• Personal Results – Search engine results pages (SERPs) will no longer just include results that the general public are likely to find useful, it will also include results that are personally connected to you and your circles.  This means related posts and photos from people in your network will appear right alongside the usual results you’d find when not logged into Google+.
• Profiles in Search – Google+ profiles and pictures will now appear in autocomplete and results.
• People and Pages – Google+ profiles and pages related to search are featured on SERPS and can be added to circles from directly on SERP.  For example, I search “Facebook” and Mark Zuckerberg’s Google+ profile appears on the right

New Features in Google Search Results

Google’s official blog has all the details.

Given Google’s powerful and far-reaching influence on web traffic, the implications of these changes for internet marketing are profound.

Social Media
Since the launch of Google+ in June 2011, the social network has grown but still trails Facebook and Twitter by a longshot.  As of the end of 2011, Google+ boasted about 65 million users in comparison to Facebook’s 800 million.  Will Search Plus Your World be the boost that Google+ needs to place it on par with Facebook and Twitter?

The potential is certainly there.  The integration of personal content, Google+ profiles and social recommendations into results provides far more opportunities for Google+ users to grow their network and adds a personal and social experience that Google results have lacked in the past. However, if these features are only available to those signed into Google+, will it be incentive enough to drive more people to use Google+ more frequently?  If they are, Google+ will join Facebook and Twitter as a mainstream social platform by which companies establish and grow relationships with their customers.

SEO
Social media and SEO experts have long predicted the day that Google+ will become a driving force in search results.  For Google+ users, that day was yesterday.  If Google+ indeed becomes the social media heavyweight it is often predicted to be, the challenge for companies will be not just to develop quality link-worthy content, but also to assert themselves as an authority in social media.  Competition will shift away from specific keywords towards developing overall marketing profiles and cultivating consistent social media engagement. Recommendations from within customer networks and establishing your company as a social media leader will become crucial in driving traffic to your website.  Search Plus Your World could be a valuable glimpse into the future of search.

What do you think of Search Plus Your World?  How do you see this affecting SEO and the way companies relate to their customers?

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VISISEEK is a San Diego internet marketing agency focused on helping mid sized businesses grow online. We’ve helped companies to launch large scale lead generation programs, start Ecommerce sites from successful retail operations and improved existing internet marketing programs by improving design, improving search ranks, developing targeted display advertising programs and by implementing effective social media marketing campaigns.