Help... Need advice

Hello all,

I am writing here because I need advice. I do marketing a decent amount and I am trying to help an older man with his business... I will not describe the business in detail. He bought this business from another man. Being older and not understanding technology he just purchased the physical property. The seller didn't explain the importance of the website, yelp page and google page.

I called yelp and got his yelp page set up. Prior the yelp page was out of wack, it had pictures of competitors business numbers and even had a competitor advertising his services on HIS yelp page. Messed up.

I tried contacting google to merge the account. Unfortunately the owner I am helping got heated when he heard the google rep mention the competitors name. So I believe google is suspicious now. So I don't think I'll be able to handle the google listing properly.

Also, my friends website's login details are unknown because the man he bought it from won't give it to him. So what the competitor did is put false reviews on there to make my friends business look unt-rust worthy. The competitor is posting on the Google+ page that belongs to my friends business, even though he's the one with the login details... Lol smh

All in all, I just need advice making sure my senior friend has his proper google page set up and his website intact.

My plan of action is to create a new website with proper information. I can't go into the current website because the competitor has the login details. He is using this to alter the website and make my friends business look disreputable.

Next I will try calling google to either properly edit the page.

Any advice will help. It just irks me that this other competitor is taking advantage of this guy. The competitor isn't even that good at SEO, he just has control over the Google+ page and website.

Thanks,
The Universe

can't you sue for that?

so let me get this straight
your friend purchased Mr Z's business... (normally you sign an agreement not to compete for x time period when you do such a deal; find out in the contract if there was any such agreement)

looks to me like Mr Z is slandering the guy's name because it was previously his business and now they are competing... the fake reviews are considered libel i think? not entirely sure

however i believe what is going on is illegal... I'm new to the forum but i want to offer ANY help i can... that way when it's time for me to ask you guys to help me get started (haven't made a dime yet, maybe someone will help)

Written defamation is called "libel," and spoken defamation is called "slander." Defamation is not a crime, but it is a "tort" (a civil wrong, rather than a criminal wrong). A person who has been defamed can sue the person who did the defaming.