Google My Business - duplicate and previous owner uncooperative

[SusannahK.Noel]

Hi there,

One of my SEO clients, a summer camp, is having a problem with their GMB listing.

They have two listings: the one they set up, with the correct address and other business info, and the one the previous camp owners set up, with an incorrect NAP. When we try to edit the duplicate listing, we're unable to verify that we own it because it's connected to the previous owner's phone number. They've passed away and their sons are now the contact, but they're not interested in helping out.

Any suggestions on how to close the duplicate listing without being able to verify that it's your own business?

Thanks,

Susannah

[SusannahK.Noel]

Thanks a lot  - I really appreciate your help!

[SusannahK.Noel]

Thank you Sean!

[Chris_Hickman]

Susannah,

As Sean mentioned, it is possible to get in contact with GMB, but it can be tricky. We have ran into similar issues, we had an issue where the suite number was a letter then number, for instance C 109. We contacted the GMB team, left a message with contact info and manged to get a call back the same day. The changed the issue over the phone.

I would suggest getting in contact with GMB and describing your issue with the team. Talking with Google will make the process much easier.

Start by reporting the problem here, https://support.google.com/maps/answer/3094088?from=cuf

Hope this helps.

Chris Hickman

Adficient.com

[seanginnaw]

Hey Susannah,

Generally speaking, sorting out GMB listings can be quite a troublesome process.

Your best bet, if you can't verify ownership yourself, is to report the page. There's a good guide to how to do this here:

https://www.bowlerhat.co.uk/how-to-report-a-fake-google-business-page/

Failing that, I've found the GMB team at Google quite helpful for dealing with these kind of things - It's a troublesome process to get in contact with them but once you do, they're not bad.

There should be an option to request a call from GMB within your GMB login interface - it takes a bit of looking to find it but I'm sure you will.

I hope this helps,

Sean