In today’s digital landscape, Google reviews are what customers now use to determine whether to patronise your business or not. Reviews influence potential customers, impact local search rankings, and help business build a good online reputation.
Google reviews top the list of what potential customers seek when checking a business. These reviews are displayed on the Google Business Profile and come from people who have interacted with the company and shared their experiences. Their feedback can significantly sway public opinion and impact how potential customers engage with the business.
According to studies, more than 80% of customers check online reviews before deciding. Also, over 50% of customers read more than five reviews of the business during the purchase process.
Businesses large and small rely on this review as a source of qualified leads and consumer knowledge. However, many businesses often experience disappearing reviews. If you have recently seen your Google reviews disappearing, then you are not alone. Listen, you do not have to panic because disappearing Google reviews is not a new thing, and it has happened before to many types of businesses of many different sizes.
In this blog, Unify Wizards takes us through the reasons why Google reviews might be missing and what do about it. We understand the importance of maintaining a solid online presence, including a good Google review.
Why Google Reviews Are Not Showing
Technical Glitches with Google
Technical glitches are sometimes unavoidable, but you must know when it is from your side or Google. Problems with Google can sometimes cause your Google reviews to not show on their platform. This happens mostly when Google is updating the Google Business Profile system.
For example, many businesses lose access to their Google review for a short period, unable to edit published posts or add images to their profiles when Google recently changed some features in their process. However, this problem is often solved when the Google updates are fully integrated.
Are you facing this problem at the moment? Do not worry because there is a solution to the problem. All you have to do is document all the challenges you are going through thoroughly and report them to Google’s customer support. Ensure all the problems are completely detailed with descriptions. When you do this, the Google support team will address the problems and restore your Google reviews and other problems you are facing will be fixed.
Incentivized Reviews
Transparency is very important when customers are asking for a service or buying a product on a business website. However, many businesses have betrayed customers' trust and their integrity by using incentivized reviews to promote their business.
Incentivized reviews are when businesses ask their customers to give a Google review for their business in exchange for a reward. This type of process is called customer manipulation and completely goes against Google’s policies and is considered fraudulent.
Google does not support businesses asking for customer reviews to ensure every customer review on Google is genuine and unbiased. Therefore, businesses that break these rules have their reviews removed and experience a significant drop in their search, reducing their business credibility, authenticity, and visibility on Google’s platforms.
To avoid all these problems, business owners must ensure every Google review is genuine by providing excellent service and engaging positively with their customers.
Google Reviews with Links or URLs
Google does not want outbound links in reviews on Google Business Profiles to ensure all the reviews are honest and not promotional. Reviews with URLs are removed by Google to stop businesses from promoting their content or diverting customers from Google’s services.
Also, URLs cause security risks and redirect users to unverified external sites, misleading them to another website page. Removing these reviews provides a safe, honest review for users who want to check business feedback.
Businesses must supervise their Google review to make sure they comply with Google’s guidelines. They should also speak to their customers about these rules so that they will not submit reviews on Google with an outbound link.
Reviews with Profanity
One of Google's important policies is the use of swear words in Google reviews. This policy ensures Google reviews are appropriate, preserving the integrity of user-contributed feedback.
Google promotes a safe, respectful and professional environment on its platform, so it is no surprise that such reviews are removed from their site.
All reviews must follow Google’s guidelines to ensure everyone is respectful and does not feel offended when reading a review on the Google platform.
Businesses should encourage their customers not to use offensive words when writing their reviews if they want their contributions to be visible and impactful on the platform. They should also tell them about Google’s content policies and the consequences of using profane words when writing a review about your company on Google.
Reviews From Former or Current Employees
Google’s policies do not allow people working in a company to write a review. Also, previous employees' reviews will be removed if it was submitted on the Google platform.
This policy is put in place to ensure employees are writing genuine reviews and not just doing it because they are working with the company. Also to avoid unsatisfied previous employees from leaving a negative review, you can report it to Google. When this happens, the review will be removed promptly.
Missing reviews on Google due to these actions are needed to maintain the company's online integrity and quality of service. To avoid having a missing review on Google, companies should actively manage their profile and report reviews that violate Google guidelines. This process allows businesses to know the level of their customer satisfaction and maintain their integrity.
User Deleted Reviews
Many customers often change their minds by deleting the reviews they write about your business. Their decision could be a personal reason, or they change their mind about their experience. Also, this can happen by mistake, or the customer might want to write a review that is better than the previous one.
Although it is disappointing to see a review disappear, the problem can be solved by reaching out to the customer about their deleted review. This tells the customer that you value their opinion and really want their honest review about your services. However, this must be handled with utmost respect, and care to encourage positive interaction.
Business Not Open to the Public
When setting up a Google Business Profile, businesses can decide not to make their profile open to the public. Google provides an option of having a future opening date. With this, businesses can build engagement with potential customers through photos, posts and descriptions in advance.
But the downside of this process is that any review on the platform before
the business officially opens to the public will not be shown. To ensure you retain all your reviews, do not ask your customers to write a review before your business is open to the public. Also, make sure your Google Business Profile is verified, and it is set to show your business as open to the public.
User Account Deleted
Google reviews are connected to individual Google accounts and Google does not support anonymous reviews. So, when someone deletes their Google accounts, any reviews they have posted will automatically disappear.
Sadly, there is nothing you can do when this type of situation is the reason for your missing reviews on Google as there is no way to recover them. To reduce the impact of lost reviews and build your online reputation, encourage more customers to share their feedback.
Unverified Google Business Profile
If your Google Business profile is unverified and starts receiving many reviews, Google might think the reviews are fake. Therefore, you must verify your Google Business Profile to establish your business authenticity with Google. Also, to enhance the visibility of your reviews and boost your business search rankings
Ensure your profiles are verified and start your business verification process earlier before you have many reviews. A verified business profile lets users know the information they are viewing is accurate and reliable, impacting how potential customers perceive your establishment.
New Business Listing
After a business is registered on Google Business Profile it takes a while before its customer reviews become visible. This is because customers have to first discover the new business listing and patronize the business before making a decision to leave a review. This process takes a long time, but it is nothing to worry about as the reviews will increase as the business gains more exposure and customers.
As a new business, it is important to focus on providing excellent service and encourage your customers to write their feedback to increase your business visibility and Google ranking.
Incorrect Listing Information
Did you change your business location or name and haven't updated it on Google? This might be the reason your recent reviews are not showing. You need to submit the new information about your business on Google for verification before the updates can be activated. Also, ensure all updates are done promptly and aligned with your Google Business Profile.
In Conclusion
Google reviews are an essential tool that promotes your online reputation and local Search Engine Optimization. That is why you need to understand why you are missing reviews on Google. Addressing and preventing these issues helps you maintain a healthy review profile that attracts new customers and strengthens your online presence.
At Unify Wizards, we are a digital marketing company that specializes in helping businesses get more bang for their buck from their online marketing. We have helped many companies retain their Google reviews, increase leads and Return On Investment. Let us grow your business for you!