Google made a gigantic leap forward today in advancing online searching as we know it. They released a new feature that is similar to the “like” feature on Facebook.
If you enable the google +1 feature you will see a “+1” button next to all of your search results. This now allows Google to collect social data on their users and use it to customize their search results.
If one of your friends “+1’s” a search result or a web page, that web page will now be ranked higher in your search results. A message will also appear below the search result telling you which friends “+1ed” the result.
The is monumental for the future of search engines. Integrating social data with logical algorithms is something I have predicted in past articles and now we are really beginning to see it advance. If you would like to read about my previous prediction check out my article “The Future of Information Sharing Through Social Media and Why Everyone Benefits“.
To find out more about the new Google “+1” feature you can read Google’s official documentation.
Here is the official Google video explaining the new feature:
