GdayX: Smart Ideas, Great Innovations

GdayX: Smart Ideas, Great Innovations

by Jeremiah Evangelista

The GdayX event last Saturday was a great learning experience on how to use technology as a great tool not only to connect and communicate with people but also as a gateway for expanding your business and establishing your brand in social media. It was a great opportunity to expose ourselves with the ideas behind success stories of entrepreneurs such as the different ways to use the resources at their disposal to make a really big impact on other people, the right mindset and attitude one should have when starting a business venture, and the right motivation to keep pressing forward and also the business strategies that big companies like Google implement so as to get the maximum returns for their investments.

The first idea that I took from the event was regarding Google’s business strategy and how it has become a giant business mogul. Their strategy was to focus on the user and all else will follow. At first, I thought that this should be obvious for anyone who is trying to establish a business. But the more I thought about it, the more I was able to understand that even though this is common knowledge to a lot of people, it is not a common practice. The reason why Google, Facebook, Youtube, and Amazon.com are ahead of their competitors is because they focus on their users above everything else in their business. These companies rose to the top because they deliver the best quality and substance in their products. In terms of efficiency, innovation, and simplicity, Google is at the forefront. We see that Facebook and Amazon.com excel in versatility and variety. Youtube brands itself as a great interface for video content sharing and as well as an excellent social media platform. Basically, I learned that a successful business starts with the users – the consumers, the audience, and the followers. We should not focus on what we want but on what the users want because if they get what they want, then we get what we want – a successful brand and business, making way for profit.

The second idea was collaboration. Google’s tools make it easy for people to collaborate anywhere at any time. This is also another aspect to their successful business strategy. In building a brand or business, we need to partner with other people so that there is a wide range of markets to reach and to target. Building dynamic relationships is one of the best ways to help make ourselves known to the public. I learned that when we are able to collaborate with people, we can make big impacts and we can make change happen. 

The last idea was to stay true to who you are. Attitude and authenticity are definitely important in business. This is how successful companies were able to succeed. Technology is always available but if it’s not backed up with a passion to succeed, then it will bear less successful results. All in all, GdayX was a fun, interactive experience.

A Googolplex of Greatness

 A Googolplex of Greatness

Marga Rillo

When one thinks about Google, a one-faceted definition usually comes to mind: A straight-to-the-point search engine that offers over a billion pages on a single topic. This feature, in itself, is ground-breaking, but since the recent move to extend its offerings to other elements of the internet, the movers and shakers of Google have shown how brilliant technology can be. Charismatic and genius, the corporation has been exerting great effort in showing the beauty of Google, particularly through the GDayX sessions around the world. In the recently held GDayX Manila, speakers were tapped to share their thoughts on technology, business, and networking in the world today. Simultaneously fun and value-adding, the event provided its attendees with a new perspective on the interactions of humans with one another and with the devices they integrate into their lives.

Gail Tan, a Country Communications Manager for Google, began by explaining the missing human element in the relationship between technology and business. Zeroing in on one of the main mottos of the company, she emphasized the need to listen to and to cater to the needs of the users, and how this should serve as the driving force behind all of the efforts of a corporation. Google is able to achieve this through crowd-accelerated innovation, a mechanism seen in services such as G+ and Google Maps where the users are encouraged to collaborate with the company in effectively engaging and educating.

The second speaker, Herald Uy, then introduced Google’s Communication Tools. These tools, with Gmail, Hangouts, and Google Drive, make use of cloud technology in allowing the user to work with any team, on any device, in any place, and at any time. The company effectively promotes a culture of collaboration and teamwork, all performed seamlessly and efficiently. In this way, Google is able to serve as an avenue for the revitalization of old companies and the forming of connections between them and their employees.

The fourth speaker, Trixie Canavel, a manager for Content Partnerships in YouTube, later on spoke about the benefits of using the website in line with promoting one’s company.  As the #2 search engine of the world, with over 150 years’ worth of videos being viewed on Facebook everyday, it’s a no-brainer that the website should assist in finding and engaging an audience. YouTube can then aid a business by exposing its many users to particular products and services, thus allowing it to develop a closer relationship with its clients and to increase its online presence.

It’s mind-blowing to think about the achievements of Google in the past 15 years that it has been around. From a simple search engine programmed by two ordinary students in Stanford, the corporation has grown into an innovative powerhouse that continues to revolutionize how we connect with one another and, in effect, how we live. Without a doubt, there is no way but up for Google, and the world cannot wait to begin searching as to what it will do next.