Here’s a post i dropped at Seoers.org on the subject of how clever Google really is. If you believe some people they see all, know all. If you believe others they don’t know diddly squat about most things. When you look at the SERPs you can certainly see why as there are plenty of examples where spam sites are kicking arse.
The reason I asked this question was in response to this post from Danny Sullivan about helping your SEO efforts by buying up old domains. I don’t agree with some of the points he makes and I think most of it’s a case of hear say and speculation but it did prompt me to ask the question; how clever is Google really?
We all know the Google guidelines and the “dos and don’ts” of SEO and on-line marketing. But is Google actually as clever as it says at spotting violations or is it a case of smoke and mirrors? There are numerous examples of sites ranking that break these guidelines and there are also plenty of contradictions between SEOs ideas about how to gain top rankings.
Here it the fundamental question which all SEOs need to consider….
Q. How clever is Google?
A. Thick as pig sh*t
A. Not clever at all and what they say and recommend isn’t usually correct or worth considering.
A. They are more or less spot on with what they say and how they act.
A. They are cleverer than they make out but like to keep this from us.
A. They are light years beyond the public perception.The reason i ask is based on the conflicting advice I hear from SEOs all the time. One SEO does not recommend something but another does and they generally fall into three categories white, grey and black. The white hat guys would call the black hat guys fools and vice versa.
Answers on a post card…
Let’s not call the new league of wannabes who spout everything Google says as pure fact SEOs.
That said, most of the rest of us agree on most points of order on google. And that is that Google is going to do and say whatever will benefit Google.
Do they reply to most every question in obscure answers that can be taken several ways all the time? Yes.
Do they fail to spot most things in the algo, and have to rely on reviewers and web surfers to report obvious things before it is actually caught and dealt with? Yes.
Is their index full of spammy results due to their inability to police their own listings in a programmatic method? Yes.
So you tell me, are they that clever?
I visit your SEO blog frequently and its a very good SEO blog, I am not a expert SEO or Google webmaster but i like your blog as it is simple and understandable.
hi Matt,
Google isn’t perfect, but when I compare google results to Bing or Yahoo, I think google is much more clever than them. Sure, some spam gets through, but not very much…
Speaking of “spam getting through”, I did a quick google search for the comment above by Mr Animation Outsourcing, and it seems to have been posted verbatim on at least 198 blogs. Seems he visits a lot of blogs frequently and feels the exact same way about all of them…
Anyway, good post. Just wish there were more here to read. ~ Steve
PS. Found you from your sig on webproworld
Hi Steve. Thanks for dropping by. Unfortunately this site is a bit like a plumbers leaky tap at home… I just never get the time to do all the things i’d like. At some point I shall sort it out and start some regular posting. I’m also setting off on a round the world travel adventure in a few weeks which should see me with loads of time and inspiration to sort the site out.
Snatch the RSS and I’ll try and get the cogs turning.
BTW… I’ve edited the comment to make it more favourable!
hi Matt,
“this site is a bit like a plumbers leaky tap at home” LOL
You may not have a lot of posts, but you reply to comments, and you reply quickly, which is just as important or more important than having a lot of posts.
Anyway, enjoy your “world travel adventure”. Sounds like a ton of fun! Leak pipes can always be fixed later.
Steve