Google: 1 More Try at Social
Google announced a new addition to their suite of products last week, +1, which integrates social sharing functionality into Google’s search algorithm. A new +1 button will be added next to every search result and, if you are logged into Google, you can click the button to give your stamp of approval, sharing the search result with others. In Google’s words, +1 is shorthand for “this is pretty cool” or “you should check this out.” Sound familiar? It did to me… +1 is very similar to Facebook’s “Like” button, or even to Digg.com.
How will +1 affect consumers? Well, search results will now be impacted by the number of people that have +1’d a site. In other words, the most popular searches will bubble to the top. This could make finding products and information easier. Instead of Google bots generating every result, other searchers will have input on results, making search a more social experience.
And what about the implications of +1 for brands, advertisers and web developers? For one, this adds a whole new level to a company’s SEO strategy – it is not just about Google’s algorithm anymore. In addition, over time, Google will be releasing a +1 button that brands can integrate within their own websites – again, similar to Facebook’s “Like” button. And lastly, brands will have to consider +1 as it relates to paid search campaigns. Apparently, +1 will not necessarily impact a company’s paid ranking (you will NOT get a better position based on how many people have +1’d you). Rather, you will get the benefit of increasing the click-throughs on your paid link because people have +1’d it. In Google’s words:
We expect that personalized annotations will help users know when your ads and organic search results are relevant to them, increasing the chances that they’ll end up on your site. You don’t have to make adjustments to your advertising strategy based on +1 buttons, and the way we calculate Quality Score isn’t changing (though +1s will be one of many signals we use to calculate organic search ranking). Think of +1 buttons as an enhancement that can help already successful search campaigns perform even better.
With all of that said, +1 is still in the experiment/beta phase (it’s not live for everyone yet, although, you can join the experiment here). While Google has made a previous attempt to implement a social tool (i.e. Google Buzz), only time will tell if +1 will take hold. We’ll be keeping our eyes and ears on +1 as it continues its roll-out. Regardless of the outcome, brands should be prepared if +1 succeeds, thinking about how to integrate the +1 button alongside Facebook “Like” and “Tweet This” buttons on their website.
Check out this video for more info on +1:
Very informative post, Elicia! It’ll be interesting to see how many people use this new feature. In retrospect, I think it was only a matter of time until Google introduced something like this.
Elicia — I can see you +1′ing our 360PR blog from every computer you stumble upon to increase our rating / rank! I assume Google will need to use IP addresses to prevent computers from +1′ing a site more than once…wonder how the “family computer” will factor into that equation with multiple users and opinions.