document: Why Google is getting into the '' `` Like '' '' business Computerworld - Google announced this week a new social search feature called +1 . The new offering competes in some ways with Facebook 's '' `` Like '' '' button . By clicking on an optional new +1 button on your Google search results , you can tell family and friends that you recommend certain links . Big deal , right ? Well , actually , it could soon be a very big deal . What Google 's +1 adds up to Google 's +1 is n't what Google would call a '' `` shipping '' '' product . It 's a '' `` Labs '' '' experiment , a cross between a beta program and a trial balloon . But it 's available to everyone and easy to use . You just go to the Google Labs page and click '' `` Join this experiment '' '' in the section about +1 . Once you 've done that , when you 're searching on Google , you 'll see a +1 button on every search . All your +1 recommendations are retained on a new tab viewable on your Google Profile . You can choose to make them public or keep them private . -LRB- I 've made mine public - you can check my +1 '' `` s here . -RRB- Also : When your Google contacts conduct searches of their own that bring back links you 've flagged with +1 , they 'll see your recommendation on the results page . For now , the feature is limited to Google Search . Google plans to roll out the feature for websites of all kinds , including blogs . Google also says it plans to '' `` record information about your +1 activity in order to provide you and other users with a better experience on Google services . '' '' That could mean just about anything , although Google says +1 activity does not affect search rankings . How +1 is like , and unlike , '' `` Like '' '' Once Google offers the ability for website owners to add +1 buttons on their sites , the service will be a lot like Facebook 's '' `` Like '' '' feature . With Facebook , everything you '' `` Like '' '' anywhere on the Web is viewable by friends on Facebook . And that 's one of the differences . With +1 , your recommendations are currently unlikely to be encountered '' `` in the wild '' '' by contacts . It requires both opt-in by contacts , plus the unlikely event that the other person searches for something you 've already flagged . Google +1 is currently useful only for seeing someone 's preferences after you 've run across them on your own , while Facebook '' `` Like '' '' is better for discovery . Both could be a lot better for discovery . What 's missing from both Google 's and Facebook 's recommendation engines is the ability to pool all that data in a single space . The ultimate application would be open APIs by both parties , with some scrappy startup building the ultimate Digg replacement site where both systems are combined into a single popularity contest for content . One advantage of +1 over Like is that it lets you recommend things without appearing to approve of them . When I encounter a blog post headlined '' `` Tickets for Apple 's Developer Event Selling for $ 3,500 on eBay '' '' and click the Facebook '' `` Like '' '' button , it appears on my Wall above the phrase '' `` Mike Elgan Likes this . '' '' It makes me look like a sociopath . Google 's +1 is more neutral . Google currently has two incompatible systems . You can click +1 on search . But on Buzz , where the +1 could really find some use , Google uses the word '' `` Like '' '' in a system that 's disconnected from the +1 recommendations . This is especially awkward because Google went to great pains to connect Profiles and Buzz . But +1 recommendations show up in Profiles , and '' `` Likes '' '' remain in Buzz . It 's a fractured mess . Meanwhile , Facebook 's '' `` Like '' '' system is unified . Why +1 and Like matter Social recommendation tools like +1 and Like can potentially help users do things such as the following : • Get and give recommendations to friends -LRB- replacing link sharing -RRB- . • Bring attention to cool stuff -LRB- replacing or enhancing Digg and Reddit -RRB- . • Bookmark and remember things -LRB- replacing browser bookmarks , Instapaper and StumbleUpon -RRB- . • Set up popularity polls -LRB- replacing poll plug-ins on blogs -RRB- . • Engage in social science research -LRB- replacing text-based voting on American Idol -RRB- . The exciting thing about the Like-button concept is that it can , and probably will , spill over into the real world . Within a few years , you 'll probably be able to '' `` Like '' '' TV shows , locations -LRB- via existing location-based services like Foursquare , Google Latitude or Facebook Places . Smartphone app-based services are getting better and better at recognizing songs and TV shows -LRB- by the sound -RRB- , and soon they 'll be able to recognize objects that you photograph with the camera in your phone . So you 'll be able to '' `` Like '' '' all kinds of content and objects in the real world . Google 's +1 system is new and experimental and therefore is n't changing the world yet . Facebook 's '' `` Like '' '' system is becoming influential , but it 's still overshadowed by Twitter , link sharing and other ways of sharing and recommending content . The reason this is a big deal is this : History tells us that obscure , trivial services like Twitter and Facebook and even Google itself can rise to dominate user attention , and make billions for the entrepreneurs who get it right . Whoever dominates '' `` Like '' '' - type services could end up making enormous amounts of money . The whole '' `` Like '' '' idea is potentially superior to link sharing , bookmarking , social bookmarking , polling and other technologies that millions of people use every day . If the concept really takes hold , it could become the primary way for people to share content , links , opinions and much more . And do n't even get me started on the marketing potential . Once companies get us to start '' `` Liking '' '' and recommending the products and services we buy , they 'll have found a lucrative enhancement to advertising and marketing campaigns . Google +1 , Facebook '' `` Like '' '' or some other service we do n't know about yet could one day rise to dominate the lucrative new world of social influence . Mike Elgan writes about technology and tech culture . Contact and learn more about Mike at Elgan.com , or subscribe to his free e-mail newsletter , Mike 's List .
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