When a business goes viral for the wrong reasons, people take out their anger on it with negative reviews. These people are referred to as keyboard warriors. While these reviews violate Google’s TOS, the damage is done. A photographer in Asheville, NC, is claiming to be the victim of mistaken identity. Taylor Parker has the same name as the killer from Netflix’s documentary Marernal Instincts.
I am currently only seeing one negative review. It is the same review from the news story. This same negative review is the one featured in Taylor’s Instagram post. Did Google remove the other reviews before the story was published? Google typically removes reviews before a story is published. However, it takes a few days for the rating to reflect the score. Taylor hasn’t posted anything new about the attack or the removal of reviews.
I do hope that this was an actual review attack and not a sad attempt at marketing. If this were a hoax, then Taylor may experience a real review attack. If this were a marketing ploy, it wouldn’t work. Taylor’s Google Business Profile (GBP) has recieved 18 5-star reviews since the one 1-star rating. Google removes positive reviews when a business is going viral. I would expect to see reviews posted within the past few days to be removed. One of the 18 reviews was posted five hours ago. When Google removes reviews in a case like this, they lock down the profile to prevent any new reviews. Nothing is adding up here. I sure hope I am wrong because this is a horrible way to market your business and gain sympathy.
I reached out for comment, but I have not heard back.