An answer to the growing social networking phenomenon has been launched by Google, the +1 button, which is being seen by many as an answer to the Like button of Facebook. The concept applied here is similar, although Google will eventually also include this in their search results. The users can click the +1 button whenever they like something on a Google service like YouTube or an ad or a search result. It will only take a few weeks for the +1 icon to start appearing on Google search results, said Jim Prosser, a Google spokesperson. However, for the time being, it is available only to the small number of people who have opted in for the feature.
Prosser said that these are only early days for the button and the company is working hard to bring it to many other publisher sites in the near future. According to plans, once the button grows popular and many people start using it, the service will start to work like a recommendation indicator for the users. Google said that this will be very beneficial for its users practically, particularly when it comes to services that they pay for and want second opinions about.
It may turn out to be another signal that Google will eventually start using to modify its search result algorithm to affect the position of search results according to the +1s it has received; however this isn’t certain yet. Posser stated that the interaction of users with this new feature is being closely monitored. He, however, announced that the ads which appear with the search results will not be ranked by the +1 button. He said that the button existed only to add another piece of relevance to the search experience offered to users.
