Back in 2013, we ran a poll asking if Google is lying to us and sadly, most SEOs feel Google lies to us. It showed the bad state of webmaster communication and the trust the webmaster community had with Google back then. Communication has only gotten more transparent but sadly, it leads to more confusion, so I don't know if the poll would change if I ran it again today.
But I honestly think Google doesn't out right lie to us. I don't think they tell us the whole algorithm and all the details behind updates but there is good reason for that. In any event, I don't think I'd ever call John Mueller, Gary Illyes, Matt Cutts and so on liars. They would not lie to my face, I don't think.
Gary Illyes said recently on Twitter "lying is not my cup of beer." This was in response to misinformation out there and him trying to set out fires. But he said it, he is not a liar and he seems to dislike liars - like most people do.
Here is the tweet:
@iqseo ah, then i would say i can't say it or smtg. I don't mind mangling with words but lying is not my cup of beer @Marie_Haynes @dr_pete
— Gary Illyes (@methode) January 13, 2016Like I just reported earlier, Google does care about webmasters and us but it gets complicated.
I wouldn't call Googlers liars, that is unfair and inaccurate. They are in a tough position and need to balance transparency, confusion and search quality.
Forum discussion at Twitter.
