The ARKMETA Story
How the world learned
to find a business.
Five chapters, one thread: every era changed who gets found. This is where we came from, and why we build what we build.
A timeline of being found
- 1883–86The Yellow PagesYellow paper in Cheyenne (1883), then the first official directory in Chicago (1886).
- 1995CraigslistAn email list in 1995, on the web in 1996.
- 1998GoogleLinks, not just keywords, begin to decide who ranks.
- 2007The iPhoneDiscovery moves into people's pockets.
- 2022ChatGPTAnswers begin to replace lists of links.
- 20255 trillionGoogle confirms 5+ trillion searches a year.
Every date and number is sourced in the chapters below.
The five chapters
Read it in order.
Chapter 1 · 1883 – 1999
Before the Internet
When finding a plumber meant a directory, a classified ad, or a neighbor.
Read more →Chapter 2 · 1994 – 2005
The Search Revolution
Google, PageRank, AdWords and the birth of SEO.
Read more →Chapter 3 · 2007 – 2015
Mobile & Social
The phone in every pocket, and Google's algorithm updates that reshaped local search.
Read more →Chapter 4 · 2015 – today
The AI Intelligence Era
From ranking on a list to being the answer: AI Overviews, ChatGPT and GEO.
Read more →Chapter 5 · Today
Why We Exist
There has never been more demand for being found. Most businesses are still invisible.
Read more →Sources & notes
- Yellow Pages history: Wikipedia, "Yellow pages".
- Craigslist history: Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Craigslist".
- Each chapter lists its own sources. Dates for Google product and algorithm announcements follow Google's public announcements.