If you haven’t already done so please check out the announcement by google regarding their new social search feature they announced at the recent web 2.0 conference. I’ve included the video below.
Next, enable the feature on Google Labs and give it a shot. In a nutshell, Google has added results from the social networks you’ve added in your Google profile. I’ve only started to use this feature but already I see that it’s on a different level than some of the other modifications to the Google search engine results page. Being able to view the informaiton by time frame and by type of content were both very useful additions. But adding results from your own social network raises the bar on relevance.
The mantra for earning attention on the web has been content is king, but this has evolved to relevantant content is king. For many, there is no more relevant content than that of your social network. As an example, I’m considering signing up for the Marine Corps Marathon. Entering this term in to google yielded the obvious results in addition to the result below:
Thad and I have had some exchanges on Twitter and he is someone I would trust asking their opinion of the marathon. Clicking on the results would yield other results people in my social network who have some relevance to the Marine Corps Marathon.
This could be a game changer folks. I’m still digesting how to leverage this in my B2B marketing role but there is no doubt in my mind that marketers need to consider this in their online strategy.
Dave Criswell 