Googleland unveiled
Posted by Anna Knapik on January 21, 2010 in Online, Web technologies with 0 CommentsGoogle has completely revolutionised the way we look for information, work, travel, socialise and shop. Despite its short history, the company influences our personal and business choices every day by enjoying well over 80% of all web searches (source: Stat Owl)
I recently stumbled across 'Planet Google' by Randall Stross, which tells the story of the search giant - from its beginnings in a dormitory room through to the latest initiatives in 2008. Even though it was published in 2008 and therefore, doesn't cover the latest Google advances, it's still a great read in the era of blogs and social media.
Along with some interesting facts about the company, the book also offers behind-the-scenes insights from its employees, competitors and external commentators. It goes into quite a bit of detail but, at the same time, all the information is presented in an amazingly accessible manner so that even people without knowledge of search technologies can understand it. And most interestingly of all, it almost reads like a novel!
The structure is excellent - the author provides lots of information about Google products and initiatives under seemingly loose titles that explain Google's actions to achieve its goals. It discloses interesting facts about Google ventures like Google Earth, You Tube acquisitions, the translation software, Gmail's inception and social networking.
The only thing that the book doesn't provide much information about is the famed Google culture. Stross does mention Googleplex - the famous California-based headquarters and some corporate customs like famous Friday meetings where the employees can propose ideas, ask questions and raise issues, but that's pretty much it. The book hardly mentiones the company's geographical expansion and doesn't say anything about Google offices around the world. It would be interesting to find out a little about this fascinating multinational culture.
Still, if you are a tech or marketing person or just want to find out more about a company that aims to "organise the world's information" and "be the one-stop destination for all our information needs", Planet Google should definitely be on your reading list.
You will find some excerpts from the book here.
Anna Knapik is passionate about corporate communications and B2B marketing. She has a particular interest in the online arena and its application across various marketing disciplines.
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