64% of all searches done on the internet are through Google. That’s more than half of all searches online, making Google a colossal search engine. But Google isn’t just a search engine, it’s a business. A corporation that is not only viewed as one of the greatest search engines, but also as one of the most significant, well-run, outgoing businesses in the world.
6 Comments
6 Comments
Comments
It is a business but so is everyone else who is trying to rank highly. It is hypocritical to say you shouldn’t deal in paid links, but we can do it because we make the rules. Well maybe not hypocritical but arrogant. Google has amazing PR trying to remain looking like a start-up who cares for so long. But they aren’t anymore and they are still trying to play that. They play the "do no evil" card but "evil" is subjective. I think arrogance is evil and obsessive control is evil. But I also think a slimy business face is evil, which is why Google has such amazing PR. They may need to tweak it soon though to continue looking honest and "good"
You are kinder to Google than I would have been. Yes their character has changed...from an altruistic startup to the current megalomania syndrome. And in the last year or so, they have gone from a company (that I respected) to a land-grabbing monster that is on a frenzy and sees no restrictions or limitations. Or obstacles. Don’t get me going..... As for Aaron Wall’s rant, it’s legit. Don’t throw out the SEO Book. As a fellow ranter, I fully support and appreciate a good rant. Let’s cut Aaron the slack and not Google.
Frankly, I find it pretty disgusting to see Aaron’s link hit by the Nofollow tag with Googlesites and every man and his dog mentioned in that post being denied the privilege. Looks more like a personal vendetta to me, apart from the fawning pseudo-critique singing the Goo’s praise like any other paid blogger would.
I can see both sides of this argument. Google was making a legit example in their blog post. And I’m sure at some level money being made from either side could be attributed back to the link. But at the same time, I see the bigger issue that was being addressed here: Google is very much a "say one thing but do another" company. Look at the current debate flying around about the "wall garden" at Google News. On a side note: Isn’t it just a tad over-dramatic to cut a feed (and loose faith in a resource) simply because someone writes one post you don’t agree with? Call out folks that you don’t agree with, sure. But one post does not make an entire resource bad.
I’m confused, why make an argument about Google being a business and at the same time criticize someone else who had also called them out? Seems an odd way to make a point.
Thanks for all of the responses! I’ve made some revisions to the article, for those who feel this was - in some way - an attack on Aaron or SEOBook (which was completely unrelated).