Google Love-Fest Goes On

Sam Gustin asks: Can Google do no wrong?

In the latest University of Michigan American Customer Satisfaction Index, Google triumphed in the web search and portals category with an 86 out of 100, beating Yahoo (77), MSN (75), Ask.com (74), and AOL (69).

My skepticism of these types of surveys is only enhanced by the fact the researchers won't disclose their methodology.

Referring to Google's 8-point jump from last year, TechCrunch's Eric Schonfeld asks the right question: "Is it really doing that much of a better job than last year, or is it just that its halo effect keeps growing?" (To wit: Yesterday, Google ramped up its campaign to open up unused radio
spectrum the company said could offer "ubiquitous wireless broadband
access to all Americans," and today, the company announced a $10.25 million investment in geothermal energy which it said could be the "'killer app' of the energy world.")

I can't help but think that the survey's respondents are basing their feedback, at least in part, on some kind of amorphous perception of the companies involved.

Could the survey results be evidence that Google's near incessant attempts to show that it is a good corporate citizen are paying off?

Meanwhile, Apple topped the list of computer manufacturers with an 85, beating Dell (75), HP (73), Gateway (72), and Compaq (70).

But as News.com's Tom Krazit notes, the survey was conducted before Apple's release of the iPhone 3G and its MobileMe Web services product. Both of those launches were plagued with problems.