The new attempt in socializing google is the release of +1 button, which appears next to each google search result, adword listing and on sites across the internet. In order to see the new feature, you have to be logged into your google account.
Overview
The idea behind this new magic button is to endorse websites you find interesting and share it with your friends - “googlers”. Sounds familiar? Yes, +1 button painfully resembles facebook like! feature, however it does prove to be much more intuitive.
Who can see your +1 recommendations? Your social connections, such as:
Friends in Gmail and Google Talk
People in your Google Contacts
People in your Google+ Circles
People you are following in Google Reader and Google Buzz
How does +1 change SEO?
Google explains the new feature as follows (and I quote):
“The +1 button is shorthand for "this is pretty cool" or "you should check this out."
“Click +1 to publicly give something your stamp of approval. Your +1's can help friends, contacts, and others on the web find the best stuff when they search.”
Let’s focus of a moment on the phrase “help… others on the web”. Personally, I see that google expects +1 button to pay major role in search results. That also means – the more people click on +1 for your site, the more organic traffic might flow your way.
The amount of +1 fans are on the rise and affiliates have to realize and accept the chances that this marketing tool is likely to prosper.
Can you find the way around this thing?
It seems quite tough to fake the +1 results. For starters, in order to activate and use +1 button, you need to have a google account. While signing for google account, the first thing you have to give away is your phone number – for account verification purposes! So unless you own couple of thousand phone numbers, tricking google turns into a difficult task.
You can easily classify google as the internet CIA. Apart from your phone number, “THEY” constantly collect other useful information via your Gmail account, Google webmaster Tools, Google Checkout, Search History…well, you get the picture.
And if you still aren’t convinced that google knows plenty and is a tough cookie to crack, just take a look at the google dashboard ( that black thing on top of your browser page).
Solution
The shift is in progress and it is unlikely to turn backwards. Along with other 30% of the web population, being a responsible and traffic-seeking webmaster, you hurry to add google +1 button code to your site. It may not have a significant impact on rankings right now, but as it becomes more widely used it could result in dramatic ranking fluctuations.
This feature doesn’t kick facebook user numbers just yet, but it has been around only for couple of weeks. By not implementing the code on your site, you risk losing out as competitor sites take advantage.
It’s true that currently google still cannot figure out how to connect users like Facebook does, however there are rumors that +1 feature will create the buzz because of its existence right on the SERP.
+1 button as it is right now is still not appealing enough for people to click and share like we all do in Facebook. At least 50% of the clicks will be produced by webmasters and SEO campaigns. What about “real people”? Maybe google will try to syndicate +1 with facebook… who knows. If google will figure out how to make +1 quickly share things with friends via some kind of network platform – it will make a gigantic impact on social networking and search engine optimization.