Why your Google Business post keeps getting rejected

You write an offer, add a photo, press publish — and a day later the post is gone with a one-line "rejected" notice and no explanation. Then it happens again. Eventually you stop posting. We know, because that is exactly what happened on our own listing for a year.

The usual reason: a phone number in the text

Google's post policy does not allow phone numbers inside the body of a post. It is not obvious, the rejection notice does not say it, and it is the single most common cause we see. Indian businesses are especially prone to it because we naturally end every message with "call 98xxx xxxxx".

Same offer, same photo, phone number removed, a Call now button added instead — published instantly.

Other things that get posts pulled

• Email addresses or website URLs typed into the text (use the button instead)
• Words in ALL CAPS across the whole post, or rows of emoji
• Stock photos with visible watermarks
• Prices in the body for regulated categories (clinics, pharmacies)
• Anything that reads like a review of yourself — "best in Mumbai", "no. 1 rated"

What to do instead

If a post was rejected, do not appeal — edit it. Remove the number, add the button, republish. It usually goes live within minutes.

Why it matters

A profile with a fresh post every week or two gets shown a little more often, and a profile with a year of nothing tells Google — and customers — that the business may not be active. This is one of the fifteen things we check on every listing, and one of the easiest to fix.