Update 2/11: The issue appears to be resolved and all of the old reviews are restored.
Update 2/10: Google has confirmed an outage related to the business profile review counts and is working to correct the problem.
Countless businesses rely on Google and the business profile reviews offered on the platform to provide information to potential customers and answer questions for current patrons. These reviews have become the new word of mouth that promotes local businesses and alerts customers of issues with a particular business or service. While there are other review sources and platforms, because of the scope of Google and the trust placed in the company by businesses and consumers alike, the announced issues have created much concern among business owners. Many shoppers make their selections based on the number of positive or negative reviews on Google related to a particular store or establishment.
When contacted, an employee at Google stated that the issue was not impacting all businesses by showing fewer than actual review counts. They thank customers for their patience as this issue is corrected and ask that they not immediately report the issue. They also state that there could be other reasons for the decline in review counts and ask those seeing a lower number of reviews to consult their Help Center Article for more information.
If you have additional questions or concerns related to your Google profile or website, please feel free to contact the experts at Digital 1 to discuss our team’s service and expertise, which could invigorate the results your website provides and your presence on the World Wide Web.