review new listings, claims, and verifications for critical health-related businesses. While they prioritize these critical services, users should expect a delay for publication of new listings, claims, and verifications for other types of businesses to Google Search and Maps.
New reviews, review replies, and new Q&A will be unavailable during this time.
A list of things that we are seeing directly or shared by reliable sources that are different than normal currently.
Google is allowing businesses like restaurants to add “delivery available” or “takeout available” to the business name. This is normally not allowed per the GMB guidelines. Brands that can take advantage of this flexibility should consider doing so given the emphasis the business name has on map/local search rankings.
There are many reports on the GMB forum about businesses not able to add descriptions. However, LocalClarity is not currently recording these challenges.
There are many reports on the GMB forum about businesses having Posts rejected that don’t have violations in them. This seems, at least initially, to be isolated.
Google has updated the GMB Portal to allow businesses to mark locations as “temporarily closed”. This is what the option looks like in the portal and how it presents in desktop knowledge panel (it has been active in Italy for the last two weeks). We have requested that this choice be made available as an API control, but in the meantime, the only way to set the designation is individually in the GMB portal.
Google has shut off the ability for businesses to receive new reviews. This includes reviews left via Local Services ad listings. If a user goes to leave a review, it appears to work as normal but the review doesn’t show up anywhere. Based on the flow of data (see dashboard chart below), it looks like the reviews stopped flowing midday on March 20th. We don’t yet know if these “held reviews” will eventually be released or delete.
Review responses posted by the business owner are not publishing.
Google has shut off the ability for businesses to receive new reviews. This includes reviews left via Local Services ad listings. If a user goes to leave a review, it appears to work as normal but the review doesn’t show up anywhere.
The Questions and Answers section on Google has been completely removed from listings.
Photos that are added by users to a business listing are not showing live.
Many edits made in the GMB dashboard and via API are pending. Updates for hours, attributes, and business descriptions are not being prioritized.
GMB phone support and chat support no longer work. The only way to contact GMB is to send an email form.
Google has removed the API restriction that prevented bulk creation and management for Google Posts. All businesses should take advantage of this new flexibility to share updates.
We are strongly encouraging all customers to focus on the core searcher experience to make absolutely certain that every location’s knowledge panel is a strong representation of the brand.
Brands and agencies should be looking to update each location’s descriptions share critical updates Here are a few examples of businesses demonstrating best-in-class information management in a crisis by strategically leveraging the Description field.
Posts are now populating the UPDATES navigation in the Google Knowledge Panel mobile presence. Now, more than ever, Posts are an exceptional vehicle for timely customer engagement. Here are a few great examples:
Make certain that all core availability information is accurate across all listings. We are seeing an incredible increase in calls and clicks for locations. Make certain that customers have a path towards resolution.
Now’s the time to review all possible categories and attributes for improved search discovery. Virtually all brands and agencies have an opportunity to secure more local and map impressions for long-tail searches.
Please let us know if you have questions about how best to set your location details or create Google Posts.
