Back in the good old days of shopping online, when the online shopping world was full of independent retailers bring their products and offers to the world, Google was our friend.
Our original website, launched in 2003,
always featured on page one (although in those days if you can believe it, we shoppers would venture onto page two, three even four and five, I know its a shock) of related google searches for anything heart shaped and obviously valentines gifts. Mobile phone shopping hadn't yet started and broadband connection was a luxury so website design wasn't that great, nor was security. However for the shopper, it was a land of new and different. We could connect with businesses we didnt even know existed, all be it somewhat slowly, because google would always show us something new.
My lament is on how the good of those searches has been lost, the mix, the quirky, the amazing, search results have been crushed in a homogeny of bland big name brands. Google "handbags" today and your results will be Asos, HOF, Newlook, Johnlewis, Debenhams, Acessorize, Matalan, Very et al.
The very names that have ruined our high streets are now ruining our online experience. Is it a surprise Amazon continue to hoover up custom and customers as it Ebay and a host of new platforms are the only places you can genuinely find independent businesses. For shoppers, I am sorry to say, Google is no longer our friend.
The online world is bigger than page one of Google or our Facebook friends, get out there and discover. You will find it amazing, with much better handbags.