It started slowly. Like a summer storm on the horizon that you knew was coming but prayed would miss you by even just a mile. Today, that storm made a significant advancement in regard to Google being a “charismatic brand” of mine. Today, I researched why my analytics were showing “Home Page” as a visited page in the traffic history. I searched in Google for one of the terms that landed someone on my non-existent “Home Page”. The result, 2nd on the list, pointed to my old URL structure, leading the user to my 404 Error Page.
I recently changed my URL structure to aid search engines in finding the site content and correctly placing the pages within their algorithms. Apparently, in the relatively short-term, where Google is concerned, this was a bad move. In the long run, once Google finally bothers to crawl my way again, things will be better than before I made this change. For the time being, however, I’m screwed.
Too Little, Too Late
People expect things yesterday. They no longer expect them now, let alone in a few months. If someone’s first impression of my company is my 404 Error Page, which translates in the mind of users as “the content of this site is unreliable”, that damages MY brand. Most people expect Google to be the one in the right. They don’t expect Google to make a mistake, especially with their search engines. Maybe in their newer technology such as Buzz or Wave it would be acceptable for them to screw up. However, they built their brand on their search engine that is now destroying mine.
“Destroying” may be too harsh a term. However, I expect more from them, just as all users do. I certainly expect them to outperform anything Microsoft could ever even fathom, let alone create.
It Doesn’t Stop There
And actually, it didn’t even start there. Whenever I look up an address on Google Maps that involves a State Road or US Highway, I have to verify with Bing that it is in fact correct—and it never is! Google couldn’t even find Bass Pro Shops’ main store in Cincinnati a few months ago.
I can’t trust Google to get me where I need to go—in search, maps, or anything else because of these issues. They have fallen from their throne and this downward spiral is gaining momentum every day. Microsoft has begun their resurrection. Will Google keep making these same mistakes and allow themselves to fall so low that only God Himself will be able to bring them back from the dead?
That’s The Problem With Charismatic Brands
To remind you, a “charismatic brand” is one for which you believe their is no substitute. The problem is that the world is constantly changing, and people are constantly adapting to change which fuels further and greater changes. If you aren’t constantly changing and adapting to the world around you, you will fail. You must adapt. Google must adapt before it is too late.
There is still hope. All is not yet lost. This is not the last nail in the coffin, but I am not certain how many more it will take to push Google six feet under. They’re constantly adopting new technologies. Will they learn to adapt their existing ones before all trust is completely lost and they find themselves as a four-letter-word like Microsoft did? Time will tell. I have hope that they will, but perhaps they have become too comfortable on their Leading Search Engine Throne to see the valley below. All that is known is that they must.