{"id":117346,"date":"2020-03-31T18:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-03-31T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dacgroup.com\/local-search-and-covid-19-what-we-know-so-far\/"},"modified":"2024-12-30T06:31:34","modified_gmt":"2024-12-30T11:31:34","slug":"local-search-and-covid-19-what-we-know-so-far","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dacgroup.com\/en-ca\/insights\/blog\/local-search\/local-search-and-covid-19-what-we-know-so-far\/","title":{"rendered":"Local search and COVID-19: What we know so far"},"content":{"rendered":"

A lot has happened in local search since we first described how to handle your Google listings during the COVID-19 pandemic<\/a>. Although none of these developments change the advice we gave just a couple of weeks ago, it’s time to stand back and take stock.<\/p>\n

Here are the most significant developments so far\u2014the ones that should inform your short-, medium-, and long-term thinking in local search.<\/p>\n

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      Google is marking businesses as “temporarily closed”<\/h2>\n

      Google is up against it. In its efforts to reflect reality and mark businesses “temporarily closed” in certain verticals and markets, it is also inadvertently applying this designation to stores that simply have reduced hours during the current lockdown.<\/p>\n

      \"Temporary<\/p>\n

      Google advises that businesses can revert their statuses to “open” and that the change will be effective immediately. However, we have seen that process take several days. That’s why we strongly recommend using special hours to indicate a temporary closure rather than this rather unwieldy mechanism.<\/p>\n

      In a more positive development, Google has also released a new Google Post option specific for COVID-19 updates. It’s a simplified Post where a business can provide a status (up to 1,500 characters) as well as an optional button and link.<\/p>\n

      \"Google<\/li>\n

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      Google My Business (GMB) now permits qualifiers in business names<\/h2>\n

      Google generally does not allow a business to be listed as anything other than its official name, meaning the name given on the signage of their storefront. However, due to these special circumstances, Google now allows businesses to add qualifiers such as “Delivery Only” and “Temporarily Closed” to their GMB business name. For example, your business could be marked as “TGI Fridays\u2014Takeout and Delivery Only” or “Chase Bank\u2014Temporarily Closed”.<\/p>\n

      Some businesses are attempting to add the “temporarily closed” qualifier to their address field and other places in GMB, but this is not recommended.\u202fGoogle Maps is currently swarmed by updates and adding qualifiers in places they don’t belong will only make the delayed updates worse. Stick to updating your business name, using special hours, and utilizing Google Posts only.<\/li>\n

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      GMB’s routine functionality is backlogged<\/h2>\n

      There have also been many reports heavy delays to GMB’s basic functions, including Image Uploads, Google Posts, editing of business descriptions, and even access to the GMB help forums. This is due to the unprecedented strain being placed on Google’s servers as everyone rushes to update their listings. While it can be expected that many of Google’s services will experience problems during this time, Google is making sure to announce any planned temporary closures of functionality.<\/p>\n

      Unless it is announced by Google, other errors within GMB can be attributed to overburdened servers rather than emergency updates. For instance, if you make a Google Post and it does not go live immediately, don’t worry\u2014it’ll probably just be a little delayed. If you eventually receive a rejection notice, simply make another attempt.<\/li>\n

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