I remember the first time I ever saw the opening crawl to Star Wars: Episode IV – the music was grand, the words were hard for me to understand (I was five) but from that opening brass swell to the very last low-budget circle wipe I was hooked. Princess Leia was going to marry me once I was old enough and if I could have I would joined up with the rebellion – power converters at Toshi Station be darned!
I’m in my older years now, but Star Wars still holds that same magic. Sure, Mr. Lucas may have tried to dress up a newer version (and even almost succeeding in winning me over with Leia’s mom) but the classics will always hold a special place in my heart.
I can see you asking yourself now – what does this have to do with SEO? Just like Mr. Lucas I’m about to take some creative liberties with the classics.
The Empire
What is the Empire? In the movies the Empire is just like it sounds – big, evil, and seemingly disconnected from the very systems that it rules over. Does this sound familiar in the SEO Universe? I can think of at least one seemingly large empire that encompasses quite a large universe and seems disconnected from the systems that it controls.
There are plenty of documented cases where Google’s lack of support for integral systems is apparent. With the advent of Search+, Google’s continued mantra of “Don’t be evil,” seems to be losing ground – and becoming an empire that people are becoming increasingly distraught with. Now, I know you now what’s coming. It’s time for…
The Rebellion
Just like the well documented cases of Googles lack of support, there are several articles that outline the disadvantages to the Search+ system and Googles heavy-handedness in implementing Search+. As the rebellion of this little story we’re tasked with finding the weaknesses in the Empire, in building strong bridges with others, and in destroying a planet-busting moon-sized space station.
Since that last one is a bit beyond my pay-grade I’ll stick with focusing on the things that I can change – Google’s implemented a city-center algorithm? I’m on it. Places doesn’t support that location? Lets break out mapmaker!
The rebellion was small, but they were smart – and more importantly, they were dedicated.
The Other Guys
Of course, the rebellion wouldn’t have been successful at all if it wasn’t for the furry friends on the forest moon of Endor. Ewoks may have been nothing more than a marketing gimmick at the time, but the fact still remains that the lovable Princess Leia and company would’ve been nothing more than the latest casualty of the Empire if it wasn’t for them.
I’d like to introduce Yahoo!, Bing, and the other search engines; admit it – there’s a little giggle in there in imagining Bing as a furry little dwarf bear. Wearing leather. Giggles aside, lets remember that its the little guys that eventually won out the day – and in the SEO universe, its the little, consistent things that will win out over the empire.
Want to know more about me? Visit my G+ Profile page: +Curtis Richins