There is a lot of buzz in forums recently after Google announced their intention to remove PageRank from the Google toolbar. Many argue that this is a tool used only by webmasters to SPAM the web. Is Google trying to find an easy way out by blocking access to information about it’s algorithm that could potentially help people to manipulate the index? Is this strategy a little short-sighted in many respects?
Firstly Google users are not all the same. There is a great gap between the average user and the advanced user. The latter are the trend-setters, the people that teach everyone else what PageRank is. An indication of page/website importance. In many ways sharing this information is the most engaging social aspect of the Google search engine. It signifies preference from people with websites that link to a particular page they find meaningful and useful. Of course importance is also demonstrated in rankings. Google ranks important pages higher. How are you to determine importance however if you are being referred from another website or a social network?
PageRank is also an indication of trust. If many webmasters decide to trust, let’s say, an e-commerce website, it is easier to make a purchase without fearing a scam, goods that will never be delivered or bad customer service. A page banned from Google’s index for example or a website with PR0 that has been around for a while would look very suspicious in my eyes.
This day and age and with PageRank going you are much better off using StumbleUpon, del.icio.us or Alexa to determine importance. You never know, with Microsoft acquiring ultra cool StumbleUpon we might see BillGatesRank some day soon.
Do you think PageRank should stay or go?
