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Sunday, May 18, 2003
Remembering Why Google is Tops
Tara Calishain, coauthor of "Google Hacks," takes a revealing look back at how Google went from search engine darkhorse to global media powerhouse in three short years.
One obvious fact that I had forgotten about Google's rise is that during the portal boom years, banner ads were ubiquitous, and all the former search engines and web directories like Yahoo and AltaVista had let their web search guard down to to focus on "monetizing their millions of eyeballs," and Google was different because it was pure search with no ads. What a Purple Cow at the time! (And, it's too bad for AltaVista that they didn't find a way to make their Raging Search engine work; they might be the #2 engine today instead of somewhere near #10).
I knew Google would find a way to make money, despite the lack of obvious revenue sources, but I had no idea they'd be where they are today -- the most recognized brand in the world, according to a major survey and pulling in almost a billion dollars from AdWords and other revenue sources. Who knows what the future holds?
Posted by
Cory Kleinschmidt
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