What Google is trying here is actually being attempted by many large gatekeepers with the big goal of becoming the Internet itself or at least the main hub. Google, Facebook and Amazon are probably in the best positions at the moment. All three started at different points. Google as a search engine , Facebook as a social network and Amazon as an online bookseller. But the air is getting thinner! Now they are moving towards each other at lightning speed. While Amazon is fighting for products and retailers, the battle is currently over content. For example, Google with AMP, Facebook with Instant Articles and curated news in the stream .
Amazon is also starting to remove and restrict retailers from its program based on its own interests. (See e.g. Just in the Christmas season: Thousands of offers removed from Amazon Marketplace retailers )
I hope none of the three will win the race, because the consequences for the autonomy of the Internet and online marketing would be fatal.
The greatest danger for online marketing is the curtailment of opportunities and autonomy. Imagine if Google and/or Facebook were the only online marketing channels. You would be hopelessly trapped within the limits of the system and at the mercy of your own sensitivities without any basis of your own.
That's why you should diversify, have courage and build your own systems alongside third-party channels, through which you can position yourself with excellent online marketing and products. Because this kenya phone number data can quickly become impossible if online marketing is standardized in third-party systems. Then at some point it will just be a question of who has the biggest budget... Don't let it get that far!
Karl Kratz and other online marketers have been preaching this for a long time. Here are some further articles on the topic of alternative traffic sources and more:
SEO portal
TagsSEO-Blog
Digital Findability
But diversifying channels is not enough. Create something of your own, something independent that you can fully influence yourself. A strong brand with inbound potential and your own target group-oriented and efficient communication system.
It is not the quick and easy way, but it is sustainable and creates value. The goal should be to generate at least 40-50% of visitors to your own website via brand traffic such as direct access, brand or navigation search queries, feed readers, newsletters, etc., where you have a direct influence on the monetization of your own content through conversion and usability optimization. I have already explained the advantages of brand traffic in detail in the article Digital Brand Building: The Importance of Brand for Online Marketing and Digital Brand Building: Why Good Branding Contributes to All Your Key Figures .
The rest should be a mixture of organic search engine traffic, PPC advertising , visitors from social media, referrals, etc. , depending on the business model . This is a healthy mix and the risk of dependency is manageable. Creating a marketing strategy not around your own website or your own systems, but around third-party systems such as Google, Facebook, Amazon, etc. is not sustainable and, in my opinion, grossly negligent.