How to remove reviews from Google My Business?

Google My Business allows business owners to promote their business. It is a free tool that gives business owners the opportunity to appear on Google Maps. It is also often the first source of information for customers about your business.

Google My Business Listing

One of the elements of Google listing are ratings and reviews. Customers who have used a company's services can share their experiences and impressions using their Google account. Reviews are displayed on the panel next to the company's profile in search results and on Google Maps. These reviews attract potential customers by showing how many consumers have already trusted your business.

The Power of Recommendations

Every entrepreneur wants positive reviews about their business. It is a fact that positive ratings attract customers. Recommendations give a brand credibility and gain trust in the market. Positive reviews and ratings directly translate into the profit of the company. Many customers use them as a reference when making their final choice of a company. Research shows that as many as 95-97% of people check product reviews or services before making a purchase. That is why it is so important for reviews posted on a tool like Google My Business to be as good as possible.

The problem arises when negative comments appear. Their presence has a negative impact on the company's image and results. The question arises of how to deal with negative reviews. Can Google reviews be removed?

Negative Reviews on Google

It is obvious that entrepreneurs want to have the best ratings about their company in Google Maps listing. However, they must be prepared to face criticism. It is up to you how you will respond to negative ratings. It should be remembered that the mere occurrence of criticism is not a basis for removing a comment. When a negative review appears, it is worth responding to it quickly. Otherwise, ignoring it will lead to an unfavorable presentation of the company, product, or service. The image of your company can be damaged.

How to Remove Reviews from Google Listing?

The first solution is to remove a negative comment from the Google listing. However, to do this, certain conditions must be met. Some comments are removed automatically due to violations of Google's policies. This includes actions such as spam or comments with prohibited content. If the comments do not disappear automatically, you should request Google to remove such a review. This can be done when the content of the comments: 

• is spam,
• is fake,
• is unrelated to the topic, 
• is subject to restrictions,
• is illegal,
• is related to terrorism,
• has a sexual nature,
• contains offensive content,
• is dangerous,
• is discriminatory,
• is misleading,
• leads to a conflict of interest.

All of these cases are described in more detail in the content policy published by Google's users. After verification, Google removes reported reviews from the listing. The question arises of what to do with reviews that do not violate the rules and cannot be removed, but still harm the company's image.

A quick and appropriate response can bring better results than attempting to remove the reviews. It is worth showing the customer that the company is interested in what happens to their product or service after the sale. By doing so, you will establish a connection with the customer and express your willingness to improve the relationship.

Another solution is to independently monitor comments posted on Google My Business and react promptly. In this case, you should identify the customer and analyze the problem that occurred. The next step is to try to contact them and resolve the issue. Then, you can ask the customer to edit their review. When using this method, you should be cautious to avoid the customer accusing the company of manipulation. Additionally, this is a process that requires analysis and continuous monitoring of posted comments.

Manage Negative Google Reviews

Reviews on Google My Business are continuously obtained, and it is difficult to monitor all comments and individually respond to customer reviews or try to remove them from the internet in real-time. It is good to solve this process systematically and in an automated way. The solution to this problem is proper online reputation management.

Therefore, in this case, it is worth considering an application that manages online reputation and helps with post-sales communication. The Rating Captain application provides control over reviews. This way, you will be informed about every new review, enabling you to respond quickly. Additionally, the tool analyzes comments in terms of sentiment. By knowing the level of customer dissatisfaction and the reason behind it, you can easily respond to the review.