Danny Sullivan joins Google as a "sort of public liaison for search"

[Robert Charlton]

Major announcement, with I feel positive implications for Google and for the search industry... and for the public. I'm taking the liberty of quoting Danny Sullivan's announcement in his Facebook feed, which I think explains it most succinctly...

Some news! I'm joining Google in a new role to help the public better understand how search works and help Google better hear public feedback & improve. When I retired from search in June, I thought I was done. But I'm excited about the opportunity to help both Google & the public connect better & improve search.

Apparently, Google approached Danny with the idea. Here's an announcement in Danny's blog. I'm sure many other announcements and articles will follow....

My new chapter: joining Google to better explain search & help bridge the gap
October 6, 2017
[dannysullivan.com...]

...My title is still being determined, but the position will be to serve as a sort of public liaison for search. The goal is to increase the connection between those at Google who work hard on search each day and the public that depends on Google for answers. I’ll be educating the public about how search works. I’ll be exploring and explaining issues that may arise. I’ll be looking at ways to take in feedback and work for solutions to improve search going forward....

[Pjman]

Great for Danny and the search community! Maybe the curtain will be pulled back a little.

I always found Danny to present things in a clear manner. Hopefully we won't be running around blind or at least with better eye sight in the future.

[seoskunk]

Good move by Google - thumbs up

[Shepherd]

That's great to hear, always liked Danny, good guy. Hopefully he will not have to endure the same level of abuse that Matt did.

[NickMNS]

Hopefully he will not have to endure the same level of abuse that Matt did.

Of course he will. I wish him all the luck in the world, he will need it. That said, I look forward seeing him is his new role.

[iamlost]

The question I had when Danny announced his retirement from search journalism, this past June, was who, with a similar long view, was left to put occurrences into proper perspective for newer webdevs and came up empty.

There is no similar singular counterweight now that he has shifted from sifting the FUD to shovelling it. Not that I expect to ever hear Danny utter an untruth, as I never did back in the day with Matt Cutts; however Danny, as was Matt, is constrained by Google's perspective and purpose at any given time. Understanding Google actions is going to be a many splintered thing, I think.

That aside, I do wish him well.

[Shepherd]

Of course he will.

...he has shifted from sifting the FUD to shovelling it.

Yeah, that didn't take long.

[weeks]

He's a journalist with an established "brand" who is going to work for the leader in the industry he covered. And everyone here is pleased about this? This is called selling out.

[bwnbwn]

weeks I disagree. Google has for the last 8 years been making many enemies within the we community. They forgot it was the web community that carried them built them, and helped make Google today.

This move is probably more of a PR thing to help bridge the gap between us and corporate Google. I am happy to see this it tells me we have been heard and hopefully Danny can help us. Many of the old timers have lost what they built, many have moved on, but many still remain. Maybe Danny will be given the freedom to work again with webmasters, maybe he is just a puppet lead by a string.

Doesn't matter either way to me I am happy he is making some serious money many of us would love to make.

[brotherhood of LAN]

Wonder if he'll remain the go-to person for mainstream media on all things search related, where I often read him.

[engine]

I'm wondering if it will be webmaster outreach or purely public education.

[aristotle]

I'm wondering if it will be webmaster outreach or purely public education.

My bet is that it's for "public education". In other words, a PR person to deal with the bad press that google has been getting

[jmccormac]

So Danny is moving to the Dark Side?

Regards...jmcc

[EditorialGuy]

Seems pretty simple to me. He said, "'I'm joining Google in a new role to help the public better understand how search works and help Google better hear public feedback & improve."

In other words, it's about being a liason between Google Search (not Alphabet, Inc.) and its users (not SEOs, site owners, Alphabet's corporate enemies, or government regulators).

[seoskunk]

not SEOs, site owners, Alphabet's corporate enemies, or government regulators

You <snip> are totally wrong by the way, I see this appointment as creating a bridge between Webmasters and Google <snip>

[edited by: goodroi at 1:08 am (utc) on Oct 9, 2017]
[edit reason] Let's be careful to stay on topic [/edit]

[MrSavage]

and the public that depends on Google for answers.

That quote there should simmer on the minds of any webmaster who writes or creates content that is meant to be useful to the site visitor. If you write something, it has some point of use. But according to their new hire, people go to Google for the answers that you provide and they use. That quote right there should make a few number of us reconsider what it is we do with our time in terms of content creation. That quote is a fingers in the chest kind of comment. Google. The supplier of answers, not websites. He said it right?

[seoskunk]

He said allot of things including pleading with Google to not penalise links, which they ignored until now. I like the guy

<snip>

[edited by: goodroi at 1:07 am (utc) on Oct 9, 2017]
[edit reason] Let's be careful to stay on topic [/edit]

[MrSavage]

People come to Google for the answers? This is not off topic. The public liaison is of the belief that people come to Google for the answers. So Google comes to us for the answers, then they present the answers on their page, and people here believe this position is about for caring about webmasters and content creation?

Beyond that, if he is belives (as he says) that people going to Google for answers, perhaps that is the tell tale as to why he's no longer a SEO and "web" guy. Maybe he knows that the funnel to websites and the future is Google being the landing page for all inquries or at least most of them. Building content for what purpose? So Google can present all the good and juicy parts on Google.com?

If he says from day one that people come to Google for "answers", then it's going to become even more prevalent and he's the liason for that direction. Sickening really.

There used to be a saying about not using a paper product and that one less tree was killed today. Well the way it's going, I'm saying to myself, one less website I needed to visit today. Except that it's many websites I don't need to visit now all thanks to Google giving me that answer.

I would love to hear from this guy about that quote. I'm sure friends and acquantinces will defend the comment from him this direction of people coming to Google for answers.

[robzilla]

Google. The supplier of answers, not websites. He said it right?

He did not. Your interpretation of "answers" is selective. Have you considered that "answers" can include all types of search results, including the blue links? Google takes many approaches to answering a question; most times I search, the answer is a web page.

[ChanandlerBong]

That's nice, so he'll now be paid for the shilling role he's carried out for the last decade or more.

The greatest failure of the webmaster community was allowing Google to rise, not nearly challenged enough, to the current dominant position they hold with their boots on webmasters' necks. There was a chance, before 2004, to do something about it and instead we got subservience, front pages FULL of google-related threads and even foxes like Cutts invited inside the chicken coop.

Nice that Sullivan will now get his pay off.

[Jori]

google is giving short answers. What time is it, what's the weather, how much pounds is a kilogram...
But Google is not giving complete and elaborate answers. It can't. It will provide links for the complete answers searched by his users.

Let's forget about short and quick answers in our websites. Only short and quick actions (buy something).
Let's forget about nice pictures in our websites. Google is stealing those also. I have a site that loose 30% of is traffic because of that new policy on Google Images. And yes, it was good traffic for me. Now, users tend to stay on Google images instead of going to my website for more images.

Google steal from us all the quick answers and nice pics, that's a fact. With our own content. Is it fair?

Let's elaborate some questions to ask Danny.

[EditorialGuy]

"Danny, will you accept the blame for zombie traffic?"

[Robert Charlton]

Barry Schwartz posted Monday morning on SER with some candid reflections about Danny and Google. Barry's worked closely with Danny for a dozen years, and I think this is probably the best thing that anybody with a personal perspective is going to write about the situation at this point in time....

Danny Sullivan Joins Google Today: Will It Help The Search Community?
Oct 9, 2017 - by Barry Schwartz
[seroundtable.com...]

Included in Barry's post is a list of about ten thoughts about Danny and Google, and I think it would take paraphrasing the whole list and some of the rest of the article to do it justice, which IMO would exceed fair use, so I'm not going to do that. Check out the article.

There's one comment that Barry makes about Danny in his new situation, though, that clearly can stand by itself, and it says a lot about what we're all asking...

He would not have taken on the role if he didn't think he can help both Google and the search community

Barry also cites some tweets from Matt Cutts. This point is obviously right on....

Matt Cutts @mattcutts Oct 6 [twitter.com]

A huge, great move. Google needs this public liaison role. It should help them listen better, too. Danny Sullivan is the perfect choice.

[engine]

I'm still not 100% sure it'll be webmaster relations, although i'd very much like it to be.

[heisje]

"His Master's Voice"
End of story.

[chewy]

Holy SMX!
Who will be next?
I don't know if I should laugh or cry.
Please keep us posted.