Negative reviews on third party platforms can feel like a life sentence. They’re unfortunately inevitable and can haunt you like a menacing demerit on your company’s reputation. The good news is that a recent Google update has made one type of negative review much easier to remove.

Google Maps has updated their guidelines to prohibit negative reviews from former employees. The amendment to the Conflict of Interest category of Google’s Prohibited and Restricted Content parameters crack down on biased content in a continued effort to create the most authentic user experience possible.

The following snapshot of the Conflict of Interest segment was taken directly from Google’s support site and illustrates the update’s specific language:

In the past, Google only guarded against reviews from current employees. If you have ever reviewed your own company (please don’t do this) you are subjecting your Google My Business and Google Maps listing to suspension (seriously, it’s Google, you can’t fool them). However, their terms only applied to those who actively worked for your company. This meant that disgruntled former employees were more than welcome to write about their experiences. Luckily these days are over, defining credible reviews even more strictly as an action taken by those with customer intent, not just as commentary on your business as a whole.

Already working with the Treehouse?

This new update provides us with one more approach to help you improve your wholistic online presence. If your Google Maps listing has suffered from a negative review by a former employee, make sure to let us know. Our Local Listings team can assess the review to see if it can be removed under the new guidelines.