I get a lot of back channel stick for being a curmudgeon. That’s fine. Marketing has its job to do, even if I think much of it is wasted. I see my role in a very different light. Mine is to parse what vendors say to something that hopefully resembles reality. That’s not easy because the vendors play a game where the last thing they want people like me to do is speak to real users, destruction test applications, query their business models, pricing and practices and then write about what I find. It’s all part of the software game. Some companies take it a little far.
Brian Solis was at the Googleplex for the Search Engine Strategies conference. There’s a lot riding on search as a core technology for the future so this is an important event. And Google has become a master at creating the illusion of fun while getting you to think they’re the greatest thing since sliced bread. But read what Brian says about the way Google dealt with those labeled ‘press:’
If you were press…you were immediately greeted by a junior member of the Google corporate communications team.
Yes, Google brought out a small army of young, inexperienced, and not really helpful “escorts†to make sure that press were given a small tour and access to information and demos.
I say not helpful because several times we had questions about spokespersons and products and the only response we could get was, “I don’t know. Let me ask someone for you.†Then they would make 18 phone calls, ask other junior members, only to follow up and say, “I still don’t know the answer. Do you want me to still look into it? 
After being escorted and handed off to no less that five various handlers, I soon realized that their real purpose was to keep us herded and controlled so that the information, pictures, and video that came out of the Google Dance party, adhered to a legitimate standard for security.
This from the company that has as its mantra: Do No Evil yet is among the most secretive on the planet. This from a company that benefits from Internet driven transparency yet consistently refuses to provide anything other than the barest details of its activities.
Let’s be clear. Google has done a lot to make life easier for SMBs. I enjoy using a lot of its applications. I don’t care it serves ads to me in GMail because they don’t register with me but I accept that as Google’s price for ‘free.’ And yes, I understand they’re in a battle royal with Microsoft. Even so, is that really the way to treat people? It makes me suspicious and wondering what lies beneath.
This is an extreme example I know but it is replicated by most software companies in one way or another. That is why the development of user blogs is so important. They may not be pretty and may often appear negative but if companies continue to obfuscate then this is what happens.
Zoli Erdos has his own take on events. Funny.
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