How Google is killing independent sites like ours - HouseFresh
housefresh.com
And why you shouldn’t trust product reviews from big media publishers ranking at the top of Google.
    • samwise@beehaw.org
      12·
      10 months ago

      In a just world, the idea of SEO shouldn’t even exist. You shouldn’t be able to game an algorithm to rise to the top. But that’s what literally our entire world has become now. Social media influencers, scammy and spammy websites and services, AI art thieves, content farm sewage. None of it would exist if the algorithms didn’t let you game them or promote certain behaviors.

      • conciselyverbose@kbin.social
        5·
        10 months ago

        The problem is that “don’t let people game you” is extremely difficult.

        It’s many, many orders of magnitude easier to provide a useful search of sites that tell you the truth about what they are than it is when 99% of sites lie to you.

    • SecretPancake@feddit.de
      12·
      10 months ago

      I’m a web developer and used to work for companies focused on SEO over quality. It’s a pain in the ass and takes all the fun out of the job.

  • jaden@lemmy.zip
    19·
    10 months ago

    I think this is part of the reason that Google sucks nowadays. I genuinely don’t feel like I can trust it for finding products.

    • Spaghetti_Hitchens@kbin.social
      5·
      10 months ago

      I just use it for opening the door to learn about features (not brands/models) that I didn’t know about previously. Then I do searches for those features and try to find forum results (usually Reddit unfortunately). It seems to work decently well

  • Hadouken Shoryuken@feddit.nlEnglish
    18·
    10 months ago

    Kind of related question - any suggestions what to use if I want to skip this problem? I was looking for some headphones earlier and as explained in the article, most sites point to the same brands. I finally got to see some different brands/models and users reviews from forum group. The problem is I found those forums from Google… so any suggestions what I can try without being stuck in this google SEO vortex?

    • zhunk@beehaw.org
      17·
      10 months ago

      Wirecutter and RTINGS both do a lot of testing and reviews, including for headphones.

    • mozz@mbin.grits.devOP
      15·
      10 months ago

      Consumer Reports is still around and still excellent. I paid for a membership to them for quite some time and it was worth it.

      I think it’s an instance of the fundamental problem that if people generally want something (good reviews) for free, but it costs money to make, eventually it’ll get hollowed out and replaced with something empty and worthless, because there wasn’t money in continuing to provide it for free.

      • Hadouken Shoryuken@feddit.nlEnglish
        3·
        10 months ago

        Thanks. Totally forgot about them.

        Very good point. And with this ads/google revenue model, it’s SEO skills that makes money instead of good skill to write a meaningful review.

        • mozz@mbin.grits.devOP
          4·
          10 months ago

          Yeah. Meaningful reviews actually really interfere with your ability to make money, because your advertisers won’t be super happy if the ad they paid money for saying “It tastes great!” is right next to the article explaining that actually it tastes like whale semen.

              • jarfil@beehaw.org
                2·
                10 months ago

                Ambergris, or spermaceti, once believed to be whale semen, whence it got its name… other than for candles, perfumes, or as industrial lubricant… was also used as food glazing.

                Food for thought. 🐳💦🍰

    • Nath@aussie.zone
      9·
      10 months ago

      Australia has Choice. It is funded and independent by being a paid/subscriber service, though being a member is not expensive. Choice is pretty well-known, as when a product wins a recommendation it is prestigious. Therefore, the manufacturers will proudly put a Choice logo on their ads to assure consumers that their product is good.

      I can’t see Choice going away, as it’s a very good service and by far the most trusted source for unbiased reviews in Australia.

      • Hadouken Shoryuken@feddit.nlEnglish
        1·
        10 months ago

        Nice, this is very similar to the Consumer report. Its good to read reviews from different countries. I think its more likely they would focus on companies in their region. I used to read UK T3, they show more european brands.

    • Ilandar@aussie.zone
      7·
      10 months ago

      A lot of people just add “reddit” to their search query. It does work pretty well, but I realise not every Lemmy user will be willing to do that.

      • blindsight@beehaw.org
        4·
        10 months ago

        As pointed out in the article, that’s not necessarily perfect, either. Lots of companies hire people to post to Reddit about their products.

        • mozz@mbin.grits.devOP
          7·
          10 months ago

          Yeah. It used to work, but now reddit is trash too now that people have figured out how to game the system there.

          The big-leaguers actually have achieved a pretty impressive level of skill with it. “I just wanted to share a big thanks to the Delta crew that saved the day for me and my fiance, let me tell the story…” “MY CAT KILLED A LEAF AND BROUGHT IT TO ME, isn’t she the best, let me share a photo coincidentally with a full McDonald’s meal artfully framed on the table behind the kitty all facing forward and perfectly in focus. Yes we’re having some McDonald’s lol, I love the McChicken”

        • Ilandar@aussie.zone
          4·
          10 months ago

          For sure, it is certainly a better option than SEO listicles though. If people push bad products there is always the potential for community push back.

    • BCsven@lemmy.ca
      4·
      10 months ago

      You can sign up to kagi.com for non ad based rankings results like we had in 2010 era google searches. 100 free searches then a paid model.

      Or use this open source engine a guy built and maintains in his basement https://stract.com/

    • Nath@aussie.zone
      3·
      10 months ago

      What sort of headphones are you looking for? Over-ear? Buds? Bluetooth? Bone Conducting?

        • Nath@aussie.zone
          2·
          10 months ago

          Choice recommends the Sennheiser HD range (HD 300, HD560S & HD 599). The 560S won out with quality of sound and bang-for-buck.

          Their Headphones study actually surprised me, I rock a pair of Jabra Elite Active 3’s as my daily, and Choice really hated the sound quality. I’m obviously no audiophile, as I love my Jabras. They also didn’t love the Sony wh-1000xm range, which was the biggest surprise as they’re by far the most popular headphones I see among my colleagues.

          • Hadouken Shoryuken@feddit.nlEnglish
            2·
            10 months ago

            Thanks for the info. Lol I am defn not audiophile so maybe your collegues and your preferences suit me more.

            One thing I read in forums is that each headphone has different profile (not sure if its the right word) so it really depends on the personal taste. But hopefully these reviews help me narrow down a few so I can find a store to try them out.

            • jarfil@beehaw.org
              3·
              10 months ago

              Profile is the right word, also response curve. If you can find one, try to look for a waterfall graph of “frequency, intensity, decay” to get a better idea of what to expect.

              Studio headphones, or ones that you can most easily adjust the response with some EQ, have the flattest response curve and the shortest decay.

              There is also transient response like with any electric circuit, but I haven’t seen anyone do a full analysis for headphones.

              • Hadouken Shoryuken@feddit.nlEnglish
                2·
                10 months ago

                Thanks for these terms. One problem with google is how they always end up with big name domains and they basically use the same terms. And I need these terms you used so I can search in more depth. Thanks again.

  • Ephera@lemmy.mlEnglish
    18·
    10 months ago

    Goshdarnit, I’ve seen these weirdo webpages before, which would talk at length about how they’ve conducted tests, but then not show any data. I was seriously wondering, why they were bothering, but of course, it’s some shitty metric they have to fulfill.

  • bedrooms@kbin.social
    14·
    10 months ago

    I feel like Google results these days value the domain rather than the individual webpages instead. Always the same websites…

  • esaru@beehaw.org
    7·
    10 months ago

    I remember there was a time Google tried to be the best search engine out there, by ranking first what has most value for the user. Now it is ranking first what brings them more money, hence undermining Google’s credibility, and making itself less ueful for the user. The enshittification of Google for everyone to see.

  • jarfil@beehaw.org
    6·
    10 months ago

    Somehow the user has been banned from Reddit, but their comment is still at the top of the thread — we wonder how many other comments this user has published across different subreddits.

    …and that’s the kind of content Reddit wants to sell to train AIs 🤣

  • algorithmae@lemmy.sdf.org
    3·
    10 months ago

    That’s cool and all and important for exposure, but what can I really do about it? It’s the ethereal algorithm and shitty companies gaming it for profit, with everyone else suffering because of it

    • BCsven@lemmy.ca
      4·
      10 months ago

      You can sign up to kagi.com for non ad based rankings results like we had in 2010 era google searches. 100 free searches then a paid model.

      Or use this open source engine a guy built and maintains in his basement https://stract.com/