I recently picked up a book “The Filter Bubble” by Eli Pariser. A few days later, someone forwarded me an interesting Ted video by Eli on the same subject.

When you do a search online with Google, it doesn’t provide you with the same information as your next door neighbor would see, your client would see, or a person half way around the world would see. Google now has algorithms in place that filter the relevant information based on your search, where you search from, and your geographical locations, among other things. They use that information to personally tailor your query results, and provide you with the content “they feel” is relevant to you.

While in some ways, that can be good, in many more ways that can hurt us all. Your search results may completely ignore current news, news in a different genre, or even news with a different political voice all based on the algorithms in place.

Google isn’t the only site doing this. Facebook is also jumping on the bandwagon, and changing your newsfeed based on which friends’ links you click on most. This allows your feed to begin to “ignore” friends in which you have little interaction. Which again means they are controlling what voice and what information you receive on a regular basis.

What does this mean to you?

First, keep in mind that what you see isn’t what everyone else sees. If you are striving to be number one under a keyword, you may achieve it, but your clients don’t see it because of their search patterns.

Next, think congruency. Don’t rely on one site to carry your message – build an online platform that crossed many sites and many interests. Make sure your message is the same from site to site. Stay active and you will be found.

Finally, stay informed. The Internet is still a new venue, and is changing from day to day. The more you learn today, the more you can apply in the future. The important key is to make sure you are reaching out to your customers in many ways, and understand how they like to find you.

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