The 1 thing I would change at Firefox

(Yes Firefox is still a thing. And I’m one of the 3.65% who still use it.)

Imagine this. Beach time is coming up, and you enter ‘best swimsuits’ into google.

And instead of:

• a series of google ads
• articles from companies that had the best PR
• sites that have invested the most in SEO

… you actually find sites that… have the best swimsuits.

It’s sites of companies that are doing a phenomenal job — sending quality items, great customer service. They might be some smaller shopify stores, mom and pops, or they might be big box retail. But it’s the kind of list your friend would actually recommend to you.

That, I believe, is the internet of the future: recommendation, not simply search.

So where does Firefox come in?

I met only one other person who used it in the last year. We instantly felt a connection. There’s just something about that friendly fox vs. sleek, shiny chrome or sterile safari.

But besides the feel of it, as a browser, how do you stand apart?

Consider this: What if Firefox would add crowdsourced ratings for sites?

Every time you visit a site, you see an aggregation of recent reviews, and you can add your vote into the mix.

It plays to Mozilla’s strengths:

1. Browsers are the elegant way to solve the problems review sites have

Review sites have tried solving this recommendation — but they fail with the problem of:

• getting enough wide participation
• fake reviews
• sites handpicking who gets to submit a review
• getting revenue from the companies they review

With a browser there is a ready user base for participation, and it can create solutions to guard against fake reviewers: e.g. only users who have used Firefox for say, a month or more, can submit a review, and only 1 review per site per browser.

2. Mozilla.org would crush SEO
Ahrefs has it a 95 score. For those unfamiliar with search engine optimization, that’s PHENOMENAL.

Imagine being the wikipedia for what consumers are looking for (best swimsuits, best mixers).

The monetization potential is HIGH. The lead generation for companies would be amazing. And just charging companies e.g. $500 for a ‘premium profile’ will be transformational for revenue.

4. It fits in with it’s mission

From it’s own manifesto:

Individuals must have the ability to shape the internet and their own experiences on it.

Transparent community-based processes promote participation, accountability and trust