Google brings a friend to the party with +1

Fresh off the print, Google have today launched their very own Facebook like button with the introduction of Google +1, an FB doppelganger that will be available to all users that are logged into their Google accounts when browsing.

But what does this mean for the likes of us?

Well, for those Googlers that have made use of the friends feature within their Google account, it means that websites that their friends like will feature more heavilywithin their search results, and vice-verser.

This is a handy little tool.  As any marketer will tell you, herd mentality is alive and well on the Internet, and the ability to declare your tribal allegiance to products, brands and websites is one that will undoubtedly be taken up quickly by the masses (just look how at the relentless encroaching of “I like” on the world).

Google +1 before and after shot

It will also act as leverage for users to start using their Google friends feature more often, as peer pressure to run with the pack kicks in.  From a strategic perspective, this may may well be the overriding goal for Google.  They’re facing immense pressure from Facebook to compete on a  social level, but as yet they’ve not been able to find the drivers to do so.  No doubt Google loops will be the next stage of this strategy and at that point I think we’ll really see the two behemoths come to loggerheads.  Google loops will enable users to group their friends into distinct audiences (best friends, work colleagues, people you once met in a bar etc.), and distribute status feeds and updates according to their relevence.  Of course, none of this has been confirmed by Google, but watch this space.

How does this development relate to us marketers?  Clearly we’re going to see the huge trend towards buying loyalty increasing, as Google opens up the playing field of social coercion even wider.  Brands will be keen to offer bribes in the form of exclusive content, discounts and competition prizes, in exchange for +1 love from consumers, and the +1 button will be easily integratable into web pages in pretty much the same way as other social bookmarks.  Ethically, this may well pose a problem for Google.  By giving preference to websites that have the most love, are they introducing a strong bias into their previously incorruptible organic listing, even if they receive seperate placements within the results (much as paid for advertising does already)?

Even more worryingly, if Marketing Week are correct when they state “The data from clicks will also be added anonymously to public data, which Google will use – among other signals – to calculate pages’ relevance and ranking on search results” then what we’re actually seeing from Google is a move away relevance as the key driver of SERPS, and a move towards a keyword popularity contest.

Personally, I can’t see Google letting this happening, and I think there might be some misreporting going on over at MW, but it’s certainly one to watch.

***Update***

Check out http://mail.google.com/mail/help/motion.html for the very latest in motion sensitive gesture articulation typing.  But check your calendar first!