I am a dedicated Local Guide contributing photos and videos to Google Maps to help users find accurate and useful information about different locations. However, I have recently noticed that some of my uploaded photos and videos are not being featured at their respective locations, even though they comply with Google’s guidelines.
Issue Details:
My contributions are visible in my profile but not prominently displayed at the location. The images/videos meet Google’s quality standards and are relevant to the place. Other similar contributions from other users are being featured, but mine are not. There is no clear indication of why my content is not being shown. Waited several days for processing, but the issue persists.
I would appreciate it if you could review my contributions and clarify why they are not being featured. If there is anything I need to correct or improve.
Es sieht alles sehr gut aus und das System trifft nun mal seine Auswahl.
Ich würde mir keine Sorgen machen.
Mit der Zeit wachsen auch die Aufrufe. @PushpaKhan
We are doing a social service, and Google does not give us anything for it. We do this work out of our own will. But if they do not explain the reason for the problem in this way, it is very unfortunate because it discourages the work.
Hey @PushpaKhan
I’m glad you asked! Many people rely on Google Maps ratings when choosing a restaurant or store. Recognizing this, some businesses started using fake reviews to boost their ratings. In response, Google developed an AI to detect and remove fraudulent reviews.
However, like any AI, Google’s system isn’t perfect. It sometimes mistakenly shadow bans genuine reviews without any notification—hence the term “shadow ban.” If multiple reviews from the same user get shadow banned, eventually, all of their reviews may be blacklisted.
Despite potentially blacklisting a large number of local guides, Google still maintains a functional system due to the sheer volume of contributors.
Thank you for your explanations @shinutrk, As far as I know, it is correct what you said, but let me add one more thing regarding @PushpaKhan’s point:
The reason, why will never see any explanation why a post was rejected, is not only the huge number of contributions, but also the fight against SPAM and false information.
If Google would reveal what exactly the filter is checking and rejecting, it would make it more easy for spammers and professional creators of fake new, to bypass the checks.
@WilfriedB and @shinutrk, both of your opinions are correct. Thank you for providing me with a solution. Actually, Google’s developed AI is very weak and cannot always make the right decisions.
Hi @PushpaKhan , and thank you for the tag, @shinutrk
Please let me first of all return to the topic: “Issue with My Photos & Videos Not Being Featured on Google Maps”.
As you know, only a few photos and videos are “featured” (made visible in the first group of photos.
If everyone’s images were featured it would be like saying that no one is. Understanding the logic behind a featured image can certainly help improve the way to add photos to Google Maps. The selection is made by the AI based on a combination of factors:
Relevance - The image must clearly represent the business, and not simply be taken near the business, or show it vaguely.
Quality - The image should be sharp, with good resolution. Good saturation is generally preferred.
Context. Depending on the type of business, the AI chooses images that can be most significant for that type of business: Storefront, dishes, products
Well, not really. Several of your contribution are low resolution screenshots. Where the original photos taken by you?
Here below how a photo (uploaded by you very recently in low resolution), appears on desktop. In the red bow three very dark photos. One of them is featured, but only because you are the only one who uploaded photos in there.
[Deleted]
I also wonder if the images are all yours. In some places you have uploaded images with four different sizes and formats.
In conclusion, there is still a lot of work to do to make your images of good quality. We could say that “there is room for improvement”.
Try to work on the points mentioned above, and for sure you will have more featured photos.
Sure, but we can’t use this as a justification for low quality contents.
So I don’t think the solution is that
@shinutrk
It’s a possibility, but in this specific case the reasons are quite different
@ErmesT First of all, thank you for suggesting such a solution, and once again, thank you for pointing out some of my inconsistencies. I am working on improving this.
Also privacy is extremely important, and you seem to completely ignore this principle. People’s faces, including children, are often visible in your photos, and this is a big no.
Additionally, you mentioned that my content lacks privacy and that I seem to be completely ignoring this policy. You stated that my photos often show people’s faces, including children. I want to clarify that your accusations are incorrect and baseless because I always try to ensure that people’s faces are not visible and that privacy is maintained. Moreover, I never upload pictures of children.
I admit that the photos you mentioned have poor resolution, and I am trying to upload better-quality photos in the future. However, these photos have been featured on Google Maps, while many of my high-quality photos are not being featured.
You are right, @PushpaKhan , and I do apologise for that sentence.
This was a mixup with another Local Guide who was asking about how to improve his number of views. My fault, I have deleted that sentence from my previous reply.
Sorry about that
Two days after being posted your two photos (the ones in small size uploaded here) are now the last two of the 15 photos of the business even if technically are the two best photos of the series, but the small size is demoting them.
However I’m sure that one is not the original size of the photo, that one is most probably just the size of a thumbnail, so I wonder where are the photos coming from.
Pending upload
Have you tried to tap on the (!) to have more details? It will probably tell you more about the reason why the upload is pending.
Normally it’s because the photos and videos are checked, Ind the time may vary
Thank you for pointing out my mistakes; it has benefited me because I will be able to do better in the future. Thank you for providing me with this solution.
