Why does my Location update need additional validation?

When you update certain core details for a location in Location Manager, you may see a notification like this:

Why is this step needed?

BrightLocal syncs your location data directly to publishers like Google Business Profile on your behalf. Publishers have strict guidelines about what constitutes accurate, acceptable business information, and submitting updates that don't comply can put that access at risk.

To keep your listings in good standing and protect the quality of data going out to publishers, our team reviews changes to core business information before they're pushed live.

How long does validation take?

Our team aims to complete additional validation within 24 hours. You'll be notified by email as soon as it's done.

Which fields trigger additional validation?

If you update any of the following fields for the first time after connecting your location to Active Sync, your update will go through an additional validation step before it's pushed to publishers:

Business name
Address
Phone number
Primary category
Website URL

This only applies to the first change made to these fields after your initial connection. Subsequent updates won't require the same review.

What happens during validation?

You submit an update to one of the fields listed above.
Your location is temporarily locked for editing while the update is reviewed. You'll see the yellow notice in Location Manager while this is happening.
Our team reviews the requested change, typically within 24 hours.
You'll receive an email notification once the review is complete, either confirming the update has been accepted or letting you know if we need more information.

What if I need to make a change while my location is locked?

If you need to make edits before the review is finished, click Cancel Sync Request in the yellow notice bar. This will:

Revert your location data to its previous version.
Unlock the location so you can make changes and resubmit.

What kinds of updates might not be accepted?

We use Google Business Profile guidelines as a benchmark for best practice across all publishers. Here's a summary of what we look out for:

Business name

Must reflect your real-world business name.
No keyword stuffing, marketing taglines, or location information (unless part of your legal name).
No special characters such as %, &, $, @, ", or /.
No phone numbers, URLs, or hours information in the name.
No ALL CAPS text or trademark symbols (®).

Address

Must be a real, physical address.
No PO boxes, mailboxes, rented addresses, or co-working spaces.

Phone number

A direct, local number is preferred where possible.
Numbers that redirect callers to a different number won't be accepted.

Website URL

Must link directly to the business's own website.
Social media profiles (Facebook, Instagram, etc.) are not accepted as a business URL.
URLs that redirect to a completely different business won't be accepted.

Primary category

Must accurately reflect what your business does.

If we spot what looks like a typo or an accidental change, we'll reach out to confirm before taking action.