Google Instant Verification Passes The Sentence & Swings The Sword
August 28th, 2014 by
On July 31st, Google rolled out an instant verification option for local businesses that have already verified their websites with Google Webmaster Tools.
There is, however, very specific cases. As the Google support page linked above states, it’s important to note “that some business categories may not be eligible for instant verification.”
Webmaster tools verification option won’t work for your business if:
- You’re creating a new listing
- The pre-existing listing is already claimed by another user and your business has to request ownership
- You have to change the website on the pre-existing listing you want to claim
- Webmaster Tools isn’t verified BEFORE you claim the listing
- Webmaster Tools isn’t verified in the same account that you are claiming your business listing in
- Your company’s “My Business” category is not one of the Google approved categories eligible for this verification.
“My Business” pages we tested:
Car dealership: Claimed in account with pre-existing listing in need of claiming – worked
Heating supplies provider: Had ALL ideal criteria. Listing had correct site and was available to claim, and WMT was already verified in the account. – didn’t work (So this business must have a category problem that makes it ineligible.)
Real Estate: Created new listing- didn’t work
Basically, if it’s possible, Google will automatically verify your business on its own when you claim your business in Google My Business. Google skips giving you any verification options altogether and just auto-verifies the listing.
Assuming this new Google My Business feature is a work in progress on Google’s end, maybe once we see more categories accepted, it will become more doable and the qualifications may not be so restrictive. Even then, with the stipulations currently, it would be a rare occurrence.
