Hi @Dr_Shah_Imran ,
You said that you have already read other posts about this subject, so I assume you have read the official post Why is my edit status “Pending” or “Not Applied”?
Your first question “How many variables are required to submit to get the place approved or in pending status?” is simply the first three of your list: name, category, location. This can be enough to get an added place approved. However, the more data you give Google, the easier it is for Google to verify your edit suggestion.
“If my place creation is showing “NOT APPLIED” then what does it mean actually? Does it mean lack of data against these variables or others.”
Not Applied does not mean one thing when adding places.
Some examples:
- Not Applied can mean that the business that you added, has already been added by somebody else, but their edit is still pending for verification.
- Not Applied can mean that the business is claimed and still requires verification through the Google My Business program.
- Not Applied can mean that some of your submitted data is wrong or uncertain in the eyes of Google.
- Not Applied can mean that the type of place you are trying to add or the area where you are adding a new place is temporarily locked by Google, due to abuse in your area.
- Not Applied can mean that Google thinks you are adding a duplicate of an already existing place.
- Not Applied can mean that Google is unable to verify the existence of the place and because your trust-score is too low, Google is not giving you the benefit of the doubt.
- and more.
So yes, when you are dealing with a situation 6 of my list, adding more or better data can help Google make the necessary verification. But on the other hand, if one of your data elements is in the eyes of Google in doubt (#3 from my list) you may find that changing your data or leaving data out, may help your edit getting accepted!
If my place creation is showing “NOT APPLIED” then what should i do? Again submitting the place? or Gathering more data?
My personal step 1 is to investigate, like a detective. Google Search for the business and see if they are mentioned anywhere. Analyze the business’s website if they have one. For example, when it is a restaurant, does the place exist on Trip Advisor, etc. With the data that you find you may get an insight into why Google (who is checking trusted sources across the web to see if any available data supports your edit) rejected your edit.
When my detective work results in an understanding of why my edit suggestion may have failed, I see what I can do next. Sometimes this means that you have to get data corrected at one of the trusted sources (e.g. official website). Sometimes it means that you have to change the category label for the place (I shall give you an example below).
When you have done your detective work and your improvements of your edit have after you submitted the edit suggestion again, as received another Not Applied, it is usually best to walk away and look at it later again. You may improve your so-called trust-score and thus with a better trust-score, Google gives you the benefit of the doubt or somebody else with a higher trust-score will take care of it.
When we are talking about a fairly new business, it may take time for the business to be mentioned at other trusted sources. So by waiting, the external verification may improve and you get an Applied response thanks to it.
In some of the other reasons why you got a Not Applied, there is nothing that you can do and all further steps would be a waste of your time.
If my place creation is showing “Pending” then how many hours it takes to be approved?
For me, having an edit Pending is always good news. It means that I passed the automatic verification process, but Google likes to get human verification to be absolutely sure. Pending can mean two things.
- Your edit is being shown under Check the Fact and the public is asked to verify your edit.
- Your edit ends up in a job queue of an allocated Google Team and they will look into it and decide if there is enough evidence to apply your edit.
For this, there is no timeline. Automated verification can take seconds, but Pending can take months up to a year in extreme cases.
Three examples:
I once tried to add a historic building that you could visit (like a tourist attraction), but was actually a cultural center with arts and theatre activities. My first attempt failed. I analyzed their website and from their website, it was clear that they were a cultural association. By changing my category that reflected better what I concluded from their website, I got the place Applied the second time I tried.
Another time, I tried to change the category of a place that Google thought was a recreational harbor. The place was called “Nautical Club” as it was close to the sea. It was, in fact, a gym/sports club with tennis courts and a pool. I provided Google with all the necessary photos to prove what this place was about. But somehow, Google kept assuming that it was a nautical place and not a sports facility/ club. I gave up and walked away.
The place had no website at the time. Once I discovered that they created their own website, from which it was clear what they were about, I had no problem to change the category and thereby also the icon that Google showed on the map as map pointer.
I once tried to add a shop. The moment I put the map pointer in the right place, Google auto-filled the address. However, this address was wrong and did not correspond with the business card or receipt from the shop to prove their address. Since Google’s idea of where the address should be was wrong, all I could achieve is to get the business added with the map pointer at the wrong place. Not good in my opinion. As getting address markers corrected on Maps is difficult and a slow procedure, I ended up not adding the business.
As you can see, Map Editing is not always straight forward. Happy Mapping!
