BLOG Stands for “Better Listings on Google”
Tuesday
Dec 19, 2006
Why didn’t I think of that before?
Anyway, what brought me to this realization is a recent issue of a lawsuit threat because a blog ranks higher than a business site for a Google search. Search Engine Journal has the skinny.
An online shoe store owner is threatening to sue a blogger Dean Hunt (DeanHunt.com) unless the blogger ‘lowers his Google ranking†for a keyword phrase that the store owner feels he deserves.
…
I have been running the site for over two years and we have been ranked very highly for the search term [edited].
On Thursday morning I checked our google positions and your site is now above us for this term. I haev checked your blog and it has nothing to do with [edited], so I think it would be best all round if you remove your blog from google for this search term.
Please understand that we make our living from this, and you are just writing a blog that has nothing to do with [edited].
If you do not remove yourself from google for this search, then I will call them myself and have you removed.
…
You have to understand Dean that an online business should be higher in Google than a blog.
Don’t forget that Google is a business as well, they obviously make more money from other businesses than they do from blogs, so it is in their interest that I am higher than you for certain searches.
I have also contacted my lawyer about this issue, so you should expect a letter in the post very soon.
Wow. That’s stupid, with a capital S! (That makes it Stupid, then.)
This is why I often advocate the use of blogs by businesses and companies. It helps with the image and helps boost search rankings, as well. “BLOG” standing for “better listings on Google” is very appropriate, don’t you think?
I dread the day the owners of racoma.com come knocking on my door demanding I de-optimize my blog for my surname. Or rather, I think I should look forward to that day. Maybe I can charge a gazillion bucks for racoma.net and racoma.com.ph.
J. Angelo Racoma is a technology journalist and blogger. See more of his blog posts here at racoma.com.ph, commentaries at racoma.net, and Twitter feed at @jangelo.
Comments
jhay
December 19th, 2006 at 9:09 pm
That’s just ridiculous. Down right stupid indeed. Whoever that guy is from that store should have hired an SEO expert instead of calling up his lawyer to file a law suit. Sheesh!
David Zandueta
December 21st, 2006 at 2:23 pm
That’s how it goes in the US: anyone can be sued for anything anytime.
Whether it’ll prosper or not depends on the Courts and the lawyers. Both parties will inevitably suffer, so it depends who turns out to have suffered more or less.
BTW, it looks like nothing’s come out after. Dean Hunt blogged about it:
http://deanhunt.com/quick-update-on-the-bizarre-google-request/
J. Angelo Racoma
December 22nd, 2006 at 3:13 am
@Jhay, Ridiculous, indeed. Some people are still living in the 20th century!
@David, I do agree that once the legal system is already involved, it’s a big headache to both parties, money-wise. The only people who would be happy are the lawyers!