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wolfwrenbrainrot · 1 year ago

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All the thoughts I ever had about SW ship wars from 2015 to 2023?? And why I ship Wolfwren I guess Idk

⚠️ DISCLAIMER ⚠️

I’ll be discussing the ship wars that are happening right now in the ahsoka fandom and compare it to how my perception about the fandom war that happened during the sequel era changed with the years). Oh, and I’m going to get into some tangencies that may not make much sense most of the time, so reading this to the end is on your own account. I ended up being a bit cynical too, but not in a mean way, I hope?

I usually give up everytime I start writing an opinion on tumblr, because most of the time I just think my opinion won’t change anything, but the ahsoka fandom got “revived” (not that it was dead, but, well, we haven’t had any new episodes and to an extent the most of us move on to others shows a little until we get new content, like it happened these last few days) and I’ve been thinking about this show all on my own for a while (my friends aren’t really into Star Wars stuff, so they can listen, but they’ll never GET IT like interacting with fans online will). I’m explaining myself too much, but all I mean by that is that by writing this, I don’t intend to add fuel to the fire. That’s why i won’t tag sab//ra, r//lo or mention the ships just because I don’t want to upset those of them that can have normal conversations about media nor trigger those that can’t (which, thankfully, doesn’t seem to apply to all sab//zras). So, if you don’t like Wolfwren, you’ll only see this if you are looking for a ship you don’t like or if you’re invested enough in not liking it to check the anti tag. I’m not judging, we all been there. In fact, I was there during the sequel era, with a ship that is pretty similar in dynamic to Wolfwren. It was also pretty similar to a ship I loved at the time, Catradora, from Netflix’s She’ra. So, yeah, I was a big hypocrite. I still kinda think sapphic enemies to lovers is the superior taste of the trope, but that’s because I’m so profoundly gay it would scare the gayest gay, so obviously the ships I’m more invested in are sapphic. It’s a given. But my point is, now I see the whole R//lo argument from a different angle, that you can disagree with, but I believe is more realistic:

I don’t ship it.

Although it is an illusion to believe our taste in fiction is not related to who we are as people (because blah blah blah capitalism blah blah blah I’m a commie), it is possible to distinguish what we want from two fiction characters and how we expect to meet our partners in real life lmao.

(This next part I’m a bit uncertain of how it’ll be perceived, but I hope it makes sense. Please, both R//los and antis that may or may not be reading this, be patient and try to understand what I’m trying to say.

Yes, Finn was casted aside by Lucasfilm. Yes, K//lo getting a more prominent role in the films played a part in this whole process. Yes, there was a part of the R//lo fandom that was racist to John Boyega. This is also true for the Star Wars fandom as a WHOLE, because there was plenty of shitty dudebros complaining about the same shit they’re complaining today, “woke culture” and all that crap, just because they decided to have a woman and a black man as the protagonists. A decision that most likely wasn’t made by those executives thinking: “Oh, wouldn’t it be so great if we made a few minorities feel seen in this universe many of them really love?”. But it did that.

The Force Awakens came out and, despite being, at the same time, a remake of A New Hope and a continuation of Return of the Jedi, its new characters had SO. MUCH. POTENTIAL. And, limitations imposed by mainstream products made by big corporations and set in galaxies far, far away from ours aside, black people and women felt represented. It is one of the many contradictions of symbolic effect of minorities groups being represented in media produced in the system that oppress them (commie, warned you). Does it change things? No, not really. Isn’t it usually done it a way full of limitations that sometimes reinforce certain ideas that are pretty harmful? Yeah… Kind of… But didn’t it feel great, after growing up frustrated that Leia wasn’t a Jedi in the old movies, to have Rey? Wasn’t it awesome that black people got Finn? This complex (at least, it started that way) defected stormtrooper turned rebel? That could, maybe, even be force sensitive…? Yes to all of those questions! Tricky, isn’t it? By the way, I do believe that (before TROS) Finn had the narrative placement of Han (reluctant hero), Poe had Leia’s (rebel leader that gets captured and literally puts important information in a droid lmao), Rey had Luke’s (lives a boring life but has a calling to the adventure blah blah blah becomes a hero, we all heard it so many times) and Kylo had Vader’s (villain that’ll eventually get redeemed by the hero). All basic, old hero’s journey. A story structure that, despite being critical of, I eat up every fucking time it envolves spaceships and lightsabers. Getting back to the point, representation has its limits but it matters and the Star Wars fandom is full of racist, sexist pieces of shit and there was a percentage of the R//lo fandom that were too. But shipping R//lo isn't, like, intrinsically racist. You can make an argument for the implications of Adam Driver being chosen as a romantic interest (both by many fans and by Lucasfilm) over John Boyega, but at the same time there is, to some degree a level of which trope (friends to lovers or enemies to lovers) attracts you more. For me, it depends. I was a Finnpoe with a soft spot for Finnrey and an anti R//lo. But I’m obsessed with Wolfwren. Guess I like non-menacing men and evil lesbians. Wonder why Ezra Bridger is my favorite Rebels character and I ship Wolfwren. 🤔

Going back to the “Opinion on R//lo checklist”:

Would I like to meet my future partner by being kidnaped? No, not really. Do R//lo shippers want that? I think it's pretty safe to say they don't, even if they joke about it as much as I do about wanting Shin Hati to stab me. Because, ohh, right, it's a fictional movie about spaceships, galatic wars and space wizards. Yeah, I totally forgot about that when I was younger.

So, shipping R//lo doesn't mean you condone abusive relationships or domestic violence or whatever. Same applies to Wolfwren. ‘Cause, like, they aren't in a relationship yet, they’re not even friends or allies… They're on opposite sides of a war. You’re supposed to try to kill each other. Some people are just intrigued by the tension/dynamic between two characters and some others are just attracted to the characters and want to read about them fucking, and if it upsets you enough that you need to try to annoy people into stop shipping it… you need to rethink your relationship with fiction. I’m saying this because I had to do it, too. I went on with the mob and statements I agree to this day got mixed up with a bunch of nonsense and I thought that by being anti R//ylo I was making a statement, I was fighting against the romanticization of toxic relationships. I wasn't. It’s like that Luca Guadagnino’s film, “Bones and all”. Canibalism as a metaphor for love has been explored in multiple ways, by multiple artists in paintings, films, novels… Does it mean all the people who produced and consumed those works want to eat human flesh?

There’s also different ways of shipping an ETL ship. I love Wolfwren, and, in fanon, I don't mind it getting super angsty and fucked up, Killing Eve style, but I also love it when it's a slowburn romance with them going from enemies to reluctant allies to slowly building a friendship and falling in love. Do you see the range? Shipping is also about imagination, about overanalyzing things, about wondering what could character x possibly bring to character y? If Wolfwren ever does become canon, my perfect scenario would be the slowburn one, though I’ll love every second of them fighting and stare into each other's eyes until then.

If you ship S/b/rza, it doesn't mean you're homophobic. Unless you, well, use homophobic rhetoric to hate on Wolfwren and/or its shippers. This homophobic rhetoric can also be an attempt of being (hate to use this word) “woker” than the person shipping a gay ship and saying the queer people shipping Shin and Sabine are actually reinforcing lesbian stereotypes. Triste me when this is not the hot take you seem to think it. Maybe try researching a bit about queer representation in media, queercoding and the hays code era. Or try to put yourself in our shoes. As I stated above, representation has its limits but it matters and increases our ability to connect to the pieces of fiction we're consuming. In my case, as much as I can enjoy it, there's always gonna be a degree of alienation when it comes to “straight people media”. That's why I headcanon characters as sapphic. Because I am. That's why autistic people headcanon characters as being autistic. Same goes for trans people and other minority groups that do the same. So, in the end, it doesn't really need to be canon and even after today I’m still not that hopeful, ‘cause, again, it's Disney. If anything, there's always a possibility that, if Shin lives, she ends up being paired up with a random dude just so people can't call her a lesbian (this has never, ever, stopped a lesbian before tho lol). I'm guessing whatever happens with Wolfwren won't affect what happens to S/b/rza. I may be proven wrong in the future but I think they closed that door in the show, at least for now. Filoni doesn't seem that interested in writing romance to me, especially this time around. We are yet to see physical or romantic attraction being even remotely alluded to in this show. (S/b/rzas interpretation of Sabine's motivation to find Ezra or my interpretation of the tension between Shin and Sabine doesn't change that). It's a pretty sexless show (and I’m not saying they should have explicit sex on a Star Wars show, but George Lucas didn't shy away from romance and showcasing attraction and romantic love). I believe that's why he made sure to “discard” S/b/rza, despiste knowing it was a relatively popular ship in the Rebels fandom (obviously it doesn't stop anyone from shipping it, but it is an indicative of how Filoni intended us to perceive their dynamic). You know what I mean? Wolfwren happening or not, being or not supported by the cast and crew, doesn't change anything for your ship. And to be really honest, it is kind of funny to me that some people feel threatened by Wolfwren. ‘Cause, like, even if Filoni wants to make it canon, in the end it will be up to Lucasfilm and Disney to allow it or not and the best they gave us so far is Velcinta in Andor. Do you truly believe we have a better chance at getting our endgame than you do? Come on, guys. Please. I don't think any of us will, just to be clear, but even if Wolfwrens “win” this ship war, it won't be like some injustice or disrespect towards the s/b/rza fandom. Same goes for s/b/rza, because unlike Poe x Zorrii that was a last minute, pulled of their ass straight romance that only existed to send the very clear message that Poe Dameron is a heterossexual man (lol, he isn't). Ezra and Sabine do have a history together that I see as platonic but can be interpreted as romantic. And you will still be able to ship it, even if Sabine ends up with Shin. That's why fanfiction exist. If she ends up with Ezra, I’ll keep reading my Wolfwren fanfics and be happy with it. At the end of the day, it's just fiction. I care enough about it to write a long ass Tumblr post, but not to make me actually upset over a relationship that isn't my own.

#wolfwren #anti wolfwren

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dayslily · 3 years ago

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hi nic!! same anon. thank you for the info!! i just had a few qs before i reach out off anon if thats okie hehe <3 what are double agents? are they specifically villains who are heroes? is there a vice versa of that? can there be students who have enrolled as heroes but plan to become villains no matter what? are any quirks allowed (aside from npc and taken) or are there some that aren't? final two, are gifs allowed and what is the youngest a fc can be? thank you so much sorry 4 the ramble! 🥺

yes ofc no worries!!!! i'm going 2 stick all of this under a read more hehe <3 pls don't apologize i love chevalier so much i could talk to u all day

double agents are officially members of the league of villains, but they are secretly working alongside heroes (could be as students, could be as pro heroes/sidekicks) to feed the league information !! (side note: there are only two spots available for double agents & both of them are currently filled)'

but for ur second question i think that would b so sexy of them they just couldn't be affiliated with the league yet so maybe they r scheming in their head & we can work out the league reaching out to them if u wanted in the future !!

any quirks are fair game as long as they are not taken!! this also means that people shouldn't apply as quirks that are the same as another taken quirk & just put under a different name (ex: we have someone with an 'incinerate' quirk [the ability to control and create fire] so u couldn't apply as someone with another fire creation quirk if that makes sense) we also ask that u don't give someone a super overpowered/undefeatable quirk BUT usually u can stick limitations on anything so don't worry 2 much on that front <3

gifs are allowed!!! i used to use them in threads but i haven't been recently because i'm lazy FAJSODFIJA most people in the server only use gifs on open starters but also people will match ur format a lot of the time

AND finally !!! fcs must be 19 or older <3 + if ur curious, our youngest muse is 22 and their bday is nov 7, 1999 (sab zada fc)

edit: jst kidding our youngest muse is 21 and their bday is april 6, 2000 (hwang yeji fc)

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cafesandlatenights · 8 years ago

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Chapter One [Beyond the Sunrise, LMMxReader]

Summary: The stranger from the diner is more familiar with your family than you realized.

Word Count: 2,377

Warnings: Slow burn, mentions of drinking?

Authors notes: Sab - Guys. Dreams are coming true (specifically, mine). This is the first chapter and we are so excited to share with you guys! Mostly because pre-ITH Lin is my spirit animal.

Ren - You guys have no idea how excited we are for you to finally dive in with us into this story! Sab and I have a ~thing~ for pre-ITH Lin and the way this story flows when we write kinda speaks for itself. We really hope you guys enjoy it as much as we do!

askbox | masterlist | prologue | next chapter

“Mom, slow down- What do you need me to do?” You thanked the universe for having a slow day at your job when your mom called. Those phone calls were never calm or short, but today she sounded especially nervous. “Ava? Is she okay?”

“I got a call from school, hon, they asked to pick her up earlier, something about a stomach or a headache, I don’t remember.” You rolled your eyes at your mom’s neglect and how it never changed, even after having three daughters. “Since your job is closer to Hunter and I’m on the other side of the city I was wondering if-”

“If I can pick her up? Sure, I’ll have to talk to my boss but we’re having a slow day anyway.” You took a deep breath after listening to your mother giving you instructions on how to find your way inside Hunter like you have never been there, hanging up on her after a quick goodbye.

Getting the time off wasn’t a problem. Your manager was truly considerate when it came to family instances, and this hadn’t been the first time your mother dropped the ball with your freshman sister: your role as big sister doubled as a psychologist, driver, nurse and more often than it should, mother.

You checked yourself in the bathroom’s mirror at work, straightened the pencil skirt you hated so much and putt a few strands of hair back in place. Hunter was no place for you, you knew that the first time you stepped into the prestigious high school in jeans and a t-shirt during your little sister’s tour, earning a few side looks from other family members that were accompanying the kids as well.

You dreaded walking on the campus. Snooty teachers and teenagers that were already much smarter than you’d ever be put you on edge. If your sister was sick, however, you had no choice. Leaving a note for your co-worker by the desk telling them you’d be back soon and stepping out of the Natural History Museum, you made your way quickly to the parking lot, quickly finding your car: used and with way more mileage than it should, the old thing did the job just fine for now. You took some pride on having it, since it was one of your first purchases with your own salary, but the car was old.

At least that’s what your mother said. You liked the word vintage much more.

You had to admit it was a bit embarrassing rolling up to your sister’s prestigious school in the beater, but it was not like you had another option.

You knew the layout of the campus fairly well, and was able to navigate to the front office with little trouble. A quick conversation with a woman at the front desk had you stuck in a waiting room before being allowed access to the nurse’s office. Waiting was one of the few things that you utterly hated.

Waiting gives you time to think, thinking leads to overthinking, which was something that you already did too often without the spare time sitting in a room with nothing to do gave you. Your eyes wandered through the walls, all full of old pictures, almost historical ones, of classes that graduated before you were even born. The place was a museum almost as much as it was a school, and you noticed how different it was from the school you attended as a teenager.

Your school wasn’t the most funded or filled to the brim with the highest test scores in New York, but it was home for four years. So were the places nearby, your mind shifting your thoughts to the Salt & Pepper diner almost immediately. It was a place that had been up and running for decades - even when your mother was in high school.

You pictured how different the dynamics were back in her time, and how there was almost a zero percent chance she’d have had the night you had with Lin. Lin. You didn’t see him again ever since, nor had you asked Sonya about him, it wasn’t like you two were friends or anything.

Lin hadn’t had the time to return to the diner in the past week, the unscheduled early morning chat putting a dent in the time he set aside to grade papers.

It seemed like his week had been clouded with you, so much so that his students had begun to notice a certain off-ness to his attitude: he was distracted and would often lose his line of thought, which was really uncommon to Lin. He noticed some kids whispering to each other as he took a deep breath to collect himself to what looked like the millionth time that morning. Thankfully, a middle of the day prep period meant he could busy himself with making copies and catching up with his co-workers after the weekend.

The office was always his first stop, the copy machines promised to be flooded with other teachers with just as many stacks of papers as he had. To kill the time, he would listen in on the gossip the women at the front desk would dish - always taking their remarks with a grain of salt.

Usually it was what teachers they thought were hooking up (they had quite the idea that him and Mr. Martinez, the band teacher, would make a lovely couple). Today, they pouted over one of his favorite students.

“Poor girl, sick to her stomach and her mother can’t even come pick her up. The sister has to leave work.”

“Well, when was the last time we’ve even seen Ava’s mother? Orientation, maybe?”

Craning his neck to see if the line was moving along at all - it wasn’t - Lin abandoned his place and made a beeline for the nurse’s office. The fastest route was a straight shot, but Lin liked to avoid a certain section of the office where yard duties would squabble about the appropriate length of girls’ skirts.

A sudden left turn had him in the attendance office, only a few doors down from the nurse’s office. He stopped walking once he passed by the waiting room and saw someone. You. He walked back, catching your attention.

“[Y/N]?” The happiness in his voice matched the sparkle in his eyes, it was adorable. “What are you doing here?”

“Lin, hey!” You got up, wrapping your arms around his neck for a quick hug that lasted a few seconds too long. You felt your heart beating fast once he let go of you. “I’m picking up my sister, she got sick and my mom couldn’t come...” Your eyebrows raised in a silent question.

“Oh! I’m working.” His hand found his teacher badge, dangling from a lanyard around his neck.

“Mr. Miranda. English department.” You read aloud. “Substitute teacher?”

“Yep, I have to pay the bills somehow,” he shrugged. “I feel bad about the other night. Venting to you until the sun came up and I didn’t even ask for your number.”

“Oh, right! I felt like it was my fault, I just left after I- I’m sorry,” you replied, with an apologetic smile. “Here,” you shuffled through your bag for a scrap of paper as he fished for a pen from his pants pocket.

You hurriedly scribbled down the digits, passing him the crinkled note.

“The Natural History Museum?” He asked, squinting at the faded watermark above your number.

“You’re not the only one that has bills to pay,” you shrugged. “Front desk, half-time job. Welcome to the American Museum of Natural History, how can I help you today?” Your ‘customer service’ voice had Lin giggling, recalling a similar tone he used when he served strangers one dollar burgers.

“Hey sis I- Mr. Miranda, hi!” Your little sister broke into the waiting room with her backpack hanging on one shoulder, a small smile showing up on her face when she noticed who you were talking to.

“Hey, how’re you feeling?” Your arms went over her shoulder as you pressed a light kiss to her forehead.

“Nauseous. Tired. Hungry.” She listed.

“Did you go out drinking last night?” He teased, knowing your angel of a little sister wouldn’t even consider it.

“Totally wasted.” She answered, “Don’t tell my sister, she’s lame.”

“And with that,” a glare in her direction silenced any more of her teasing, “we should get you home. Lin, it was great to see you again.”

“Likewise,” he nodded. “Maybe next time we have coffee you’ll at least try not to peel the crust off your grilled cheese?”

“We’ll have to find that out,” you joked. “You have my number now, so…”

“I’ll text you.” He announced, making you giggle while you left with your little sister, who looked at the both of you with curiosity.

Once Ava and you got in the car, you bit your lip, turning on the radio to avoid any conversation about what just happened, but at the same time you knew that never stopped Ava before. Just as you expected, after a few songs, she started asking questions.

“So, how do you know Mr. Miranda?” You little sister asked while turning the radio’s volume down a few numbers.

“We met at a diner a few nights ago.” You simply commented, not taking your eyes from the streets. “Had to get some work done and we were the only people there.”

“He is awesome, you know?” You knew. “And he totally asked you out there.” The certain girlish giggle that escaped your sister reminded you that she was only fourteen.

“What? No!” You turned to her once he car stopped at a red light. “He knows it was just as friends… Right? I mean it’s coffee not dinner.”

“I don’t think so, sis.” Ava was typing on her phone while talking. “You should consider it as a date, though.”

“Ava, I have a boyfriend, remember? Stephen?”

“Stephen is a bore, [Y/N].”

“I thought you liked him!”

“I do, but it doesn’t change the fact that he is really boring. Mr. Miranda is one of my favorite people in the world, you can’t expect me to be on Stephen’s side on this one.”

“This is so none of your business,” you commented, right before arriving at your mother’s street, finding a parking spot right away. “Okay, you’re home.”

“You’re not coming in?” Ava’s eyes widened.

“I’m avoiding any chance to face mom, Ava.” You took a deep breath, placing a strand of hair behind her ear. “If you need anything, just call okay?”

She mumbled a reply, swinging her bag on and closing the car door behind her. You sat and watched her safely disappear into the house, firing up the car and pulling out of the spot.

You hated to just leave your little sister by herself at home, but if you lingered too long your mother may corner you into a conversation. And the conversation would be considered a passive-aggressive attack on every single aspect of your life: your mom loved you, you knew that, but she also had an abnormal amount of high expectations about your personal, professional and academic life.

She could drone on for hours about Stephen. How he was perfect for you. How he had a career and aspirations and money. Stephen was the only aspect of your life that your mother happily approved of and ironically, the only aspect of your life you couldn’t care less about.

Work was always a nice escape from thinking about these things. Forcing smiles and directing tourists distracted you from the man you had dedicated over two years of your life to. He wasn’t horrible.

He was nice, and sometimes he made you laugh and he definitely had money, something that came in handy when you decided to move out and he promptly invited you to move in with him. No matter how nice he was, however, you had to agree with your sister. He was a bit boring.

Work only lasted so long, you conceded, enjoying the final moments of solitude as you drove home from the museum. After dropping your bag by the door, you noticed the sun setting, giving the whole place a golden glow. As you walked towards Stephen’s home office, you found the guy typing while listening to someone on the phone, which was stuck between his shoulder and his ear.

You watched him for a few moments until he ended the call, going to him and pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “Hey.”

“Hey, I didn’t even hear you coming.”

“I noticed,” you replied with a smile. “Busy day?”

“As always. Yours?”

“Had to pick up Ava at school, mom called last minute.” You sat on his desk by his laptop while he finished typing. “What do you want for dinner?”

“Anything you want,” he smiled.

And that was that. He would hold himself in his office until dinner, where he would make a quick appearance and press the same kiss on your cheek as he had the night before. He’d return to his office until bedtime, where you would sit up, watch a single late night show, and be tucked in by eleven.

It was while you were setting up the table for you and Stephen when your phone buzzed on your back pocket, the confusion on your face when seeing the unknown number being replaced with a smile after seeing the message.

From: Unknown number

To: [Y/N]

Hello! Hope your sister is feeling better (she does have a very very important essay due at the end of the week!) and that you weren’t kidding about getting coffee again?

Your thumbs hovered over the phone before starting to type a reply.

From: [Y/N]

To: Lin Miranda

Yes and yes. Ava is already annoying me with texts again so she’s probably fine. And nope, not kidding! Coffee sounds great.

That didn’t sound flirtatious, right? Stephen shifted in the other room. No, definitely not flirtatious. Still, you hesitated before hitting ‘send’.

From: Lin Miranda

To: [Y/N]

I’m sure your schedule is a little crazier than mine. School and work and all that? Pick a date and time and I’ll be there.

tags: @smileystumph - @justanotherhamiltrash - @always-blame-jefferson - @itsjaynebird - @angerybisexual - @l-nmanuel - @voldecrux - @phangirldil2022 - @jzzyjones

#lin manuel miranda x reader #lmm x reader #hamilcast x reader #hamilcast imagine #lin manuel miranda imagine

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riichardwilson · 4 years ago

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Google Tests $50/mo Upgraded GMB – What Does it Mean for Local Businesses?

On July 22nd, Google My Business Product Expert, Tom Waddington spotted a new feature being tested in Google Business profiles.

Google starting to offer an upgraded Business Profile (Google My Business listing) for $50/month that will add the Google Guaranteed badge to the listing and back services the business provides with the Google Guarantee. pic.twitter.com/x4bHLuVEi2

— Tom Waddington (@tomwaddington8) July 22, 2020

What he saw caused SEO Companys to think that their fears were being realized: Google My Business was becoming a paid-for product.

But as we well know in local SEO Company, things are not always as clear as they first seem.

With so much speculation out there, we wanted to clear things up. That’s why I’ve waded through the mass of information and chatter circulating the internet to work out exactly:

What we know

What we don’t know

What the community thinks, and

What this could mean for local businesses

What we know

So, as I mentioned and as Tom’s tweet showed, the news broke on July 22nd that Google was testing paid-for Google My Business profiles. This tells us two things:

Google My Business is testing this. Paid-for profiles are not yet confirmed, Google tests things all the time, with some features being formally rolled out and others never seeing the light of day.

Google might be considering a paid-for offering (in this case, $50/month) in some context. Although this idea has caused quite the stir (as we’ll come onto later), it’s not necessarily new information. Back in the summer of sixty-ni—sorry, 2019—Google My Business caused controversy with its pay-to-play survey, asking users what features they’d be willing to pay for on a monthly basis.

Shortly after Google’s survey slipped out, we conducted our own poll, which showed that 59% of respondents felt worried about the prospect of GMB becoming a paid-for product.

So before we continue, it’s important to remember, first and foremost, that this potential profile upgrade is only being tested.

There is no sign that GMB is going to be paid for just yet, if ever.

Aside from the tweet that sparked this whole news cycle, we do have some additional information to work with. Search Engine Land reached out to a Google spokesperson, who said:

We’re always testing new ways to improve our experience for our advertisers, merchants, and users. This experiment will show the Google Guaranteed badge on the business profile. We don’t have anything additional to announce right now.

A typically vague Google response, but at least we know for sure, that as of right now at least, this is just a test.

The next thing shown in Tom’s original discovery is the ‘Google Guarantee’ badge. From this we can also see that an ‘upgraded’ Business Profile fits perfectly with the Google Guarantee badge.

And if that sounds familiar, it’s because it already exists, and has done since 2018. According to Google:

The Google Guarantee badge is available for businesses that pass a Google screening and qualification process through Google Local Services.

In practical terms, it means that Google will refund customers who are dissatisfied with your services if you’re backed by this badge. Although there aren’t any formal studies on this, many SEO Companys also speculate that Google Guaranteed badges will have a positive impact on CTR and conversions, especially in the current spam-dominated landscape.

Source: Search Engine Land

Outside of this test, the Google Guarantee is part of an ad offering, originally linked to Google’s Local Services Ads (LSAs), which are only available for eligible service-area businesses and professional services. LSAs for the latter category are currently rolling out across the US.

That covers what we can confirm as true. But what don’t we know about these upgraded profiles?

What we don’t know

In the screenshot Tom shared, Google states that the upgraded Business Profile is available to “eligible businesses”. Right now, we don’t know what those are.

While eligible businesses really could mean anything, Tom has speculated that the upgraded GMB profile could be available for businesses currently available in Local Service Ads. He also mentioned that he’s currently only seeing this test for HVAC listings on the home tab of the GMB dashboard.

Businesses already in Local Services is a logical to start since they have already passed the screening process. I think it will eventually expand beyond that though.

— Tom Waddington (@tomwaddington8) July 22, 2020

We also don’t know if or how this upgraded profile will benefit the local businesses who opt in. One user questioned if there was any indication the paid-for offering would boost a business’s ranking:

No, but even if it did (directly or indirectly), it wouldn’t help as much as keyword stuffing the business name, which is free to do and not policed well at all by Google.

— Tom Waddington (@tomwaddington8) July 23, 2020

Another interesting question raised was whether or not this offering would replace LSAs. And although we can’t say for certain, Tom seemed pretty confident that that wouldn’t be the case:

No, absolutely not. This wouldn’t be a replacement. A supplement or doorway to it, if anything.

— Tom Waddington (@tomwaddington8) July 24, 2020

Another uncertainty is whether or not this will be available globally or just for the US. Local Services Ads have performed well (for Google, at least) in the US, to the point that they’re now being rolled out nationally for professional services as well as SABs, so we could see Google Guarantee badges eventually following suit if this test rolls out further.

However, LSAs haven’t gone down as well in other parts of the world. For this reason, UK-based SEO Company Tim Capper commented that he was intrigued to see if Google would attempt to roll this out in the UK:

I’m interested if they will attempt to roll out in UK after LSA was rejected by UK businesses when they tried to on board a few years ago.

— Tim Capper (@GuideTwit) July 28, 2020

On top of this, a couple of people have asked about eligibility in the UK and Australia, to which Tom responded that he “wouldn’t expect to see it there anytime soon”.

Because of this, I’d be surprised to see Google Guaranteed, upgraded profiles rolling out outside the US any time soon, even if the test does roll out across the US.

What this could mean for local businesses

So, we’ve established what we know and what we don’t. But you may be wondering what this test could mean for local businesses.

Firstly, yes, this could mean that GMB is going to go down the route of pay-to-play. In fact, some SEOs have been predicting things would go this way for a while.

Well given that it was the worse survey ever… yes… but as you have noticed monetization has been a long term trend of Google’s which I don’t dispute they will and are doing more of it.

— Mike Blumenthal (@mblumenthal) July 22, 2020

However, it’s far too soon to jump to conclusions. Even if Google was to implement this, we don’t know if the cost would remain at $50, we don’t know if it would be in place for all businesses and categories, and we don’t know what perks or disadvantages users would receive.

There are a huge number of unknowns, so the best thing to do is — apart from keeping on top of the news — continue to optimize your existing GMB and engaging with potential customers as you normally would.

Some SEO Companys have suggested that this test could be an attempt by Google to tackle the rampant problem with Google My Business spam.

Just a few weeks ago, Google Search Liaison Danny Sullivan shared this tweet, in response to complaints about spam, that got the local search community talking:

Thanks. I know the team really is working to better deal with this type of stuff. I also know that as that’s been heard before. But I do expect improvements should be noticable in the near future.

— Danny Sullivan (@dannysullivan) July 17, 2020

We may be reading too much into this here, but the tweet suggests that Google was planning some pretty big steps to clamp down on GMB. I don’t think it would be a huge jump to speculate that upgraded and verified business listings could be one way to push out inauthentic listings and favor verified businesses.

What the community thinks

Okay, now we’ve worked out what we know and done some additional crystal ball gazing, it’s time to take a look at what local SEO Companys actually think about this potential new profile option.

Almost every tweet I saw about this test (and there were a lot of them) showed some very unhappy SEO Companys. They didn’t mince their words — poop emojis, curse words, and angry gifs filled my timeline.

This sounds like some bullshit. https://t.co/HlkgDKwPRz

— Amber Robinson (@AmberRobin5on) July 22, 2020

One SEO Company who also seemed to think this could be Google’s attempt at tackling spam was Sterling Sky’s Carrie Hill, who referred to the prospect as “a terrible idea”:

Can’t get a legit listing? Buy your way in?? this seems like a terrible idea…. https://t.co/lnhsnLU4qu

— Carrie Hill (@CarrieHill) July 22, 2020

Carrie’s fellow Sterling Sky teammate, Brian Barwig, was similarly displeased. He also raised the idea that he was confused about where this offering would fit in with other paid-for products such as pay-per-click ads and Local Service Ads.

This seems insane on its face. Its not PPC or LSA, but it kinda is. What’s to stop them from raising rates each month? GMB getting monetized. https://t.co/hOo2eqOmdV pic.twitter.com/OOn2bPbU92

— Brian Barwig (@BrianBarwig) July 22, 2020

And, as with all important conversations on Twitter, memes made their way into the discourse:

pic.twitter.com/6IKJjjEcol

— Eric Thomas (@ethomasdigital) July 22, 2020

Although the response was overwhelmingly negative, there were a few people who seemed to see the benefit of a paid-for profile:

I hope it can serve as a way to weed out fake listings for home services / locksmiths but it’s an expensive price to pay considering how many small businesses are suffering

— William Gallahue (@willgallahue) July 23, 2020

Well – it might just be a good way to separate the paid/vetted from the others, including SPAM

— Andy Kuiper (@andykuiper) July 22, 2020

As well as looking at the organic comments that arose in response to Tom’s tweet, we also passed the mic to our own Twitter followers to see what they thought of the whole affair. Interestingly, the responses were a lot more mixed than expected.

While some local SEO Companys seemed pretty concerned by the test…

100% disagree with this. Is the entire internet becoming pay-to-play? Half of the proposed paid features belong on a website anyways, NOT the SERP. Not to mention, this could contribute to an increase in spam listings or prevent them from being taken down.

— Natasha B-d. (@natasha_bd) July 28, 2020

…others viewed it as potentially positive and something that could become a concrete option:

Yes will become reality. Worth $50 just for the local services badge.

— Chris St. Jean (@StJeanDS) July 28, 2020

Local SEO Company pro and Local Search Clinic panelist, Niki Mosier, also chimed in on the debate, raising both pros and cons:

I definitely think it will become a reality. I suspected that pay-to-play might become a reality for GMB a while ago. I think it’s really unfortunate. GMB is so vital for so many small businesses. I would like to say I wouldn’t pay it. (½)

— Niki Mosier (@nikers85) July 28, 2020

(2/2) But if it gets to a point where there is negative impact by not, I may have to encourage clients to do it.

— Niki Mosier (@nikers85) July 28, 2020

For those working with local business clients from an agency perspective, like Niki, if this test were to become a reality it could certainly introduce some new challenges as SEO Companys would need to weigh up the cost versus the benefits of getting involved with the scheme.

SEO Company Analyst Amanda Jordan also raised an interesting point. In order for a $50/month GMB profile to be worth it for her, she’d need to see significant improvements in Maps spam-fighting.

If they add a badge to unpaid local pack results with custom schema for organic, I would expect to see adoption from companies who wouldn’t consider local paid ads otherwise. Spam prevention would need to see major improvements.

— Amanda Jordan (@amandatjordan) July 28, 2020

In a similar sentiment, SEO Company Levi Williams-Clucas said she’d be happy to pay the price if she saw a notable improvement in the form of GMB’s (widely acknowledged as misinformed and under-resourced) support options. Again, Levi mentioned she would need to heavily consider her clients’ best interests.

I think I’d tell my clients to do so if I believed it’d protect their businesses, because ultimately that’s the most key thing, but I’d need proof that not paying damaged rankings. Not that I’d be happy about it if that were the case either – ‘free’ is it’s main USP!

— Levi Williams-Clucas (@Femkepants) July 28, 2020

Some users thought the prospect of paid-for GMB profiles was straight-up unfair, such as Sarah Blocksidge:

Not to mention the thought of spam included in all this makes my head hurt. As if it wasn’t already a struggle to get businesses breaking guidelines to be removed… I can that going verryyyyy badly.

— Sarah Blocksidge (@SarahBlocksidge) July 28, 2020

And finally, some — such as ‘We Asked the Experts‘ contributor, Amy Toman, just want more details.

I just want to know more. Will the businesses need to be background checked, a la LSA’s? Will GMB pay for that? Will there be additional fees? What other requirements will there be? Will there be better support now, and spam removals? So much to consider here…

— Amy Toman (@BubblesUp) July 28, 2020

Summary

At the end of the day, as with many Google My Business tests, there isn’t a whole lot of information out there just yet. As always, we’ll be keeping a keen eye on the situation should any more information emerge, so look out for updates to this post as they come in.

What do you think of the upgraded GMB profile test? Is it just that — a test? If it rolled out would you pay for it? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

The post Google Tests $50/mo Upgraded GMB – What Does it Mean for Local Businesses? appeared first on BrightLocal.

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scpie · 4 years ago