Comments on: “I’ve never used Google.”

By: Lou Covey

Lou Covey — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 21:42:10 +0000

Outstanding reality check. I’m right in the fishbowl with the rest of you but I have a pretty broad circle that includes low-income Hispanics, evangelical Christians, plumbers, contractors and politicians. Many of these people think AOL is a pretty neat thing. Our church just installed it’s first wireless network after 5 years of debate among the board who feared the whole concept.
What we think is ubiquitous is still a vast unexplored territory for more than half of our population.
Here’s something to think about. Recently John McCain admitted he doesn’t know how to send email and has to have his wife help him. That got a lot of catcalls from the press, but amazingly enough, it gave him a boost in the polls because of all the people who identified with his tech-ignorance.
The reason much of the tech market is flat is because we have not truly reached the mass market opportunity.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 23:42:08 +0000

Good post. I think part of the problem is that there are few *visible* experts who are willing to humbly help these people align the right online tool for their challenge. I’ve spoken to these people too and they really are hungry, as you point out, yet so many of the online communications “experts” make them feel ashamed for not being hip to everything. Many people just want practical online communications advice, and they don’t want to spend all day fussing with it.

By: David Meerman Scott

David Meerman Scott — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 19:01:35 +0000

Wow. Ron, I haven’t heard of someone who didn’t use Google in ages. There are so few people like that these days, that I wouldn’t know what to say…