![\"Fraud](\"https:\/\/theadminbar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/158356548_179374357114858_1047362706814914609_n.webp)
<\/picture><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nTheir review was simple, and a bit childish\u2026 I\u2019m not sure anyone who was reading my reviews would have taken it seriously \u2014 but losing a few points off my star rating for something unrelated to my business bugged me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Had it been a legitimate complaint, I would have lived with it \u2014 but since it honestly had nothing to do with my business, I wanted to see about getting it removed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m not sure how this process always works, but I thought I\u2019d share the steps I took in case you\u2019re every called out for being a \u201ccry baby\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Step 1: Respond<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
My first step, as you can see from the screenshot, was to respond to the review. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
My policy is to respond to all reviews \u2014 good or bad. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is not only to reply to the person who has taken the time out of their day to leave the review, but for others who will read it. Seeing a business is actively listening to their customers is important \u2014 and responding to reviews show that you\u2019re listening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I didn\u2019t want to get too deep in my response, I just wanted to cover a few bases:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- I don\u2019t know who you are<\/li>
- I\u2019ve not worked with you before.<\/li>
- Sorry you are disappointed<\/li>
- Sayonara!<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Step 2: Report<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Next to any Google review here is the vertical menu icon. If you click that, you have the option to \u201cReport Review\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Report](\"https:\/\/theadminbar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/report-review.png\")
<\/picture><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nOnce you click that you\u2019re presented with 5 different options:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- This review is not relevant to this place<\/li>
- Conflict of interest<\/li>
- Offensive or sexually explicit<\/li>
- Privacy concern<\/li>
- Legal issue<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n
I chose option #1, since it was the most relevant to my review. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Google has specific policies all reviews must follow (you can read about those here<\/a>), and this review violated a few of them (\u201cSpam and fake content\u201d, \u201cOff-topic\u201d, and possibly \u201cOffensive content\u201d (since it\u2019s just name calling)).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After reporting the review, I got an email from Google instantly letting me know that the removal request was being processed. They informed me the process would take up to 3 business days, and once a decision has been made I would be notified via email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The next day I received their decision: <\/p>\n\n\n\n
We have reviewed your removal request<\/em><\/p>
Thank you for raising your concern. We have assessed the review, and have not found a violation of our policies. Due to this, the review will remain visible.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
![\"Request](\"https:\/\/theadminbar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/request-denied.png\")
<\/picture><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nAt this point, I wasn\u2019t sure whether or not it was worth taking this any further. The review wasn\u2019t very impactful, and I doubt it was going to deter people from calling me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ultimately, I decided to see what I could do to escalate the matter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Step 3: Escalation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
In order to try and escalate this matter, since I was sure the review violated their terms, I found this Google help doc<\/a> which had a \u201cContact us\u201d call to action at the end of the article. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
After filling in the form, I was given the option to speak with some via chat, which is what I chose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To my surprise, the Google representative was on the chat within a matter of minutes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
After explaining my situation, and which policies I felt the review was in violation of, the Google representative told me he would escalate this matter to the team that could resolve this issue and look into it further (to which I gave a massive eye roll).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After speaking to the Google representative, I got an email stating that they were going to \u201croute your query to a specialist on another team who is best equipped to address your concerns\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Step 4: Resolution<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
To be honest, I didn\u2019t have high hopes that anything would be done from this point. I can\u2019t imagine how many of these kinds of requests Google has to deal with (remember Total Landscape? Their reviews wen\u2019t nuts after their sudden fame!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Well, it took 10 days \u2014 but I was finally email with a resolution to my case: The review was completely removed! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Email](\"https:\/\/theadminbar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/review-removed.png\")
<\/picture><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nHi Kyle,<\/em><\/p>
Greetings from Google My Business Support. I hope you are doing well.<\/em><\/p>
Thank you for your patience while we were working on your business listing OGAL Web Design.<\/em><\/p>
I had escalated the concern to our specialist team and as per their response, we\u2019re happy to let you know that we have removed this review since it violates our policies.<\/em><\/p>
Tip: Replying to reviews can help build your customers\u2019 trust. To do this, you can follow the steps to Read and reply to reviews.<\/em><\/p>
You may receive an email survey regarding your interaction with GMB Support. We value your feedback.<\/em><\/p>
If you have further questions related to this issue, simply reply to this email and we’ll be happy to help! For additional support on a different issue, you can always reach us via our Help Center [g.co\/gmbhelp].\u00a0<\/em><\/p>
Of course I double checked to make sure it was gone \u2014 and not only was the review completely removed from my listing, but my star rating returned to its pristine 5-star status.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Was it worth it?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Now that the whole thing is over with, I\u2019m wondering if it was worth taking the extra steps to escalate this case \u2014 and honestly, I think it was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not that this particular review was detrimental to my business (it wasn\u2019t), but to resolve the issue I only spent about 30 minutes in total dealing with Google and reviewing their policies. It took about two weeks to have the review removed \u2014 but in the end, it\u2019s gone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
30 minutes is a small price to pay for ensuring your reputation \u2014 so if you find yourself with a review that violates Google\u2019s policies, based on my experience, I\u2019d say fight it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is only one case out of, likely, thousands per day \u2014 and I\u2019m not sure if my experience was typical or abnormal. So what about you? Have you had to fight a bad review before? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Report](\"https:\/\/theadminbar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/report-review.webp)
<\/picture><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n![\"Request](\"https:\/\/theadminbar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/request-denied.webp)
<\/picture><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n![\"Email](\"https:\/\/theadminbar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/review-removed.webp)
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