Man-oh-man, it's been a busy week, folks. As many of you know, a big chunk of the Mozplex relocated to Santa Clara this week for SMX West. The show went off smashingly and we managed to get several guests to do Whiteboard videos with us on the Expo Hall floor.
What's this mean for you? It means next week will be filled with Whiteboard Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and (of course) Friday! Today though, we have an interview with Google's own Spaminator, Matt Cutts. Matt was kind enough to sit down with Rand and reveal a bit more about the man behind the madness that is the Google Spam Team.
These two discuss everything from how Matt got his start at Google, to how he feels about being Google's public face, what it takes to join his team, heirs apparent, and the dumbest old-school spam mistakes he still sees people make.
It's a lengthy, though worthwhile, interview, so sit back, relax and enjoy.
Also, it is interesting to learn that many sites still actively use hidden text. It sounds like there is still quite abit of misinformation about SEO and Google that is being passed around as "knowledge" out there.
Very good interview, and thanks to both of you.
Not too technical for once, and still very enjoyable (Matts background, his reflexion on Google, team work,..). It is good to know that Matt is "defending" Google on the blogs and forums, because he believes in it, and is not just told to do it.
You were talking about how the "human" part vs the Algorithm getting on the spam dexing. But there are a lot of sites to watch, so how much part is it from the spam report overall ? is there a dedicated team that does that kind of reviewing on a daily basis ?
Thanks for making this possible, it has got to be one of the best interviews I have seen.
Great to see and hear a little outside the usual questions. I didn't quite get the chance to meet Matt at SMX, so this was a great next best.
Luckily though, I did get a chance and the pleasure to meet and have lunch with Brian White. The "lunch with Googlers" was a great thing... though a little challenging to have a conversation (at least the second day at SMX in the expo hall) due to noise.
I can say that Matt has really assembled a great team. From my own experience and from what I heard, everyone was impressed with the Googlers they had a chance to speak with during the lunch sessions. I'm sure it was a bit intimidating as well for some of them...no idea how public-facing contact most of them get as well as trying to hold-up under Matt's shadow. But you could feel that they were very genuine and interested in helping as well as creating the best user experience.
Despite it being nearly 3 yrs old, great interview Matt! I love being able to catch a glimpse inside Google!
Is this reassuring or creepy??
This was a fantastic interview! I would like to see more interviews with MSN, Yahoo and Google staff. The video length is essential. I often feel that white board Fridays are rushed a bit. Rand, I know you and your staff are working hard and you're probably doing everything you can.
We actually see a precipitous drop off in viewership when we go over the 10 minute mark. As such, we try to keep them short and sweet (I do anyway, Rand likes to ramble). When you're talking to somebody like Matt though, it's worth it to take some time to get a little more out of the interview. Glad you liked it.
LOL. Don't you mean Google Anti-Spam Team?
I love the new video graphics!
Thanks for the Moz Shirt as well.
I really liked the fact the questions were not overly technical. It is good to have an insight into Google, their practices and Matt Cutts (very down to earth and approachable).
His discussion of Google’s PR was great. Also, his commentary on the human algorithm component was most interesting.
Looking forward to seeing more next week!
Good job Rand, great interview! I like that it wasn't too techie and down to earth. Nice batch of questions at the end as well.
Thank you Matt for spending your time with the Mozzers.
Great interview Matt. Thanks for sharing the inside story at Google.
"a person who, bottom-line, can execute"
So, so, so important and yet often overlooked.
It was a fun interview to do. Rand and Scott, thanks for grabbing me at SMX!
Could you pass this issue with links in hidden divs along to your team?
Thanks for this guys! Insight into the google processes ands functioning is always welcome!