I’ll likely never outrank Google for keywords like “Google Business Profile suspension” or “Google Business Profile suspended,” but there’s a good reason why you’re reading this post, and not their cookie-cutter reinstatement guide.
Today, you’ll learn what actually happened to your Google Business Profile and what to do about it.
Coming from someone who has dealt with a lot of suspensions and Google support, I’ll give you some tips here that you won’t hear on most SEO blogs, which also provide cookie-cutter replies to your question – how do you reinstate a Google Business Profile?
So, let’s get into it!
~7 Minute Read
Quick Answer
Google Business Profiles can be suspended for a lot of reasons, including policy violations, suspicious activity outside Google Business Profile, wrong information, competitor assault, and algorithmic errors. You bring your profile back on Maps by providing evidence of your business existence, and pushing their support until you get a response from an actual human, not AI bot.
Why Your Google Business Profile Got Suspended?
There’s a plethora of potential reasons why your Google Business Profile got suspended.
- Post-verification suspension
It’s not a new thing for Google to suspend a profile right after it has been verified.
If they find a new company suspicious, they will suspend you and force you to reinstate so that they could look at your business documents. More on that later.
Unfortunately, there’s no way around this as a new business. I got my own SEO Google Business Profile suspended TWICE after verification in the same week, and my category is not considered as “spammy” as others.
- Changing a BIG piece of information about your business – name, category, and address. Call these “tier 1” edits.
The reason why these are so risky to change is because they impact the rankings the most. Just adding a keyword to your business name on Google Maps (you’ve likely seen this with your competition) can rank your Google Business Profile on Google Maps a few positions higher.
Didn’t know this before? Well, now you do. The same goes for the address and a category.
- Fake business information.
It should go without saying that fake information should not be used.
- Untrusted Gmail account. Most businesses manage their Google Business Profiles (GBPs) with a Gmail account. However, that account might be the reason for a suspension.
If you’ve received “suspicious activity” as a reason for suspension, this could be the trigger.
Google tracks your entire web activity, not just what you do inside the dashboard. If they don’t trust the account itself (not necessarily the GBP), they will suspend you.
Frequent IP/device changes, an untrusted IP address, adding and removing too many owners and managers, trying to verify new locations inside the account, not “warming up” a new Gmail, and other reasons could lead to this.
- Competition attack.
This could be considered the opposite of a previous point.
If your competitors have no ethical boundaries and are using a VERY trusted Google account, usually a Local Guide account, they can mark your business as fake or spammy and get you off Google Maps.
- Untrusted Owner/Manager. You, as a business owner, have a “Primary Owner” status in GBP. But another Owner or a Manager may experience reason #2 with their own Gmail, leading to suspension.
Review your Managers’ activities as well to get to the bottom of this.
- Too many edits at the same time.
I usually follow the framework of not making more than three GBP edits in one day (so, by “edits,” I mean changing information, not posting, FAQs, and reviews).
I also do not make more than one “tier 1” edit in the same week.
Maybe you tried to make multiple “tier 1” edits all at once.
- Algorithmic failure.
Yes, Google may have randomly suspended you. No legit reason, just an algorithmic failure.
You are likely pissed off right now, which is completely understandable.
But in Google’s defense, it’s very tough for them.
Google has to deal with all of the threats to their user experience algorithmically, and these threats include spam, fraud, competitor manipulation, and so much more.
This means there’s room for mistakes.
- Making edits during Google updates.
This could also be considered algo failure, but if you make an edit during core updates and other types of updates Google makes every couple of months, you could be suspended.
The reason is that Google is usually making massive changes during these updates, and any slight discrepancy could trigger them to shut you down.
To know when Google is making a huge update, follow their Google Search Central Twitter account.
Should I Just Make a New Google Business Profile?
No, and here’s why:
- You have likely lost reviews, which are your brand’s most valuable asset, at least on Google Maps. Better to struggle with Google’s support than with customers, begging them for a new review.
- If you try to verify a new GBP under the same Gmail account, it might flag the account for good.
- Reinstating a GBP is not as hard, and verifying a new account might just be a bigger hassle in the end. Plus, you run the risk of post-verification suspension, putting you back at square one.
So, do not quit just yet. Here are some tips to bring your profile back on Maps.
How to Reinstate a Google Business Profile
🥷 Ninja Reinstatement Tip! 🥷
Make a professional-looking website with high-resolution photos of you and your team, at your business address, ideally also with your branding visible on walls, vehicles, signage, and other places. Have "trust" pages like Our Team with team members' LinkedIn profiles linked and Our Certifications/Licensing with images of accreditation documentation uploaded. This can help make your company look as legit as possible. If you didn't have a website listed on your GBP before, now is the perfect time to add it.
Before you file an appeal, know that you will most likely have just one good shot. After that, each new attempt will be much more difficult.
Google has recently made changes to limit appeal attempts to just one. For me, this worked in my favor because my appeal was answered in a matter of days.
So, it might be the same for you.
Make Sure All Google Business Profile Information is Correct
Now is the ideal time to check if there’s ANYTHING wrong with your profile:
- Double-check your “tier 1” information
Keywords in the business name?
Wrong address?
Uncomplete address? (check if you’ve added a suite number)
Fake address? PO box (not allowed)? Coworking/virtual office address? (grey area; some companies get away with it)
- Remove excessive keywords
If you’ve gotten loose with your Google Business Profile optimization and added too many keywords in your business description, services, and other fields, fix that.
How do you know? Well, you’ll know. Just ask yourself if a normal human would talk like that or read that without any raised eyebrows.
- Check Gmail accounts associated with the GBP
Any Owners or Managers not supposed to be there? Get rid of them.
Prepare Your Paperwork
Checked everything aforementioned? Good, now you’re ready to go.
Google will ask for two of the following, so prepare the best documents you can:
- Business formation letter from the government or an annual filling
- Business license document
- The most recent utility bill under your BUSINESS name, not personal. This is where companies based at residential addresses might struggle. Google wants to see if the business name and address listed on GBP match the ones on the utility bill (water, electricity, internet, etc.)
- Rental invoice from your landlord (under your business name)
- Insurance documentation, if applicable
I personally provided a company formation letter and a letter from a local tax authority, and it worked.
🥷 Ninja Reinstatement Tip! 🥷
To maximize the chance of success with your appeal, make sure you have listings on huge, trusted websites like Facebook, LinkedIn, Yelp, YellowPages, BBB, Nextdoor, and others with correct information - the same information listed on your GBP - and wait until those listings are indexed on Google. Mention your personal name in the description or anywhere you have on chance on all those listings.
Tips for Your Reinstatement Letter
Besides uploading proof of business existence, you’ll have the option to write a letter to Google describing why you should be reinstated.
My tips for that would be:
- Introduce yourself. Google will see your name and if the name matches the one on Gmail, that is a bonus.
- Link to your business page on Open Corporates or another trusted website. Locally, we have a website called Company Wall. In the UK, there’s Companies House.
- Say that you’ve reviewed all policies and fixed all issues (even if the suspension was random).
- Do not sound like a jerk, even though I know you’d like to say some words to Google.
- Be polite and treat support with respect. They’re human.
Categories Likely to Be Struggling
Here are industries where a reinstatement could be a serious struggle:
- Addiction rehabilitation centers
- Personal injury lawyers
- Water damage restoration (“water damage restoration service”)
- Payday loans (“loan agency”)
- Roofers
- Locksmiths
- Plumbers
Google doesn’t trust you. The reason is that these categories have the most fake, spammy, and fraudulent listings of all categories (because there’s the most money to be made).
If you fall under any of these categories, you need to triple-check your business information and make sure all the documentation is in-tact.
What to Do If Your Appeal is Rejected
This could happen. Here are your options:
- Keep pushing. Use every means you can to contact Google’s support.
I had experiences where I’d “force” a human to reply and commit to my request by replying to Google’s response email 10+ times.
It’s still worth trying. Just keep pushing.
If you’re getting something that seems like an AI response, reply again and ask for a human. Attach all proof you possibly can in each email.
Long-time Google users usually take a look at these requests. Simply state what happened, and share all the proof you provided in the original appeal form.
How to Prevent Another Suspension
Follow this list of DOs and DONTs.
DOs
- Keep your business information 100% accurate.
- If you’re indeed changing your information, make sure to first update other citations on the web and let the changes be indexed.
- Keep your Owner and Manager count low.
- Keep two-factor authentication turned on for all Owner and Manager accounts
- One edit at a time, one “tier 1” edit a week
DONTs
- Try not to manage multiple GBPs under one account.
- Do not edit ANYTHING during Google updates.
- Do not switch IP addresses or devices frequently.
- No stuffing keywords
- Even though it might be tempting, do not report competitors with the same account you use to manage your GBP
🥷 Ninja Prevention Tip! 🥷
Build your web presence to minimize the risk of another suspension. Do not only get as many trusted citations as you possibly can, but also build other types of backlinks, like press and guest posts.
Learn more in our link building guide.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you’ll get your profile back with these tips.
If you need any help with your reinstatement or overall local SEO, feel free to get in touch.
Other than that, share this post if you found it valuable, and I’ll see you in another one!
Bogdan is a local SEO expert with over 3 years of experience helping businesses grow using Google. When he is not helping businesses grow, he works on his own SEO projects, works out, takes long walks, and watches Suits, which is completely ironic given how rarely he dresses up in a suit himself.