I think Google is brilliant in the same way Jason Calacanis is brilliant, the same way Rupert Murdoch and Donald Trump are brilliant.
In the seo world where I live there are a lot of people who spend a lot of time wailing and gnashing their teeth because of the way Google runs it’s business, mostly because it impacts their own business. Sometimes seo bloggers go on a frenzy, like starved and ravenous dingos in an overstocked butchers shop. I understand the passion behind these blog posts as money is involved.
Take the recent Page Rank reaction, which I thought was a brilliant bit of work by Google and definitely makes them more attractive to their investors. They saw people using Page Rank to sell links, so they devalue Page Rank to screw the market. Brilliant stuff. Exactly what I would have done if I ran Google and yet some of my fellow seo chums do not think so.
When money is concerned it’s difficult to be objective. Google’s actions can shift a lot of dollars from one bunch of people’s pockets to another bunch of people’s pockets.
Is a bedroom blogger’s opinion as informed as a multi billion dollar company stacked to the rafters with phd. types? Probably not.
Can a gaggle of bedroom bloggers have an influence beyond their seo bubble? Probably not. A few may get quoted by old and crusty media outlets, but seriously, whose listening?
When the latest “lets moan about google fest”, started I couldn’t get Tony Soprano out of my head each time I thought of Google. Now I am not saying that Google has any resemblance to organised crime or even dis-organised crime. What I draw from the connection is Tony Soprano would say, “It’s just business” and that’s what Google, Calacanis, Murdoch, Trump are about. They are simply taking care of business, in a brilliant way.
I also think of a quote, but for the life of me I cannot find out who said it, but basically goes like this. “Gee, that restaurant is always busy, you can never get a seat. They’re bound to go bust if you can never get a seat.”