Accounting Firm GBP Stuck in Reverification — Verified

Client Background

This was an established accounting and advisory firm in Ohio with a 4.8-star profile. The trouble started after two ordinary business changes: an office move and a name change.

The firm works in a hybrid way from a shared building with no exterior signage. That is exactly the setup a filmed reverification struggles with, and it is why the one method Google offered didn't fit the business.

The Problem

An established accounting firm with a 4.8-star profile lost edit control after an office move and a name change. Google would only offer video reverification, which the owner said did not fit a hybrid firm in a shared building with no exterior signage.

During the process the profile was also suspended for deceptive content, and an appeal was denied before the underlying conflicts were cleaned up.

Challenges

• Reverification looped: accepted video uploads were followed by new reverification requests
• Deceptive content suspension on top of the verification problem
• A UPS-box address in a second state listed on the website footer
• Founding dates conflicted across the website, Yelp, BBB and state records
• Old brand name still on the site, and the address written two different ways
• Live video call option showed as unavailable when the client tried it

Diagnosis & Investigation

A reverification request after an accepted video usually means something around the profile still conflicts. Here there was plenty: a UPS-box address in a second state in the website footer, founding dates that disagreed across the website, Yelp, BBB and state records, the old brand name still on the site, and the suite written two different ways.

My read was that the deceptive content suspension, and the denied appeal that followed, came from the same conflicts. Appealing again before cleaning them up would have sent the same profile back for the same answer.

One problem was hiding the fixes. The public site was serving a cached older copy, so the owner saw corrected pages while logged in and visitors and Google still saw the old version. Until that was found, every correction looked as if it hadn't happened.

The Solution

1. 1Aligned the state DBA with the profile name before verifying, so there was one clean pass
2. 2Removed the mailbox address and second phone from the website and Facebook
3. 3Aligned the establishment date to the documented entity and kept the longer founder history on the About page
4. 4Removed the old brand, fixed the schema organisation name, and matched the suite format exactly
5. 5Found that the public site was still serving a cached older copy, and had old homepage duplicates unpublished
6. 6Escalated through Google Support until live video verification was enabled, then followed up on a duplicate listing until the reviews were restored

Day-by-Day Timeline

1. Start

   Edit control lost after an office move and a name change. Google offering only video reverification, which didn't fit a hybrid firm in a shared building with no exterior signage.

2. Suspension

   Profile suspended for deceptive content. An appeal was denied before the underlying conflicts were cleaned up.

3. Cleanup

   State DBA aligned with the profile name. Mailbox address and second phone removed from the website and Facebook. Establishment date aligned to the documented entity. Old brand removed, schema name fixed, suite format matched.

4. Cache found

   Public site found serving a cached older copy. Old homepage duplicates unpublished.

5. Escalation

   Escalated through Google Support until live video verification was enabled.

6. Verified

   Profile verified on a live video call with Google Support.

7. Follow-up

   Duplicate listing chased until all reviews were restored. Correct name and suite put back without triggering reverification. 10 weeks end to end.

Key Lessons

• 1A mailbox or UPS-box address on your website counts against you even when it isn't on the profile. Google treats mailbox addresses as fake locations.
• 2Check what Google actually sees. A cached site can keep serving the old version after you've fixed it.
• 3If the only verification method on offer doesn't fit the business, escalate through Google Support until one that does is enabled.

Prevention Checklist

• Align your DBA or registered name with the profile name before a name change goes live.
• Use one establishment date everywhere, and keep the longer founder history on the About page.
• Write the address and suite exactly the same way on the website, in the schema and on the profile.
• After website changes, purge the cache and check the page logged out in a private window.

Frequently Asked Questions