Seth Godin blogged this morning that Google is now letting users interact with search results, wiki style. True. He added that “You can vote them up and down and leave comments.” True also. (See the official Google post here.)
However, he incorrectly added “And they will be seen by others”. False!
Sorry Seth. I love your books. I love your blog. You’re famous. But you made a pretty big mistake here. So far, Google has specifically stated in their blog that “The changes you make only affect your own searches.”
Now, as SEO’s, we all know that Google’s goal is quite likely to “improve their search results” by observing which sites get promoted up and down and which ones get removed.
Will we try to “game” this to advance our own sites and the sites of our clients? Uh… Yea, at least some will!
But to come right out of the gate the first morning and state that changing your search results will mean that others see those changes was not only wrong, it was irresponsible and poor journalism.
No offense, Mr. Godin. I love your stuff. Honest. We all make mistakes.
To all my readers, please go read Seth’s blog and his books. He is (almost) always right on the money.
In case you have not heard, Jason Keath was the man behind the inaugural Charlotte WordCamp, which was held on Saturday, November 15, 2008. The event seemed to be a huge success.
So below is a brief interview I held with him on Monday, the first working day after the event…
1. Jason, when did the idea for holding a Charlotte WordCamp first come to you, and how did it all get started?
My first interest began around March. I commented on some blogs and approached some WP folks about Charlotte as a venue with little response. Which, in all honesty, is pretty fair considering the lack of these types of events in Charlotte in the past.
As most of you know, I’ve been teaching SEO for several years. But this year, we made a special effort to create and teach repeatable classes in the Charlotte area.
In doing so, many students have expressed appreciation. So far, I don’t have an official “testimonials” page on my training site, so I’m going to list a few comments I’ve been getting lately on this blog.
After spending an entire week running around NYC and Massachusetts visiting with friends, it was time to head back home to good ole Charlotte, NC, on Saturday, November 15, 2008.
I was scheduled to fly home on Saturday evening, but when I realized it was the same day as Charlotte WordCamp 2008, I was not happy. Just a few weeks before, Jason Keath had asked me to present, so I just knew I had to get there earlier.
So I woke up at 4:45 AM and my sister took me to the bus stop in Framingham, MA. From there, I took a 30 minute bus ride to Logan Airport in Boston. Thankfully, I got on an early flight and drove straight to the Charlotte Observer, where I made it to Charlotte WordCamp around noon.
Charlotte Wordcamp is only one week away. It will be held on Saturday, November 15th, at the Charlotte Observer. You can learn more and register at the Charlotte Wordcamp blog. It’s only $15 so you definitely need to go.
A few weeks ago, I ate lunch with Jason Keath and he asked if I’d be willing to present on the “How to Promote Your Blog” afternoon session. I was happy to do so and especially happy to be presenting alongside Lisa Hoffman and Wayne Sutton.
One of the hardest parts of building a new website or working with a new client is knowing where to start with link building.
In our SEO Class, we spend an entire day on linking. We start with teaching the fundamentals of linking. We then list where to get them.
I always recommend starting by looking at your own sites, your colleagues, friends, and family. Certainly, you must know SOMEONE that owns a website that could link to you.
Charlotte Wordcamp is only one week away. It will be held on Saturday, November 15th, at the Charlotte Observer. You can learn more and register at the