If CISPA passes, I’ll be moving all of my personal information off of Facebook and onto this site. For some reason CISPA doesn’t have nearly the attention and uproar SOPA did.
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Evan
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Evan
The Demise of Google and Facebook
*I figure I should probably start updating this blog again. It has seen probably a dozen iterations over the years and thanks to p2, here’s a new one.
Anyway, a friend of mine sent me this Forbes article about the next generation of the web and how it is very possible that Google & Facebook won’t be around in 5 years. Personally, I agree and here’s why: As the article mentions, the web is changing into a mobile platform with more and more devices connected to the web from the palm of our hands, our usage patterns are bound to change. Google relies on search and Adwords for 80%+ of its revenue which makes them extremely susceptible to lose market share fast. The company they should be concerned most with? Apple. Apple has already bought a mapping company to integrate into iOS thus removing the need for Google Maps integration and I predict their next movement to build or buy a search engine (DuckDuckGo for example). If Apple puts their own brand of search on their devices they will massively impact Google’s traffic numbers. Microsoft and Internet Explorer dominated the market for so many years because of their tight integration, now we’ve seen Safari’s growth numbers rise b/c of the increase in Mac and iOS devices. It is only a matter of time before Apple takes their cut of the search market.
Facebook is also under a lot of heat right now b/c as the article states, their lack of ability to monetize mobile traffic. They just don’t know how to make money with their app other than with FacebookAds. This is a big problem for them but the one benefit they have is search. Facebook has the data and eyeballs to create their own search engine based purely on the number of shares for content, Fan Page size and other social metrics based on the activity of its users. This is somewhere Google was trying to go with Google+ because they know the impact of social is going to be the future of content. Link based algorithms won’t be here for ever.
That is my thought and I wanted to get it down in writing for the future but this prediction has one caveat; We make it past Dec 21, 2012!!! Below is the 10 second Too Long; Didn’t Read version.
TL;DR Google is in trouble if Apple ever decides to leverage it’s platform with its own search. Facebook is in trouble of not knowing how to monetize mobile but has an out if they develop a quality search engine.
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thomas
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Evan
The way startups come on the scene and get popular I don’t think 5 years is too short. Google def. understands the mobile threat but its defense is more about Android than Motorola. Android gives them the horse in the mobile search race. Facebook has a terrible monetization strategy. Their best bet is to become the login system for the universe but still dont know how to monetize that. I see a search engine coming from them soon.
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Evan
Two Local Entrepreneurs (Me) Launch RaleighNYE.com
The informational website offers party-goers a one-stop shop for checking out all Raleigh has to offer for New Year’s Eve
(Raleigh) – Lisa Jeffries, owner of Raleighwood Media Group + Raleighwood Event Group and Evan Roberts, owner of local search marketing company, Search Sage have announced a joint venture aimed at bringing local party-goers an informational web guide to all that the Capital City and its surrounding areashave to offer this New Year’s Eve.
The site, http://www.RaleighNYE.com, goes above and beyond the traditional online event listing site to offer visitors a chance to narrow down their search by certain preferences like location, cover charge price ranges, dinner offerings, live music performances, and more. For each listing, contact information is provided for the host venue so that those who find their perfect New Year’s Eve fit can also make the next step in establishing contact, and if necessary, reservations or ticket purchases for the evening ahead of time. They can also share their favorites with their own contacts and social networks and check out maps for each destination
“Like a lot of great ideas, this one started during a conversation in a bar”, jokes Jeffries. “I was sitting at the new Isaac Hunter’s Oak City Tavern<
(http://www.HuntersOakCity.comwith one of the owners, Zack, and we were trying to figure out what everyone was doing for New Year’s. We both remembered being invited to parties here and there on facebook, but since that medium is becoming increasingly crowded; we hadn’t paid much attention to the details for each. That’s when I started keeping a list as to who (as in venues) were doing what.”“It was when I had this conversation two more times – once with Evan (he asked for a recommendation for somewhere nice he could treat his girlfriend to on New Year’s Eve) and once with friends from out of town (who wanted to have a plan made before their arrival in Raleigh on the 31st) – that I knew there was a significant need for something like this. Something individuals and venue-owners alike could add to and benefit from. Before I knew it, Evan and I had this whole project online and we were ready to share it with everyone”, adds Jeffries.
“I’ve been frustrated with other local websites for some time, but trying to find New Year’s Eve information specifically was nearly impossible,” says Roberts. It reinforced the idea for me that Raleigh needed a website that was user-friendly enough to be helpful to people who are aren’t interested in combing twenty different websites to find what they’re looking for. RaleighNYE.com is just the tipping point, so I’m really excited for what we’ll be able to do after this!
In addition to listings for New Year’s Eve events, restaurants, bars, service providers, and the like can also place premium relevant advertisements on the site for as little as $10.00 a day. “We wanted to offer local businesses a really affordable way to add some extra impact to their New Year’s Eve marketing, on top of a basic listing. So many of them are locally-owned and add a lot of the economic prosperity of our area, it’s hard not to want to add a little something extra for them… but at a price that doesn’t require a year’s worth of investment”, notes Jeffries.
For more information, visit http://www.RaleighNYE.comor email Info@RaleighNYE.com
About RaleighNYE.com
RaleighNYE.com started as a joint venture between Lisa Jeffries, owner of Raleighwood Media Group + Raleighwood Event Group, and Evan Roberts, owner of Search Sage. In a casual conversation one day about the vast array of options that Raleigh has to offer for New Year’s Eve, we quickly realized there was not a “one-stop shop” for that information… or at least one where you could pick and choose your destination based on your preferences. So we set out to create RaleighNYE.com – the place for all of your Raleigh New Year’s Eve details! Visit http://www.RaleighNYE.com to check out all that our great area has to offer this December 31st!
thomas are discussing. 
Evan
Google Video Case Study on Twiddy & Co.
My client, Twiddy & Co., was recognized by Google for their outstanding Adwords success over the years. Google has taken the liberty of performing a TWO case studies on Twiddy for their success in the travel industry. I feel lucky enough to get to work with these people everyday and I’m extremely proud of the partnership we developed over the last 4 years and I feel good that I can be a tiny part of the success Twiddy has seen.
Its very exciting to be able to work and partner with someone who puts their trust in you and even more rewarding when you are able to deliver for them and achieve success. While these case studies only emphasize Adwords and touch on analytics, Google organic rankings such as these, have been instrumental in Twiddy’s success. It is an area where Google doesn’t usually take too much credit, because they don’t make money off of it, but Adwords and Organic rankings on Google are both important to Twiddy & Co.’s success.
Original Google-Twiddy case study.
Second Google – Twiddy Case study
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Mr. Oceanfront
Probably the coolest post ever. When do we get to go fishing?
5 years is too short. Now, if you were to tell me they’d peak in 5 years, I’d take that bet. Google is in a similar boat as MSFT as they only have one real cash cow. However, that cow is pretty fat, and can buy a lot of other companies. Google’s play is mobile, and it’s pretty evident especially with the recent Motorola deal.
Apple really is in the catbird seat. They have 3 really good products, a buying cycle that can’t be rivaled, and the Ford Model T mentality (you get this or nothing. Add to that their fanatical owners, and that’s the reason they are the biggest company in the world.
Facebook will win with their partnerships, but they will have to diversify. To me they are the weakest, and I see some sort of AOL/Time Warner merger in the future.