Has Social Become the New Search?

In the world of search engine marketing, no topic has dominated as much of the recent conversation as “social search.” Social search is the enhancement to core search engine results with social media annotations from an individual’s friends and those they follow online. The fundamental assumption is that people use social networks to connect with like-minded people, so the chances are high that “friends” will have referenced relevant content and/or websites.

This is a significant new norm. Not only have these annotations become commonplace, but also there is evidence that when social share data is present, those entries may appear more prominently across the results page. Now, creating content that is easily shared across social sites is a crucial tactic for the digital marketer.

But why would the search engines expend energy in integrating social data into their core results? Conventional wisdom would say that, as a result of the popularity and adoption of social media, there’s an incredible amount of consumer preference data available within the social graph. As users grow more comfortable sharing personal information and preferences online, incorporating that intelligence within search engine results seems to be a logical evolution. In the long run, it will help search engines maintain relevance as the Web becomes decidedly more complex and personal.

Does that tell the entire story though? What if the whole truth points to a far more ominous outlook for traditional search?

Along comes Google+

I posed these same questions in an article I wrote for MediaPost’s Search Insider a few months back. At that time, I went as far as to suggest that social search may represent a sign of desperation by the search engines; an extreme measure taken to remain relevant. With social media networks functioning as a primary source for information sourcing and dissemination for many, the search engines needed to tap into that larger social conscious. Social search seemed to be the response.

Google wasn’t content with social search alone though and in June launched its own social network, Google+. Seemingly overnight, it was no longer a bystander to the legitimate social scene (let’s forget about the Buzz debacle). Since then it’s become the fastest growing social network ever and has generally been met with critical acclaim save for a few gripes here and there.

But what are most intriguing about Google’s entry into the social space are the possibilities. Google will no longer need to rely on third-party share data alone. It also won’t be on the sidelines as other destinations facilitate fluid peer-to-peer communications. By joining the social arms race, Google has an opportunity to surround its users with a relevancy regardless of the specific touchpoint. Search is more social, and social is more … searchy.

It’s that last point that could help Google to achieve sustained success in social, and play defense against the current threat social poses to its dominance in search. If Google were to introduce core tenets of its search algorithm (authority and trust) to Google+, it may be able to deliver a more relevant experience to users. That experience may be something that Facebook and others find difficult to replicate.

The biggest challenge facing Google+ then is user adoption.

What does this mean for search and social marketers?

For the search and social marketer, a “wait and see” mentality is still largely required. Despite the seismic shifts occurring in the space, there remains little to do until the dust settles.

That said, there are some fairly pragmatic, necessary near-term actions. Silos need to be brought down. Search and social marketing teams need to collaborate, even join forces permanently. The new reality for these marketers is that everything is now interrelated under a common umbrella of “inbound marketing.”

Yes, social has become the new search. With Google’s recent entry, search may become the new social too.

Quit Smoking, Live Longer

Smoking is a growing problem in England where thousands of people succumbs to death because of it.

Every year, medical authorities spend nearly £60m to provide services to smokers to help them quit smoking.

Recently, figures revealed that for the current year the NHS Information Centre invested an amount of £84.3m, which was more than £500,000 of previous year. However, the number of smokers for the period has remained steady at 22% men and 20% women.

There are many trying to quit smoking. According to a report, about 384,000 smokers were successful in quitting smoke 2001/2002. Since then they have not picked up smoking again. A Spokesperson for the Department of Health said, “A record number of people have stopped smoking, which is a testament to the excellent work of NHS professionals in local stop smoking services”.

HTC sues Apple, again

HTC filed another lawsuit against Apple alleging patent infringement, further escalating their legal battle.

Reuters reported today that the Taiwanese handset manufacturer filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court of Delaware, claiming that Apple is violating two patents by selling its line of Mac computers, iPads, iPods, iPhones and other devices. HTC is seeking to halt the importation of Apple products into the U.S., and is seeking compensatory damages, as well as three times the normal damages for willful infringement.

The companies weren't immediately available to comment on the latest suit.

This is just the latest in a myriad of lawsuits filed between the two companies, seen as a proxy for the wider fight between Apple's iOS platform and Google's Android operating system. HTC was the first target of Apple, which has gone on to sue other Android partners including Samsung Electronics and Motorola Mobility and set off a number of lawsuits and complaints with the U.S. International Trade Commission.

The increasing frequency of the legal skirmishes pushed Google to make a surprise acquisition of Motorola, which has a war chest of 17,000 patents that can be used to provide legal cover for other Android vendors. Google has yet to take direct action against Apple, and likely won't until the deal closes, which is expected by year's end or early 2012.

HTC sought its own protection when it acquired S3 Graphics for $300 million. The company's patents won an initial ruling from the ITC against Apple, giving HTC some leverage in potential cross-licensing negotiations down the line.

Apple and HTC's dispute has hopped from one court to another. The ITC said earlier this month that it would review a complaint filed by Apple against HTC. The ITC has the power to ban the importation of devices to the U.S., although that penalty has never been enforced because settlements are made before that happens. Apple also has several lawsuits filed in Delaware against HTC, alleging patent infringement through the sale of its smartphones.

HTC was among the early high-flyers when Android took off, as it was the first company to make an Android phone. It quickly gained prominence among the carriers for its ability to cater to their specific needs, building the first WiMax phone last year for Sprint Nextel and the first 4G LTE phone for Verizon Wireless earlier this year. The company's Sense user interface has also won critical praise for its intuitive nature.

Games (Finally) Come to Google+

Today CEO President Vic Gundotra posted on the Google Blog, making the official announcement that the long-awaited (or long-dreaded) gaming feature had been introduced to Google’s increasingly popular Google+ social network.

According to Google Mobile Engineer Punit Soni, the games will be rolled out to the over 20 million Google+ users, over time. If you are a Plus user, expect to see a games icon at the top of your stream, according to Gundotra. Simply click on it to see which games are available - largely Zynga offerings, which is to be expected as Google has invested heavily in the gaming company recently.

Whether you are an Angry Birds player, a Bejeweled Blitz lover, learning the ropes at City of Wonder or are a Zynga Poker user, there are a variety of initial games to choose from.

According to Gundotra’s Google Blog post, the games will have an invite feature, as well as status-related updates, which have been a thorn in many a Facebook and Twitter user, as they have cluttered their streams. According to Gundotra, on Google+ much of this information appears separately under the Games section, and is shown only to those in your Circles who are playing the same games.

Not interested in Google+ Games at all? Simply ignore the Games button, and Google+ will continue sharing great information from the people you have Circled.

But c’mon, don’t you want to help me build that Great Coliseum in City of Wonder?

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TWITTER ROLLS OUT 'PHOTO' & 'LOCATION' SHARING SERVICE

Twitter added a native image sharing option and location sharing in the new Twitter interface, to all users.

You can now start seeing a camera and location sharing button, at the far left of the status update box, beckoning to upload an image and share the location of your tweet. You can upload images to your tweets directly, and can mention its location as well.

You can choose an image from your desktop under 3 MB and it will get embedded to your Twitter status like below. If you feel like you’ve made a mistake you can just click on the X to delete and pick another image.

 

This is how it looks,

Ever had something you wanted to share ("fireworks!", "party!", "ice cream truck!", or "quicksand...") that would be better with a location? By turning on this feature, you can include location information like neighborhood, town, or exact point when you tweet.

When you tweet with a location, Twitter stores that location. You can switch location on/off before each Tweet and always have the option to delete your location history

You can upload images (3MB) of any dimension and Twitter will automatically scale the image so that it fits properly on the display pane of new Twitter interface.

Watch the following video or head over to the help center to learn more about Twitter’s own photo upload feature:

No doubts Twitter wants to engage deeply with its audience and is now more serious on providing features people enjoy using.