Video: Barry Schwartz and Google’s Martin Splitt discuss strained relations with the search community

The SEO industry is vibrant in large part because of the personalities in the community and their constant desire to learn more about how search engines work. On the latest edition of his vlog, Search Engine Land News Editor Barry Schwartz sits down with one of the Google employees responsible for communicating with search professionals, Developer Advocate Martin Splitt, to discuss (and joke around about) why some SEOs are at odds with Google.

Martin shares how he came to work for Google and why the company recruited him despite already employing other webmaster trends analysts like John Mueller. The two also discussed the malicious intent that SEOs project onto Google and its employees, common misconceptions, why the response to questions is so often “it depends,” and the SEO rumors that Splitt wishes were true.

That same day, Google recorded an episode of SEO Mythbusting, in which Martin and Barry expanded on their talk about the often strenuous relationship between the search community and Google.

In the episode, Martin responds to the criticism that featured snippets defeat the purpose of creating content, saying that they have the potential to deliver higher quality traffic. The two also examine how Google’s attempts at transparency with SEOs have become a lose-lose proposition, the company’s focus on building an internet for the “next billion users,” as well as why Splitt doesn’t think it benefits him to know more about ranking.

If you’re a search professional interested in appearing on Barry’s vlog, you can fill out this form on Search Engine Roundtable; he’s currently looking to do socially distant, outside interviews in the NY/NJ tri-state area. You can also subscribe to his YouTube channel by clicking here.

About The Author

George Nguyen

George Nguyen is an editor for Search Engine Land, covering organic search, podcasting and e-commerce. His background is in journalism and content marketing. Prior to entering the industry, he worked as a radio personality, writer, podcast host and public school teacher.