How is an add rejected if I'm standing in front of the place looking at it?

[WetCoastCanuck]

Hi @YK1001 In my experience, I just avoid adding chain stores in general. I have better use for my time.

From what my perception after adding places on Google Maps, big business doesn't need help from small fries like me.

[YK1001]

Everyone will follow their own desire to spent their own time.  I fully respect that.

I am interested to find out how to get things done.  That why I am always looking for try something new.

[WetCoastCanuck]

Hi @YK1001 Do certainly try. What I am suggest is temper your expectations. For larger stores, Google relies on their marketing department via GMB and not Local Guides, so don't be disappointed if you can't get NOT APPROVED signs like @Anonymous. I do note, there are variances e.g. not all chains have a centralized marketing department, some stores could be corporate owned or franchised.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies. Good food for thought. All my other adds and edits were approved so like I said I wasn't worried about one where an algorithm and I disagree. But curiosity got the cat on WHY.

The world may never know. This place will go down with tootsie roll pops as one of life's strange mysteries.

[TwistedNonsense]

I'd like to add something to this discussion, although my question is not about a business - it's about a school. 

In my town, there was a new middle school constructed. I attempted to add it to the map, but that edit was Not Applied. So, this is not an issue of revenue or advertising income for Google, nor about a business claiming their listing. There simply is not a listing for this school. 

The outline shape of the building is on the map, but there is no POI associated with it. 

I filled out the form completely, adding every detail that exists. I also included links to the school district website, to the page discussing the school. What else am I supposed to do? 

Should I post in the Maps forum? Is there anything they can do there? 

[PaulPavlinovich]

Hi @TwistedNonsense there are some kinds of POI which come from official sources - I would expect Schools to be one of those. I've had success adding information such as local phone numbers and websites to schools but I've never been able to add one that wasn't there. What I would suggest you do is use the Add Feedback to send in the details for that POI and let that work its way through the queue for Googlers to resolve. At the very least it should prompt them to do a layer update from the official source.

Has anyone else been able to add a school from scratch?

Regards

Paul

[WetCoastCanuck]

@TwistedNonsense @PaulPavlinovich Yes I have been able to add schools at my location before. However I believe it varies between districts. Some school districts at my location are really up on the IT stuff and they have already reserved the school (so it can't be added). Some not so much and you can add them.

Hence I feel this is an exercise on one being able to modulate one's expectations. Google gets its data from a lot of sources. Local Guides is not the only source. You can submit the information you deem is correct, but in the end it is Google who is the judge and executioner. You have submitted the information, if Google rejected it, oh well, move on to the next POI.

[Flash]

There are no features that are editable but cannot be added by users.  Many features cannot be added because they fit into a category that has not been opened for editing in Maps since the closure of Map Maker.  Many others cannot be added because they are not appropriate on the map.  There are also some legacy categories that are not available, but which normally have an equivalent available.  A select few features on the map but purposely blocked from editing, such as the transit layer and, due to the spam levels of the industry, the categories of Locksmith and Key Duplication. If it can be edited then it can be added.

Similarly, there is no chain or business that has complete control of their features.  Features on the map are from a combination of sources.  A claim in GMB simply makes the owner a trusted resource for that particular location; but it is still an amalgamation of many resources including edit from Maps.  I add and edit stores from large chains and/or GMB claimed places on a regular basis with no issues.

@Anonymous, please see this post for more on why a feature might not be added.  Google cannot be more specific about the algorithms as that would be a roadmap for spammers to follow. What that post does fail to mention is the possibility that the feature should not be on the map at all, or that there is a serious error which you are unaware about (such as using the postal address instead of the physical address).  You are welcome to post features here that you are fairly sure should have been approved but fail multiple times, we'd need the complete, exact information you submitted to help you.  We can't always spot the error, but we can then either tell you what changes to make or tell you to submit it via Send Feedback -> Other Feedback.

[Flash]

@Anonymous and @TwistedNonsense, how long has it been since you tried to add these features?

Another thing that does happen is that if an owner adds a feature or claims an already existing feature, that feature does not appear on the map until the claim process is complete.  The system still knows it is there, though, and will reject duplicate edits.  You might see a claimed feature suddenly appear, in which case it was probably in a pending state when you went to add it, resulting in your edit not being applied as it would have created a duplicate.

[YK1001]

I have an experience when I help my friend to create a business via GMB.

First of all, before he ask me to do it via GMB, I added the place via GMM.  It goes straight to Google Moderation.  (At this time, no GMB activities yet)

Then it is decided to do it via GMB.  But as the place is not publish yet, so I do it as if it never existing in Maps.

After a while, once the GMB is verified, approved and published.  Only when the GMB entry is published, then my edit got denied.