Google Business Profile Suspended: What a Realtor Should Do Next

The short answer

Google Business Profile suspended? Don't panic and don't make a new profile. Find the guideline you likely broke, fix it, gather documents where your name and address match the profile, then submit one appeal in Google's Business Profile appeals tool. Google says each appeal can be submitted only once, so make it complete.

I've watched agents lose a profile and then lose their reviews too by doing the wrong thing in the first hour. Here's the calm version, built from Google's own reinstatement page.

First, figure out what kind of trouble it is

Google's reinstatement page describes a few situations, and they're handled differently:

• The profile is suspended or removed. The public can't see it and you can't manage it. You appeal in the Business Profile appeals tool.
• Your Google Account is restricted. Your profiles are suspended and you can't create or claim others. Google says to appeal on your My accounts restrictions page first, then appeal the profile separately once that's lifted.
• A manager's account is suspended. Only that person loses access. The profile itself isn't affected.
• It's marked as a duplicate. That's not a suspension. Google says a duplicate won't show on Search or Maps, and the fix is different. See why your business isn't showing up on Google Maps.

Step by step: Google Business Profile suspended

Here's how I'd work it.

1. Read the notice. Sign in with the Google account that owns the profile and look at the status. Write down what it says.
2. Don't create a new profile. Google says it directly: don't create a new profile for the same business. That tends to make the problem bigger.
3. Audit against the guidelines. Go through Google's guidelines line by line. For agents, the usual suspects are below.
4. Fix the problem before you appeal. Remove keywords from the name. Hide the address if you're a service-area business. Stop using a virtual office address. Undo whatever recent edit looks risky.
5. Gather proof. Google lists examples: business registration, a business license, tax certificates, or utility bills (electricity, phone, water or internet). Your real estate license may help show you're a real business; ask your broker what they've used.
6. Match the details. Google says to check that the business name and address on each document match the profile. A mismatch is a reason to stop and fix before filing.
7. File in the appeals tool. Open Google's Business Profile appeals tool, confirm the account, pick the profile and the decision you're appealing, upload evidence, explain briefly, check the box and submit.
8. Watch your email and the tool. Google doesn't publish a timeline. It emails the decision. The tool shows statuses like Submitted, Approved, Not Approved, Can't be appealed, or Eligible for appeal.
9. If it's denied, Google says it may be able to do an additional review through the local appeals contact form, only after a reinstatement request is denied.

Common realtor triggers to check

Google doesn't always tell you the exact reason. These are the rules agents bump into most, so check them all.

What a good appeal looks like

Short, factual and matched. One or two sentences about who you are and how you serve clients. Documents with the same name and address as the profile. Nothing about competitors, nothing angry. If you changed something to comply, say what you changed.

How to explain it to your client

If a client or prospect asks why your profile disappeared:

Watch-outs

• One shot per appeal. Google says each appeal can be submitted only once. Don't file a half-ready one.
• Don't pay for promised reinstatement. Google decides. Nobody can promise the outcome.
• Don't switch addresses mid-appeal. Changing details while Google reviews them muddies your proof.
• Don't let a vendor own your profile. Keep yourself as the owner. Add helpers as managers.
• Check your account, not just the profile. A restricted Google Account has its own appeal path first.

Sources

• Reinstate a suspended or disabled Business Profile, Google Business Profile Help
• Guidelines for representing your business on Google, Google Business Profile Help
• Resolve duplicate profiles and ownership issues, Google Business Profile Help

Keep going

• Google Business Profile without an office
• Why your business isn't showing up on Google Maps
• Google Business Profile for agents
• How to get more Google reviews
• Want it done for you? Google Maps Tune-Up sets up and runs your Google Business Profile inside Google's guidelines, so the things that trigger suspensions get caught early.

This is training for real estate agents. It isn't legal, tax or lending advice. Check with your managing broker.

Frog tip: On a mountain contract, apply for insurance the day you go under contract. Quotes that come back late can run out your objection deadline. Learn more →

Questions

Why was my Google Business Profile suspended?

Google doesn't always say. For agents, check the name, the address type, duplicate profiles and recent edits against Google's guidelines.

How do I get my Google Business Profile reinstated?

Fix the issue, gather documents that match your profile's name and address, and submit one appeal through Google's Business Profile appeals tool.

How long does a Google Business Profile appeal take?

Google doesn't publish a timeframe. It emails you the decision and shows the status in the appeals tool.

Should I make a new profile while I wait?

No. Google tells you not to create a new profile for the same business.

What if my appeal is denied?

Google says it may be able to do an additional review through its local appeals contact form after a denial.

Brian Lee Burke is the founder of PadLeaders, a Colorado real estate broker licensed since 2003, team leader of The Kenna Group at Keller Williams DTC (formerly Kenna Real Estate Group) and the author of Mastering Real Estate and The Real Estate Playbook. More about Brian.