How do I get my review unshadowbanned?

Google Maps tips & tricks
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1

is there an appeal process?

my review was shadowbanned on my main page (let’s call it Aden 1, over 100 ratings) for the word “tragic”.

this was in 2021.

so I make a duplicate profile (Aden 2) and repost it with word removed.

this was in 2022.

it successfully stays up.

last month, to store a draft of a longer review, I “post” it on Aden 1.

(this is a habit of mine for years, rearranging it and editing it. the owner never replied as my reviews are still hidden to him.)

however this time:

I get email saying owner has replied.

omg… the shadowban has expired after 5 years!!

I rush to delete the review from Aden 2 so the Aden 1 review can stay up.

it’s too late. the owner has reported the Aden 1 for being a duplicate review.

obviously I’m not trying to spam their page with 100 copies of the same complaint from 100 Aden’s.

it was an accident.

2

Welcome to Connect.

Creating or using a second Local Guides account to avoid sanctions is a clear violation of the guidelines in the first place.

It is more likely that the spamfilters did this rather than some owners complained.

The spamfilters are extremely good at picking up on duplicate texts and accounts owned by one individual.

3

first of all - I never received a formal “sanction”, Maps notified me of nothing at all, I discovered the shadowban for myself.

second - the Aden 2 review successfully stayed up for a long time. even it being a duplicate profile from the same IP address, same device ID, blah blah.

Maps was nonethewiser.

as long as I was the only Aden review on that business, it was tolerated.

while it’s true the owner may not have reported the “2 reviews from 2 Aden’s live on my business at the same time in a 24hr period” issue himself and the spam filters got it, I still need to know how to reverse the filter.

4

Hi @uinstitches,

As @MortenCopenhagen mentioned, you must not create more than one Local Guides account, as this may lead to restrictions. Having multiple accounts to avoid restrictions in the Local Guides program is not allowed.

Although you mentioned that your intention is not to spam, posting the same review for the same place from different accounts is considered spam, and Google’s systems are designed to detect this behavior.

The notifications informing users that a review has been blocked by the algorithm are currently available only in some countries. Whether you receive those notifications depends on the country where your account is based.

My recommendation is that, if you want to continue participating in the Local Guides program and avoid restrictions on your account, use only one account to contribute and avoid posting duplicate reviews.

Regards,
Ceci

5

@uinstitches
Welcome to Connect. Please let me clarify a few points:

This is the best way to have both accounts suspended, and the reviews removed. It’s called “rating alteration” and it’s an extremely serious violation, because in that way a single person rate the business more than once.
The most simple way to have a review published after the removal is to simply edit it, by modifying the text and/or removing the media attached.

Regarding the notification, please let me correct you, @Cecilita : a notification is sent when a review is written for a place in a country where that notification is required by law: European Union and a few other countries.