How business listings are reviewed

Where listing information can come from

First-party owner submissions are the preferred source for service descriptions, hours, contacts and business changes. Nepali Directory can also use appropriately licensed OpenStreetMap data and reviewed imports whose origin is recorded. Every source has limits: an owner knows the business but may write promotional claims, while an open dataset can provide location evidence but may be incomplete or old.

Source information is therefore treated as evidence to review, not permission to publish every supplied claim. Nepali Directory does not use placeholder records as real businesses and should not copy Google Maps listings or reviews into its own database.

The minimum publication checks

What verification does and does not establish

A verified or claimed status can establish that a profile has passed a defined ownership or review process. It cannot prove that every service is suitable, that a professional holds every required licence, or that a future transaction will be satisfactory. For healthcare, education, legal, financial, construction and other regulated work, users should consult the relevant official register or authority.

Time-sensitive facts also need direct confirmation. Opening hours, prices, stock, menus, staff, appointment schedules and service areas may change after a page was reviewed. A directory profile helps form a shortlist; the business or responsible authority remains the source for current operational terms.

Duplicates, branches and name changes

Similar names do not always describe the same business, and one brand can operate multiple genuine locations. Duplicate review considers normalized names, phone numbers, websites, coordinates, addresses and source identifiers. Clear duplicates should merge into one record, while eligible branches retain separate profiles when they have distinct locations and useful branch-specific information.

A name or ownership change is not handled by silently creating extra pages. The record should preserve enough continuity for corrections and redirects while showing the current public identity supported by evidence.

Ratings, reviews and rankings

Rating schema is published only when the underlying profile has eligible, visible review data. Demo ratings and invented review counts stay outside public structured data. Ranking pages require enough qualified businesses to make a comparison useful; empty templates and sample providers are not published as genuine “best” results.

When a comparison is available, it should explain its criteria, evidence and review date. A different customer may reasonably choose a different provider because location, specialty, accessibility, availability, price or risk matters more to that decision than a single overall score.

Corrections, removals and disputes

Owners and users should identify the exact record and field they believe is wrong. Strong correction requests include a current official page, owner-controlled contact, registration document where appropriate, recent photograph or another source that directly supports the change. Sensitive documents should be shared only through an approved private workflow, never posted publicly.

A business may request review of a duplicate, closure, impersonation, unsafe personal information or ownership dispute. Nepali Directory may temporarily withhold a record while material evidence is reviewed. Removal from a directory does not remove the underlying information from its original public source.

Advertising and editorial independence

Paid placement must be clearly labelled and kept separate from verification, customer ratings and editorial conclusions. An advertiser can purchase visibility, but not a fabricated review history, unsupported badge or undisclosed position in an independent comparison.