It’s inevitable that at some point, you’re going to encounter a problem with your Google Business Profile. Something that has you stumped. Well, don’t feel bad. Not only is it highly likely that other users will have encountered the same problem, it’s equally likely that advice and/or solutions can be found in user forums that you have access to. Here on the right of the screen, you’ll see the Help bar. This includes a selection of popular resources, a search function to help you sift through the expansive library of resources, and the option of asking the Help Community.
However, you may not find certain issues (or their solutions) within these resources and forums. Maybe there’s a technical issue, a glitch, or a specific configuration problem that requires greater specificity. To address these, you may need to contact Google’s support team, and speak to an actual human being. So let’s click the ‘Contact Us’ link to submit a ticket.
Now, before we get started it’s important to understand that you’ll need to follow all the steps provided.
First, select the business listing you’re asking for help with. For the sake of this example, let’s say the issue relates to adding departments, so we’ll enter ‘departments’ into the next field. Buttons will then appear, suggesting related topics that Support is ready to assist us with.
If your need is unique enough that you feel inclined to click ‘Other’, understand that your road to resolution may become more difficult. With that in mind, don’t be afraid to refine the way that you’ve entered your issue until buttons are generated that better reflect your needs. Once you’ve found one, hit ‘Next Step’.
This will bring you to various resources related to the button you’ve selected. In this case, I said ‘departments’ so (yup…you guessed it) it redirected me to its department-centric resources. And that’s fine – I’m a firm believer in reading related content. But let’s assume that none of these resources actually answer my needs.
Hit ‘Next Step’. Currently, the only option for contacting Google support is via email, since their live chat was disabled quite some time ago. Select your preferred language, then hit ’email’. Remember, we want to be as thorough as possible. Enter your name. From the dropdown, select your relationship to the business. Then enter your email address, phone number, and the business name & address.
Next, we see ‘Public Maps URL’. Okay…what does that mean? Having already selected a location listing, you’ll need to select that location on the map. The easiest way to do this is by opening a new tab and visiting your listing dashboard, which should include your Google Maps location within the profile. Clicking on it will open up the Google Maps location, allowing you to copy the whole URL from the browser. Then go back to the Help tab, and paste it in the ‘Public Maps URL’ field.
From there enter the URL of your business website, then go on to describe the issue with as much detail as possible. You have up to 1,000 characters to do so – and greater specificity will improve their chances of being able to help you. Here’s a pro-tip: don’t feel obligated to use the tiny window they give you to type into. Just type it up in a doc, copy it, then paste it here. Click ‘Submit’ and the window will go blank before spitting out a Case #, which you should immediately make note of.
The emailed response to your ticket will not come back immediately. It could take anywhere from a couple of hours to 3 days; and we recommend giving it that 72 hour window before feeling any sense of concern. If you hit the 3-day mark and have yet to receive a response, we recommend submitting another ticket referencing the Case# that you’d previously made note of.
Since we’re already refining your expectations, be prepared for the initial response to feel automated in nature. It’s likely to include articles they believe to be related to your issues, but may not be helpful to you. If that’s the case, reply directly to that email. This is what activates Google’s tier one support system, and flags a real person to discuss your issue with you.
Admittedly, we’ve experienced mixed results with this process, and there’s really no transparency to it. That said, diligent follow-up is important, so stay on top of them – daily if needed – to ensure your ticket is kept at the top of their list.