Businesses around the world woke up on the morning of September 17, 2023, to a jarring shock: an overnight removal of thousands of Google reviews. Such a mass deletion of reviews triggered massive confusion, frustration, and also concern over what this may mean for the business’s online reputation. For many businesses, online reviews are the lifeline of their local SEO and digital existence. Panic set in as businesses continued to experience an unexplained drop in their number of reviews, with some doubting if their business reputation will ever recover from such a catastrophic fall.
This piece delves deep into the causes of the sudden spike in removed Google reviews on September 17th. We’ll explore what could have led to this, how businesses have been affected, and most importantly, what you can do if your reviews were part of the purge. So, let’s unpack the details, provide some much-needed context, and offer actionable advice on recovering from the sudden changes.
Knowing Why Google Reviews Matter to Companies
The basis of the discussion on why Google reviews soared so drastically and enormously is knowing why Google reviews are so vital after all. Google remains the leading search engine for most of the internet’s users. This is no wonder why Google reviews have become one of the essential elements that go a long way in influencing consumer decisions. It helps generate trust for the company, apart from making the company score better in searches.
Reviews are essentially vital for companies because:
- Build social proof and credibility
- Improve rankings in local SEO and increase visibility
- Involve customers to enhance customer satisfaction.
- Influence the potential buyer toward the purchasing act.
For this reason, it feels like a devastating blow to business owners when reviews disappear suddenly.
The Spike in Removed Google Reviews: What Happened on September 17th?
With such a large number of Google reviews removed without warning, business owners and SEO experts became alarmed. Reports indicated that dozens if not hundreds of reviews were lost overnight with no reasonable explanation by Google. A wide array of different industries was caught up in the removals-from small local shops to large corporations.
Here are the bottom lines behind this phenomenon:
Was Google’s Review Filtering Algorithm Overhauled?
Google has always had strict policies in reviewing, ensuring that the reviews published there are authentic. As fake and manipulated reviews proliferate in higher numbers, Google regularly updates its filtering algorithm to detect and remove reviews that don’t pass its requirements, among others:
Reviews made by accounts that appear to be fake or not realReviews with content policies Most of the reviews contain inappropriate language and spam.
The promoted reviews such as purchased or traded reviews. On September 17th, Google may have updated its review filtering algorithm with a new major overhaul which resulted in removing close to 97% of reviews on the site that are determined to violate their policy. Some real reviews also got lost in this purge.
A Crackdown on Fake Reviews
An increasingly worrisome menace in recent times is fake reviews. They are created by competitors to harm a business, or a business might pay for positive reviews to enhance its ratings. Google has been making very serious efforts to curb this menace, and a recent spike in removals on September 17th could be a sign that Google is tightening its controls on this front.
Several stories about review farms and review inflation schemes appeared in the weeks leading up to the removal peak. Google may have started to notice the trends and, therefore, implemented clean-up efforts zealously on its site. It’s positive news for the anti-fraud reviews campaign, but its after-effect has been that many businesses tend to distrust the very process of removal.
Systemic Glitch or Miscalculation?
Technical or arithmetic failure: It is possible that there was a glitch in the system of Google. Sometimes algorithm updates and automated processes cause side effects. Maybe, in this situation, there is one bug or error with filtering that marked many good reviews as spam, which mass deletions followed.
Though Google hasn’t confirmed nor denied this theory, many businesses hope the removals were a mistake and that their reviews will be reinstated.
How the Spike in Removed Reviews Impacted Businesses
Google reviews are a very important trust signal for business. One may wake up to find an overnight loss of a huge chunk of reviews. Here are some ways it has affected businesses:
Loss of Consumer Trust
Reviews are perhaps the most obvious form of social proof for a small business. And when the reviews disappear, a prospective customer may not know why the rating for a business might have dropped or why it may suddenly have fewer reviews. This can be such a blow to trust that consumers become leery and wary of engaging with that business.
Google’s local search algorithm uses reviews heavily in its ranking algorithms for businesses included in the search results. This can directly affect a business’s visibility, especially in local search results. For those businesses that use local SEO alone to get web traffic and sales, such an unexplained loss of reviews could force a decline in their web traffic and customer inquiries.
Confusion and Frustration of Business Owners
The scanty earned reputation of these business people was forgotten and allowed to get covered in the cyberspace dust. Google doesn’t have a prompt word in their communication either, hence the business owners feel that their reviews disappearing is an injustice.
Their disappeared reviews would have been those of valued customer loyalty who write “I like your services” type and are enjoying doing the job. For such customers, the removal of the review feels even more unfair.
If your business was one of the many that fell victim to the September 17th Google review spike in removed Google reviews, then here’s what you can do:
Review Google’s Review Guidelines
Ensure that no review violates Google guidelines. Their removal almost certainly means they did — even if unknowingly — so reviewing the guidelines would be the best way to avoid similar problems with reviews in the future.
Contact Google Support
If you believe Google has mistakenly deleted the reviews you wrote, you might try reaching out to Google Support. Google does not have a system in place for appealing deleted reviews, but you can file a report requesting further clarification. Make sure you retain all paperwork and that you come with proof that the reviews you posted were legitimate.
Promote New Reviews
The best way to come back swinging in case reviews drop suddenly is through continued encouragement for satisfied customers to provide new ones. Be sure to follow best practices with review solicitation, including a direct request of a customer after a positive experience, a polite follow-up email or text message from a link requesting a review, and in-store or online signage or links to your Google reviews page. Continue Monitoring Your Reviews
More importantly, you should watch the reviews very closely as time goes by. Set a setting to receive a new review notification so that you’ll be able to monitor it in real time. That way you will know if they remove or change something in the future, and you can take care of it right away.
How Google Responded to Review Removal Spike on September 17th
Up to this day though, no official confirmation can be seen publically by the September 17th removals, leaving businesses and SEO pros to wonder about what could have caused this move. On such a large scale, more information will possibly come out from Google within the coming weeks.
In other cases in which Google has pulled mass amounts of reviews, on some occasions, the company has reinstated some reviews following re-examination. Businesses should be patient and wait for further clarity while doing the steps above to safeguard their business reputations in the meantime.
FAQs
What triggered the mass removal of Google reviews on September 17th?
There are many reasons behind this, including updating Google’s review filtering algorithm, an attempt to suppress fraudulent reviews, or possibly even a technological glitch.
How do I recover lost reviews?
Although Google does not have an explicit appeal mechanism, you can reach out to their support team. Encourage legitimate customers to give you new reviews as a replacement for the ones that were removed.
Why do Google reviews matter for my business?
Google reviews influence consumer trust. They enhance local search engine optimization and show you some of the most important feedback that will help you generate improved scores. You will lose your reputation and visibility online due to lost reviews.
Is Google filtering all the fraudulent reviews?
Google is continually updating the review system to ensure it filters in fake and spammy reviews, but sometimes it could even remove a few legitimate ones.
How do I prevent my reviews from being removed one day?
Just make sure that your reviews follow Google’s review guidelines and do not incentivize a review or use a review farm.
Could Google return my wrongly removed reviews?
Although this may not hold, in the past, Google has reinstated reviews deemed valid upon further review which can take weeks.
Conclusion
September 17th was a significant day for Google reviews being deleted for businesses everywhere. Though it is still unclear precisely what is causing this to happen, it serves as a wake-up call that indicates the necessity of a compliant and transparent review strategy. Businesses, that are hit by this sudden drop in reviews, have to win back that lost trust, encourage new customer feedback, and monitor their online reputation very carefully. In the meanwhile, Google is reported to be bettering its review system. However, even now, businesses can go ahead and thrive more proactively and also meaningfully engage with their customer base.
