Don't fall for the "Google Business Partner" scam
Google employees do not call anyone out of the blue
When you create or claim your Google My Business listing, you'll start getting calls from "Google Business Partners." Hang up! Here's why:
One of the things that Google doesn't do is call out of the blue. I've only talked to Google twice, when they had to contact me to resolve a client's Google My Business listing issue. My client had inadvertently triggered a fraud alert when they forgot which email they used to claim their listing and then used the wrong one to try to start an AdWords campaign. You would think since they were trying to give Google business, Google would bend over backwards to help them. Nope. Instead their business was flagged as fraudulent and they got blacklisted from appearing in the Google My Business panel.
Anyway, it took three months of emailing back and forth with Google before they deigned to contact me by phone. So, I repeat: Google does NOT call people out of the blue.
Who's calling me if it's not Google?
Scammers looking to make a quick buck off your lack of technical knowledge. Anyone can say they're a "Google Business Partner." If they've done anything on any Google platform for a fee, they will say they are a Google Business Partner. I could say that. And I wouldn't be lying. I'd be deceiving you by implying a formal relationship with Google where none exists. But I'm technically not lying, so Google can't prevent scammers from calling you and saying this. They can only help you after you've been scammed.
What you need to know
1) Google My Business listings are FREE to set up.
This means there is no charge for you to set up and manage a Google My Business listing if you know how to do it.
While you, yourself, may not know how to set up a Google My Business listing, any of your tech-savvy friends who owns a business most likely will. I am that tech savvy friend for my friend who got scammed. In fact, I claimed the listing for her and TOLD HER TO CALL ME when she was back in town (she was going out of town the day after I claimed her listing for her). But she got a call from a "Google Business Partner" when she was out of town and decided to have that "Google Business Partner" set up her listing instead.
Because she's not tech savvy, she didn't know anyone could do this. She thought you had to be affiliated with Google in order to configure the listing.
This is a crying shame, as she's living off a tight budget and I was going to do it for her for free since she's a friend. Instead, the deceitful "Google Business Partner" scammed her out of $300 for something she could have gotten done for free.
2) What should you do if you get a call from a "Google Business Partner" out of the blue?
HANG UP. Google employees do not call you unless you have reported an issue to them by email first.
3) How do I set up a Google My Business listing myself?
That's like me asking someone to explain to me how to hang drywall. It would be really hard for that someone to explain it to me since I've never even used a power tool and can't cut a straight line to save my life. That said, I do have some tips for you.
- You can search "setting up a Google My Business listing" on Google or YouTube
- You can ask a tech savvy, business owner friend to help you (best option)
- You can proactively contact a company to help with setting up a Google My Business listing, preferably a local company. But do your due diligence. Read their reviews and call them to talk with them. Companies will charge a fee to do the set up. A reputable company will tell you that you can set it up yourself for free before they tell you they will charge for the service.
4) Never give up ownership of your Google My Business listing
This one is a little harder to explain. If you created or claimed a Google My Business listing yourself, anyone else who wants to manage the listing must be granted access to the listing.
The safest way to grant access to the listing is to make them a user of your Google My Business listing. If the person or company you hire asks for your user name and password to help you, ask them to request access to the listing instead.
When you receive the request, make sure the access request is to be a Manager, not an Owner. If they request Owner status, change it to Manager before granting them access. As a manager, they should be able to do everything you can do, EXCEPT transfer primary ownership of the listing to someone else (e.g., themselves).
Whatever you do, don't share with them your user name and password that you use with other accounts.
Sharing your username and password with a stranger, or even with a friend, puts you at risk of identity fraud. Why? Because you probably use the same password for logins to other accounts. And if you're not tech savvy, you probably use the same password for your bank accounts. Do I really need to go into this? So, I repeat, don't share your login credentials with A STRANGER. And use care when sharing with friends.
If you really need to share your username and password because you don't want to be bothered with tech stuff, AT LEAST change your PASSWORD to a UNIQUE password that you've never used before. Do NOT share with them a password that you reuse with other accounts. And please, please, please remember to write down this unique password somewhere and remember where it is!!
5) You need to be an "owner" of your Google My Business listing
If a reputable company configured your Google My Business listing, they will freely make you an owner of your Google My Business listing when you ask them.
If they won't or they want to charge you, you have problem. Fill out this form to notify Google that you need help to reclaim your Google My Business listing due a violation of their 3rd-party policies.
Or you can hire a company like Bizzistance to help you get your listing back under your control. I'll likely be doing this for my friend.
If you have any questions about the content in this article, don't hesitate to contact me at info@bizzistance.com! If you found this article helpful, you may find other articles in my Small Business Tips Series helpful. Check out the Series here!
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