How to make the best of Google’s new project, “Knol” and keep your content on page one.
Yesterday, Google announced their newest project, named “Knol”. According to the Google blog, “There are millions of people who possess useful knowledge that they would love to share, and there are billions of people who can benefit from it. We believe that many do not share that knowledge today simply because it is not easy enough to do that.”Hence, “Knol” stands for a unit of “knowledge”. Have they ever heard of Wikipedia?
In fact, it is a direct competitor of Wikipedia, and if you’ve ever had your glossary or article pages pushed down by them, then Google may soon be your direct competitor.
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Based on a Wikipedia/Squidoo.com hybrid, “Knol” will soon be the biggest user-generated database online. The goal of the project is to encourage people who would consider themselves an expert on a subject, to write an authoritative article about it. I’m sure the folks at Google aren’t kidding themselves by thinking that only “authoritative sources” will be contributing, and I don’t look forward to the day when I take the advice of a 14-year old telling me what the definition of “Boondoggle” is…(go ahead, look it up).
However, unlike Wikipedia, there will not be an “editorial god” who will approve and disapprove content. The content will be added and edited only by users, with an emphasis on the author, which is also unlike Wikipedia. Google feels that this will make their content more credible, if the author’s reputation is on the line.
Another enticing fact is that the author of any page will have the option to include ads. If the author of a page decides that they want to use ads on their page, Google will reward them with a substantial revenue share.
However, if you’re worried about your search engine rankings, here is an idea: create your own pages. If you’ve ever tried to create a page in Wikipedia that ultimately links back to your site (a bio, a term in your glossary, etc.) you know that the Wikipedia gods are hard to please.This is a great opportunity (if you can get in early) to put your footprint in Google. Here is a screenshot of what “Knol” will look like.
For now, “Knol” is invitation-only, but keep your eyes and ears open to get in early. You know the saying, “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em,”well… if you’re going to have a competitor like Google, you might as well try to hold hands and play nice.
From Google: Official Google Blog: Encouraging people to contribute knowledge
