A Business Record is structured data, not a listing page. These are the rules every record on the network is held to.
One organization, one record
A business is stored exactly once. Multiple addresses become Location Records beneath the same Organization Record — never duplicate organizations.
Locations carry the facts
Address, phone, hours and accessibility belong to a location, which may inherit from the organization or override it where the location differs.
Service areas are explicit
Businesses that travel to customers or operate online declare a service area instead of a storefront address, so they are never listed as a place they do not occupy.
Records are claimed, not assumed
Editing rights come from a reviewed claim. Until a claim is approved, a record stays unverified and is labelled as such.
Verification is dated
Verified records show when they were last verified and when they were last updated, so age is visible rather than hidden.
Completeness is measured, not required
Each record carries a completeness score. Thin records still publish; complete records rank better.
Corrections propagate everywhere
A correction is made once and appears on every surface publishing the record at the same moment, because no surface holds a copy.