Google's New Business Profile Rules: Promotions Out of Listings, Into Posts

Google has rewritten the advertising and solicitation section of its Google Maps and Business Profile content policy, Search Engine Roundtable reported on Oct. 6, 2026. A new "For merchants" section says the listing itself may not contain time-bound promotions, pricing or direct calls to action. Posts may carry offers, but not contact details or links unrelated to the business.

On its own, that sounds like a wording change. Put it next to two other recent changes, a four-day window to reject suggested edits and stricter rules on phone numbers in posts, and it adds up to a clear message for local businesses: your listing is for permanent facts, your posts are for promotions, and your website is the evidence Google checks. Here's what changed and what to fix this week.

What does Google's new policy say?

The updated section of Google's Prohibited and restricted content policy now opens with: "Contributions to Google Maps should reflect genuine experiences or define a business's permanent identity. This helps users discover listings and ensures the platform remains reliable rather than a marketplace. Therefore, don't post content for advertising or solicitation purposes."

The new "For merchants" part splits the rules in two:

• In the listing: no promotional or commercial content that contains time-bound promotions, pricing or direct calls to action.
• In posts: no email addresses, phone numbers, social media links or links to other websites that aren't related to your business. "Offers and updates that may be seen as promotional or commercial content are otherwise permitted in posts."

Search Engine Roundtable said the change was spotted by Hiroko Imai, who shared before-and-after screenshots on LinkedIn. Google hasn't published a change date or an announcement, so treat it as a clarification you should act on now rather than a dated rollout.

What else changed for Business Profiles recently?

Two related rules are worth reading together with this one.

Phone numbers in posts. Google's photos, videos and posts policy says it "may remove posts with unverified contact information," including phone numbers, email addresses and social media handles. Its suggested alternative is a Call now button, which uses your verified Business Profile number.

Suggested edits. Google's help page now says that when a suggested edit needs your review, "you have 4 days to accept or reject the suggestion." If you don't respond, Google "may automatically publish the update if it is supported by other publicly available information, such as your business website." It adds that some edits may be applied without prior review. Search Engine Roundtable flagged that wording on Sept. 23.

And one new button. On Oct. 7, Search Engine Roundtable reported that WhatsApp buttons are showing in Google's local panels next to call, directions and website, and that it could reproduce them, so the feature may be fully rolled out.

Why does it matter for local businesses?

Because the cleanup is on you. A description that says "Spring special: 20% off!", a price in the business name, or "Call today for a free quote" written into fields meant to describe the business all fall on the wrong side of the new wording. That text belongs in a post, not the listing.

The edit rule raises the stakes on accuracy. If a stranger suggests wrong hours and your website happens to show the same outdated hours, Google says it may publish the change. And as more contact options like WhatsApp appear in the panel, more customers will reach you through channels you may not be watching.

Reviews are part of the same policy page. Google says merchants may not "discourage or prohibit negative reviews, or selectively solicit positive reviews from customers," and may not offer incentives for reviews.

What should you fix this week?

1. Read your listing like a stranger. Check the business name, description and any text you wrote yourself for limited-time offers, prices or calls to action, and move them into a post. Google's wording doesn't say how this applies to the built-in price fields in the products and services editor, so ask Business Profile support before deleting those.
2. Move promotions into posts. Offers and updates are allowed there. Give each one an end date so old deals don't linger.
3. Use the Call now button. Don't type phone numbers or emails into post text, and don't link to sites that aren't yours.
4. Turn on notifications. Make sure the owner's email gets Business Profile alerts, and check suggested edits within the four-day window.
5. Make your website match. Put hours, address and phone on your site as plain text, identical to your profile. Images and PDFs are harder for Google to read.
6. Check every contact button. Search your business on Google, see which buttons appear, including WhatsApp, and make sure someone actually answers each one.
7. Ask every customer for reviews, the same way. Don't filter who gets asked. We covered how review-request flows work, and their limits, in our LocalTry review requests guide.

Disclosure: some links are affiliate links; ShopperCove may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

If you post updates for several locations or run a service business, one workspace for posts, jobs and customer messages can make this easier to keep consistent. LocalTry's offer page says it can publish Google Business updates and profile photos from job and business context, keeps an approval trail for social posts, and includes a review-request engine. Its page says five-star taps open your Google review page while lower ratings go to a private inbox. If you use that, make sure every customer still has a clear path to a public review, given Google's rule against selectively soliciting positive reviews. ShopperCove did not test LocalTry for this article. LocalTry link: Open linkShow address (affiliate link)

Tools that help

• LocalTry, CRM and operations workspace for service businesses. Per its offer page, Operator costs $99 and Scale $199 every 30 days, with a 14-day money-back guarantee on the first purchase. It lists online booking, two-way Google Calendar sync, Google Business publishing and review requests. LocalTry link: Open linkShow address

How this was made: facts were gathered on 8 Oct 2026 (IST) from Google's Business Profile help and policy pages and the Search Engine Roundtable reports listed below, then written up with AI help and checked line by line against those sources. ShopperCove did not test changes on a live Business Profile for this article.

Sources

• Open seroundtable.comShow address
• Open support.google.comShow address
• Open support.google.comShow address
• Open support.google.comShow address
• Open seroundtable.comShow address
• Open seroundtable.comShow address
• Open localtry.comShow address

Related

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