Late last summer, I 'Googled' my regular diner to confirm its closing time, and was shocked to find that the site had marked it Permanently Closed. I quickly called the restaurant and learned, thankfully, that it hadn't shut down; however, its Google presence had been hijacked.
And despite the owners' best efforts, it seemed there was nothing they could do about it.
7 comments:
Where's the scary story?
If they are worth the food they serve they would likely lose little to no business. The local diner does not rely on google to survive.
The scary part is the effort by some nefarious tech scumbags to put a long-time restaurant out of business. Especially since Bed-Stuy suddenly became an upscale foodie mecca even though crime and poverty is still rampant and visible in the town.
It's disturbing because diners and grocery stores that once endured for decades are now being forced to fold.
Hijacking of google listings happens too often. "Nothing could be done about it" is untrue. The listing can be reclaimed. But what businesses should do is claim their business to begin with. You will find, in google maps, many business listings with a selection for "Claim this business". If it's your business, do it before someone else does.
Kinna non-story tbh. Glad the place this guy likes has endured and thrives, but nothing of substance here. Sleady ad-mkting types have always wanted to gullible to believe that "what's online" > "what's actually on the street". TG it's not true yet..
Let me see some artisan "Single Origin" coffee shop will replace it. All sorts of hipster crap are replacing decades old businesses all over the city.
The fault here is Google's and google alone. If they are going to place businesses on their maps, they should be polite enough to at least send that business a post card and let them know how to claim it or manage the listing.
This isn't rocket science, though many of these tech firms are clearly short of common sense these days.
This has been happening with established locksmith shops for over a decade now. You look for the locksmith five blocks over that you've used before, they answer with the correct name, but the guy that shows up? You've never seen him before.
The final invoice is WAY more than you've ever paid before for a similar service.
Bunch of scammers out there.
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