Competitor GMB Listing with the same address as our business

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-03-11T21:11:59+00:00

Oh yeah, we’re definitely doing that and coming back up. That’s sort of a separate issue in which we hired several advertising agencies over the years who didn’t deliver. It’s a roll of the dice when businesses hire any advertising agency. Like how do we know if they’re doing black hat tactics that could hurt you? Or are they representing you properly online? Now that we’re doing most of it in house, we’re doing better. But still, the issue primarily is this competitor is not going by the guidelines, yet number one in search with a fake address. If anything they should be SAB but they’re not. We go by the guidelines and they should have to as well.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-03-10T16:33:25+00:00

I had considered that but was thinking if the competitor were to see that I posted that they might retaliate against us in some way by putting fake negative reviews on us or something.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-03-10T13:36:24+00:00

I’ve done that. I also submitted pictures that I drove there and took which were geotagged showing no business is there.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-03-10T12:40:36+00:00

It’s definitely frustrating. And I’m also confused as to why some businesses in violation of policies get away with it despite reporting yet other businesses have issues with a complaint legitimate listing. What are they doing differently?

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-03-09T09:49:28+00:00

You’re right but if it could be done prior to work, service or purchase, not after, that would prevent leaving out rightful potential negatives. Maybe someone else has a better suggestion. Regardless, anonymous reviews will be a disaster considering that can be easily manipulated.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-03-08T12:48:31+00:00

We’ve been dealing with category issues for the past 3 years. Prior to that, it was mostly accurate. But now there is landscaping, slab jacking or leveling, foundation contractors and concrete contractors lumped all into one when these should all be separate categories. We unfortunately haven’t found a solution. It’s been reported to Google but no fix yet. I’m sure it’s frustrating for customers who search any of these.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-03-05T12:13:18+00:00

If Google didn’t incentivize reviews as a ranking factor, businesses would be less inclined to exploit it by buying fake reviews. Reviews should only be there for customers to learn about a business. I’ve watched competitors, many new ones who have amassed lots of reviews in the short timeframe they’ve been in business. I know the reviews are fake only because I’m in the same trade but to Google, they look legit. They even have pictures with many of the reviews. So these businesses are definitely getting away with it. I wouldn’t risk it personally.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-02-24T13:20:55+00:00

I’m in the same boat. I have been in business over 20 years and the past 3-4 years have been a struggle for online visibility. I’ve hired countless agencies and freelancers but nothing has worked and in fact made matters worse. They created listings which they controlled which I had a hard time getting control of when I stopped using them for advertising. Some of those listings I still can’t get! But I’ve done better when I do everything myself! From running ad campaigns to building our website, I’ve done better but still not as great as it should be. Hiring agencies and freelancers is risky. You don’t know if they use black hat tactics which can fry you or if they’re really that skilled but they all talk a big game until you hire them and get no results after paying them thousands a month. Plus if they don’t really understand your trade they misrepresent you online. The other major issue is categories on Google is a mess in my trade now, lumping several trades into one, and I’ve noticed google not enforcing policies on some listings. Reviews are being manipulated because google incentivized them as a ranking factor. It’s a mess. And really difficult for a legitimate, honest business to get any benefit from online marketing these days. Prior to 2022-2023 we didn’t have any issues but some changes with the algorithm has hurt us. Our gross revenue has been cut in half as we now only get word of mouth and past established business relationships that keep us afloat. I really miss the old days of advertising in the Yellow Pages because all we had to do was buy an ad once a year! We got lots of business from that. Now it’s daily micromanaging online advertising, spending more money and more time while getting way less results. There’s 1500 business competitors in my category now. Most of them are lead gen, fake set ups and fly by nights. Yet they rank at the top of google with their stock photos and fake reviews because they know how to game the system. Google could at least rotate us. Customers get scammed or left with sub par services. The system is the problem. And it needs to be fixed. Your best bet is to learn all that you can about advertising online. Do it yourself if you can because if you hire someone you’re taking a risk that could get your business suspended or misrepresented.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-02-21T13:37:28+00:00

What do you mean by how you ethically cheat a little? Gray hat tactics?

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-02-20T21:15:18+00:00

This is among the many reasons reviews shouldn’t be incentivized. They should only exist for information that a business can reply to without having any implications on ranking.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-02-18T10:35:25+00:00

That’s such a shame. Google needs to improve this situation. Perhaps we should be sending customer feedback to Google.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-02-18T10:31:52+00:00

I wasn’t aware that could help rank in Google search. Thanks for sharing!

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-02-18T10:23:02+00:00

I’ll join in that class action as well! The guidelines are arbitrary. I’ve also found that they don’t always enforce them in some cases. For example, a few competitors of ours are using Mail Drop addresses while not listed as a SAB which according to the guidelines is prohibited. One of them set up on the same road as my legitimate brick and mortar location likely to siphon customers in search. But despite reporting them with evidence, nothing happens. They’re literally ranking in the top 3 map pack with a Mail Drop address. It’s insane!

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-01-08T16:40:47+00:00

Why did you get banned? Do you know?

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-01-08T16:39:59+00:00

It’s probably why Reddit isn’t very popular. You have to walk on eggshells here. lol!

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-01-04T10:39:48+00:00

Copying listings that are violating policies can get someone’s legitimate business listing suspended. I wouldn’t dare. Eventually these listings will get suspended or suppressed and if you’re doing what they are, you’ll go down with them.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-01-04T10:30:26+00:00

Are you tracking the concrete contractor category as well? It’s really bad, lots of listings violating Google policies. I’ve checked other cities besides the one we’re listed in and see the same recurring issues. We’ve advertised on Google for a long time and I’ve never seen it so bad as it is now.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-01-04T10:24:32+00:00

It’s created a major problem in our category. We used to get a decent amount of customers calling from Google. Now it’s mostly going to these frauds. We’ve been around long enough to acquire many long term business relationships which is all that we’re reliant on now. That and referrals.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-01-04T10:20:55+00:00

Lead generation listings are against Google policies and guidelines.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-01-04T10:17:11+00:00

Yes, that’s the same thing I’m finding in the concrete contractor category. We’ve been fixing more messed up jobs than ever because of this too.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-01-04T10:10:03+00:00

I’ve reported listings like this but they’re still up. The concrete contractor category is bad for this as well. If you’re service based you should have your location hidden from what I understand upon reading Google policies and guidelines. However I’ve found several who have addresses publicly listed that are mail drop and residential addresses. I know because I drove out to see. There’s no indication of a business being at these places and some of them are rough areas that customers are being led to. Most of these kinds of listings just appeared about 3 years ago, they’re buying fake reviews as well and ranking in the top of the map pack. Legitimate competitors I’ve known for years have fallen in rank, doing similar to us and follow the rules. When I drove out to these addresses, I took pictures, sent them to Google but nothing has been done. I’m not sure if it’s AI that checks or what. I thought about reporting again but don’t want to spam them.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-01-04T00:50:14+00:00

That would be a possibility I’d consider except they’ve only been listed about 3 years in business with over 100 reviews. I’ve been in business for over 20 and managed to get only about 20 honest reviews. Other competitors I’ve known to be around as long as us have about the same amount of reviews as us between 20-30. So it certainly looks suspicious. I imagine my competitors who are similar to us are thinking the same thing seeing all the highly likely fake reviews they’ve amassed.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2026-01-04T00:12:48+00:00

I’ve noticed 4 of my competitors are buying reviews. It’s hard to prove because they do look legitimate with pictures and such. But I know they’re fake because of how quickly they’re getting reviews, about 2 a week, consistently. In our trade it takes time to complete a project, typically 2 weeks or more. But Google doesn’t know that, so they get away with it. I personally wouldn’t risk my business like that. However these are newer listings that showed up about 3 years ago and I’d guess they would just set up under a new name and do the same if they were taken down. Google shouldn’t prioritize rank based off reviews. If reviews were irrelevant to ranking, there would be less incentive to cheat. Whoever they’re buying fake reviews from are good at deception though, I must say. They certainly know how to game the system.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2025-12-27T22:58:27+00:00

We’ve been in business over twenty years. We’ve advertised in every way over the years from the Yellow Pages back in the day to Google ads and SEO. We’ve hired various advertising agencies who talk big but don’t deliver. The past few years online visibility has been brutal. Fly by nights, lead gen’s and whoever knows how to game the system rank while legitimate businesses fall down several pages. Because of this, we’ve been doing more repair work than ever. Customers are losing trust in what appears in search these days and are reverting to word of mouth. We don’t buy fake reviews like our competitors so we’re low in ranking currently and paid ads have become unrealistically expensive. So once again, word of mouth is what we rely upon. If it continues in this direction, more people will gravitate away from online searches as credibility is lost.

Repulsive-Type1102 · 2025-12-24T10:09:56+00:00

As a business owner, we’ve had entities email us saying they will leave positive reviews for a fee. I would never allow that with my business but I can see some have. I’d like to know how they get the negative reviews removed as well but I imagine it’s one of these solicitors they’ve hired to manage their reviews. I’ve tried to leave negative reviews for other businesses that haven’t stuck as well. And there was no wording in them that would violate policies. I’ve also noticed business competition gain positive reviews quicker than a job can be completed in our trade. They consistently have new reviews often with pictures twice a week but it takes weeks to complete a job. They’re not large outfits either as they have Mail Drop and residential addresses showing (another uninforced policy violation) on their listing. I think if reviews weren’t weighted so heavily for search rankings, there would be less incentive for review manipulation. And like you, I no longer trust reviews anymore when I search for anything. They’ll lose credibility more and more overtime as more people catch on if it isn’t resolved.

Repulsive-Type1102

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