Why I hate Google

[Adweek chose not to run this letter, which was my response to yet another worshipful article about these digital darlings.]

Dear Editor,

As a former Google AdWords client, I have first hand experience with one giant flaw in Google's business model and its underlying philosophy. Chris, Tim and Tony apparently made a decision early on that their relationship with advertising clients, at least the small potatoes ones like me, wasn't important enough to allow us to ever actually talk to them. The only interaction they permit is via email, which imposes a rather chilling day or two delay in every interaction. I learned this the hard way, when I tried to cancel my account with them and it took almost a month, due to the pony express pace of our "conversation"—a conversation made necessary because their online cancellation process was broken. Of course, it's in Google's interest to take their time in addressing such problems because every day the account stays active, they make more money on those click-throughs. They'll need to rethink this profoundly cynical approach to servicing their advertising clients if they hope to succeed in the world of advertising. In this business, most of us have learned that the goal is to come as close as you can to creating meaningful, responsive one-to-one human conversations with your customers, rather than going to extraordinary lengths to avoid them. If they treat their other clients with as little respect as they treated me, some more enlightened competitor will eventually eat Google alive.

Stoically,

Jim Morris
Communcaterer