Google reviews disappearing from your business profile isn’t something that can be ignored. Even a relatively small change in your reviews on your company’s Google Business Profile can make a difference in your position in local search results. Google business reviews are a ranking factor, thanks to which a business can rank higher in Google.
What’s more, they convince potential customers that they will be satisfied with the business’ services. It can be a decisive factor – according to studies, positive reviews from customers contribute substantially to the overall efficiency of marketing communication - 93% of customers read reviews about a business before deciding to buy. It’s also worth mentioning that it’s an essential source of customer feedback.
google reviews of the Eiffel Tower
Because of this, making sure that clients will regularly leave positive reviews is one of the priorities for local businesses, especially those that gain new customers via Google Maps. However, Google reviews can be removed when they are flagged as incorrect by Google’s internal mechanisms. The reviewers themselves can also delete them. However, it’s not irrevocable – it is often possible to successfully appeal to Google or contact the review’s author.
In this article, we will present some of the most common reasons why online reviews issued in Google Business Profile may not be displayed. We’ll also show how, thanks to Localo’s new feature, you can keep access to even deleted Google reviews in your business profile. It can help you restore them or contact the customers who wrote them.
When does Google remove business reviews?
It’s not that easy to track when Google deletes reviews. There can be various reasons for this, both on the part of the user leaving the review and Google’s algorithm, which has classified the opinion as suspicious.
Here’s a closer look at some of the most important reasons why it is possible that Google reviews disappear from your company’s business profile.
1. Newly created Google Business Profile
When a business is created a new Google Business Profile, reviews may not be immediately visible. Google must verify the latest information first, which can take a few days to a few weeks. Therefore, it is important to wait patiently for this process to be completed.
2. Google rules for reviews
Google has specific content policies about what can be included in reviews on Google Business Profile. If a review violates these rules, such as containing offensive content, Google has the right to remove it.
You can learn about Google’s rules on reviews in business profiles in the platform's Terms and Conditions.
3. Google updates
Google regularly updates its algorithms and policies. Sometimes, these updates can temporarily or permanently affect the visibility of reviews. In such cases, it is also worth contacting Google support to clarify the issue.
4. Excessive review removal
If a business frequently removes reviews from Google Business Profile, Google may interpret this as manipulation of public opinion. In extreme cases, Google may hide all reviews for that business - this will include genuine, credible reviews about your business.
Therefore, if you see a negative review, try to contact the customer and explain the situation. Eventually, it is often possible to convince the client to delete or edit the negative review.
5. Fake reviews
Google is heavily concerned about fake reviews in Google Business Profiles. If the platform notices that there is a fake review(or several) in a business profile or there is suspicion of spam, such review may be removed. The same applies if we pay users to leave Google reviews in our profile. Such cases might end up with a complete suspension of our business listing.
This policy is also designed to protect the profiles. If a dishonest competitor leaves, for example, several negative reviews in our profile, the algorithm will notice this and the false Google reviews may be removed.
How can I find out why my review in Google Maps is not visible?
If you are the review’s author, Google will send you a notification regarding the fact that your review has not been published. You will receive this information along with an explanation of which Google guidelines it does not meet or in what aspects it violates Google’s terms of service.
In such cases it is good to appeal to Google support, which can reconsider the matter and restore the opinion to the business profile. You can do this using a dedicated button present next to your review. It is often worth it - there is a considerable chance that a review can be restored to the business account. Google’s algorithms are not perfect, and the actions of the Google platform can be effectively challenged - we encourage you not to remain passive!
Informing review authors regarding how their published content is performing is one of Google’s policies. You will be notified if your opinion is removed and if it proves helpful to other users.
How can I access reviews that have disappeared from my Google Business Profile? How do I restore them?
Recently, we added a new feature to the Localo app, which can help you with this. From the moment you to subscribe and link your business profile to Localo account, all Google reviews that appear in your Google Business Profile will also be stored in our database.
You can find them in the Reviews section in Localo app under the Deleted tab. You will find your there deleted reviews and your responses to them. ( Important: Unfortunately, you won’t find reviews that were deleted before Google Business Profile was merged with Localo. Those reviews are only stored in Google’s databases.)
Suppose you know the authors of the deleted reviews or have the ability to contact them. In that case, you can get back to them and ask to restore the Google review to your Business Profile using the mechanism described in the previous section.
To encourage them, you can offer such customers a discount on their subsequent purchases - it won’t hurt your business and could produce a few more sales.
Summary
Our experience in Google review management shows that Google’s platform algorithms and even Google’s customer service decisions regarding removing reviews are only sometimes definitive. We encourage you to try to appeal or contact the review authors - it often helps to restore numerous Google reviews to your business profile on Google and Google Maps, helping your business improve its visibility, gain new customers and establish online reputation of your company.
