Check here for the latest news and updates affecting local search platforms during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some updates sourced from internal communications. Where available, the issue name links to the relevant news story. Newest updates in red.
Google My Business
| Issue | Description | Last Updated |
| Reviews | Reviews and review response disabled, announced 3/20/20, gradual rollout for reviews but all response functionality was globally disabled in dashboards on the day of the announcement. Update 3/31/20: Google's messaging to those who attempt to leave reviews, as of Friday 3/27, indicates that publication is delayed, rather than completely disabled. Mike Blumenthal writes on Twitter 3/31: "Google indicates that their aim is to moderate and publish review content that was suppressed when things get back to normal." | 3/31/2020 |
| Ranking | Google's Danny Sullivan has stated that temporary closure has no impact on ranking. His tweet on the subject on 3/29 reads, "Temporarily closed doesn't impact ranking or visibility." Google has also modified its help page on COVID-19 by adding: "Marking your business temporarily closed will not affect search ranking and it will be treated similar to open businesses." We asked for further clarification, because we previously saw some impact on discovery search. Sullivan responded: "It does not have an impact. It is a recent change. We expect to provide better messaging soon." | 3/30/2020 |
| Events | Google is displaying a message in the Events section of the Knowlege Panel (this section only appears when Google has event content to add to a location): "COVID-19 alert: Event information may be out of date due to the coronavirus (COVID-19). Confirm details with event organiziers." | 3/30/2020 |
| Hours | Google is displaying a special message next to hours of operation in the Knowledge Panel: "Hours or services may differ due to COVID-19." This message appears to display only in cases where the location is not marked temporarily closed and has not set special hours. | 3/30/2020 |
| Posts error | Google has announced that Posts were temporarily disabled for some businesses but are now re-enabled. Their full message reads: "Attention: Business posts were temporarily disabled for some businesses and have since resumed. We’re working to reprocess previously rejected posts - please check within a few days to see whether your post is live, or create a new one. In addition, if you are creating a post about business updates related to COVID-19, you can now create a 'COVID-19 update', which will be featured more prominently within your Business Profile." |
3/30/2020 |
| Posts | Google has released (3/24) a new post type for COVID-19 updates. Update 3/25/20: The new COVID-19 posts will tentatively stay live for 14 days but this is subject to change. Update 3/27/20: Google has temporarily lifted the API limitation that previously blocked accounts with 10 or more locations from creating Posts. Now Posts can be sent via the GMB API but they must contain updates relevant to COVID-19. | 3/27/2020 |
| Attributes | Google has released an update that shows these attributes more prominently in listings: "Takeout," "Delivery," and "Dine in." They will show whether marked "yes" or "no," with the typical use case for many restaurants being "Takeout" yes, "Delivery" yes, "Dine in" no. A check mark indicates "yes" and an X indicates "no." We see this live in mobile search but not yet in the Maps app or on desktop; we are told the full rollout will occur by early next week. | 3/27/2020 |
| Healthcare Listings | GMB has a new support page for healthcare providers that advises them about how to create effective business profiles and emphasizes the importance of telemedicine as well as other special services. Such services can be indicated using service attributes as well as in descriptions and Posts. | 3/26/2020 |
| Temporary closures | Temporary closure flag now live in GMB dashboard. New Google help page explains how to use. | 3/25/2020 |
| Support resources | GMB phone support and chat support no longer work. The only way for most businesses to contact GMB is to send an email. | 3/24/2020 |
| Keywords in business name | We are told that keywords in business names such as "Temporarily Closed" or "Pickup and Delivery Only" are not officially sanctioned by Google and can cause suspensions. | 3/23/2020 |
| Photos | There are reports that user uploaded photos are not showing up in listings (not business uploaded photos.) | 3/23/2020 |
| Special hours bug | There is a bug where setting special hours causes all hours to disappear in Maps (though not in Search); has been reported to Google but no resolution yet. | 3/20/2020 |
| Questions and answers | Q&A disabled, announced 3/20/20, hidden from public view for all profiles. | 3/20/2020 |
| Edits | All edits delayed due to reduced staff and increased scrutiny; critical edits and healthcare prioritized. | 3/20/2020 |
Yelp
| Issue | Description | Last Updated |
| Special Messaging | Yelp has added special messaging to all profiles -- except those already marked temporarily closed or that have special hours in place -- saying: "COVID-19 Advisory: Business operations may be affected. Due to ongoing precautionary measures, please contact the business directly for updated hours and availability." This message can be edited by the business by logging in to the Yelp dashboard. Businesses that are marked temporarily closed or have special hours can also edit a special message that will appear in profiles, but the standard message quoted here will not show. Update 4/2/20: Yelp has added the ability to edit special messaging to the API. | 4/2/2020 |
| Fundraising for SMBs | Launching donate buttons for SMBs in collaboration with GoFundMe. | 3/24/2020 |
| Ads | Ad fees will be waived for SMBs especially restaurants and nightlife. | 3/20/2020 |
| Contact-free-delivery | Yelp will highlight this option in cooperation with GrubHub; slated for release the week of 3/23. | 3/20/2020 |
| Pickup and delivery | Yelp will help restaurants highlight this option where dine-in closed. | 3/20/2020 |
| Virtual services | Yelp will launch features to make it easier for consumers to find virtual versions of local services. | 3/20/2020 |
| Review moderation | Yelp announced more stringent restrictions on reviews that mention COVID-19 or blame businesses for reduced services due to COVID-19; any reviews can be submitted to the moderation team : Yelp Support. | 3/20/2020 |
| Temporary closures | Yelp has a method for marking temporary closure via API or in the Yelp account; must have a reopen date. | 3/18/2020 |
TripAdvisor
| Issue | Description | Last Updated |
| Pickup and delivery | Businesses can indicate availability of "delivery and pickup only" in the TripAdvisor dashboard. | 3/24/2020 |
| Ads | TripAdvisor will waive ad fees for restaurants in closed areas and all fees for Premium. | 3/24/2020 |
| Special hours | Businesses can add special operating hours in the TripAdvisor dashboard. | 3/24/2020 |
| Temporary closures | TripAdvisor accepting requests that a temp closed flag be set for affected locations; a date for temporary closure can be set in the dashboard but cannot be set in bulk. | 3/20/2020 |
| Pickup and delivery | TripAdvisor will be showcasing in search restaurants that offer pickup and delivery over other services like reservations. | 3/20/2020 |
Apple Maps
| Issue | Description | Last Updated |
| Temporary closures | Apple allows you to set a temp closed flag; must have a reopen date. | 3/17/2020 |
| Special hours | This is a relatively new feature that you can use to set temporary hours due to special circumstances. | 3/17/2020 |
| Amenities | Apple recommends using amenities to indicate special services like availability of pickup or delivery. | 3/17/2020 |
| Testing sites |
Apple supports a new category for testing sites: health.diagnosticservices.laboratorytesting.virologicaltests. |
3/17/2020 |
Bing
| Issue | Description | Last Updated |
| Temporary closures | Bing has added a temporarily closed flag in the Bing Places dashboard and the API so that businesses can mark themselves closed due to COVID-19; must provide reopen date but the date is used internally so the flag does not stay live forever; date does not show publicly. Setting the flag may cause listings to become less relevant in search but they will not disappear. | 3/26/2020 |
| Special hours | Bing supports special hours, so businesses can mark their hours as reduced or modified due to COVID-19 within the Bing Places dashboard or via API. | 3/24/2020 |
| New schema spec | Bing has announced that it has adopted the new Special Announcement Schema specifications for COVID-19. | 3/23/2020 |
Schema.org
| Issue | Description | Last Updated |
| New specifications | Schema.org has launched v7.0 with new special announcements, testing center location type, and event updates including virtual events. | 3/16/2020 |
| Issue | Description | Last Updated |
| Fundraising | Offering $100M in small business grants and ad credits to assist SMBs. | 3/18/2020 |
| Special hours | Update standard hours to indicate reduced availability. | 3/18/2020 |
| Special announcement | Best recommendation is to use pinned posts; these can explain any special circumstances and give you a chance to add photo content and brand messaging. | 3/18/2020 |
| Temporary closures | Facebook does not have a good method to indicate this; but you can select "No hours available" and use other messaging to communicate that you are temporarily closed. | 3/18/2020 |
Foursquare
| Issue | Description | Last Updated |
| Special hours | Foursquare has released a new specification making it easier to mark businesses as temporarily closed, having reduced hours, or having separate hours for specific services like drive through. | 3/24/2020 |
| Description | Foursquare descriptions are prominent in profiles on City Guide and Swarm and can be used to communicate any special circumstances. | 3/24/2020 |
Neustar Localeze
| Issue | Description | Last Updated |
| Special announcement | Neustar's tagline and keyword fields can be used to indicate special circumstances such as "Delivery and takeout only," "Open by appointment only," or "Temporarily closed." Update 4/1/20: Neustar has added a new description field that can also be used to communicate special circumstances. | 4/1/2020 |
| Processing Time | Businesses should consider that, due to the time it takes for updates to be syndicated and published, Neustar updates should be reserved for information that is likely to stay current for a few weeks | 3/25/2020 |
