Newsletter
In a not so surprising move, Google will essentially be shutting down Google+ local pages that have been deserted. This means that unclaimed business pages (or business pages that have been unused for a long period of time) will be getting shut down by Google. All of which will be happening next week on July 28.
It is important to note that this move by Google is nothing more than a cleanup of unused Google+ local pages. This has absolutely nothing to do with the rumors that Google+ is being killed off in the near future or anything else pertaining to that matter. But, this move may signify that Google is in the process of completely separating local pages from Google+. Again, this has nothing to so with Google killing off Google+, it does however show more signs of Google+ no longer being the backbone of Google, like the service once was.
News of Google getting rid of abandoned Google+ local pages comes from a post made by the search giant itself in the Local Search Forums. Said post details why Google is doing this making this move. Here is the post word for word, “In the past few months, you may have seen some changes in the look of Google+ pages that have been associated with Google My Business (GMB) accounts. These changes, including how we treat business pages without owners, are part of Google’s ongoing effort to simplify people’s experience with our tools. We are constantly working to provide only valuable and rich content to our users. On July 28th, Google will begin shutting down those GMB-associated Google+ pages that have not been associated with user accounts and are also not verified. You may find that some of your Business View tours also sit on such pages, but note that after this removal of unverified Google+ pages, the Business View tours will still remain available on Google Maps and Google Search.”
Despite all of this, if you own a business and would like to maintain your Business View tour listing, the Google Maps team has offered some help. They recommend that you simply take the time to verify your business listing. If this is done then the business should be able to keep their listing as well as the Business View virtual tour that comes with it.
At the end of the day, this is a good thing that will likely benefit a lot of Google users. With all of the deserted Google+ business page being taken down, users who are looking for a business page will no longer come across pages that haven’t been touched in 14 months. In other words, business pages that users come across will soon be business pages that are used quite frequently and contain useful, recent information about the business. Also, hopefully putting an end to spam or fake business pages that seem to be found on Google+.