Google Plus One - How will it impact SEO?

By Mark Ling
Google Plus One - How will it impact SEO?

 

The following is a guest blog post by Adam Short from Niche Profit Classroom:

Social interaction is huge and Google has been working hard to catch up to rival Facebook. With the launch of the Google Plus One Button we have a powerful new tool that will soon allow Google users to share websites and content the same as Facebook users now do with the Like button.

It’s not shocking that Google has followed suit. After all, Facebook’s Like Button was a viral marketing strike of genius. Millions of sites have since added the little blue button to their site, allowing users to not only voice their approval, but share with their dozens or even hundreds of friends in seconds. Today, you’re unlikely to find a single blog, ecommerce site, or business site without a Facebook Like button.

So, along comes Google with their version of the popular social tool. The official announcement went out on YouTube on March 27. I’ve included the video below because there are some very interesting reveals around the 0:46 second mark. Take a look:


At first, this tool is going to be used for approving search results – a great way for Google to continue tweaking their rankings. But, that’s not all. Check out what the narrator says about the future of the Plus One button:

“…and soon you’ll be able to Plus One more than just search results. You’ll also find Plus One buttons on sites across the web, making it easy to Plus One pages after you have visited them.”

Wow! Now this is a big development.

Think about it for a second. Right now, the +1 button is used just for search. If you search for “beagle training” and decide the fourth or fifth page in the search results is better than the first, you can +1 that ranking, basically telling Google “this search result is the best for this keyword”. That’s powerful and Google will gladly integrate those results into their search rankings.

But, that’s only the start. With +1 in search results, webmasters have very little control over who votes for their site. However, Google is going a little further and this is where things get truly interesting. Imagine what happens when someone clicks the +1 button on a page of your website. Google now knows that someone thinks your content is useful. It’s the same as getting a backlink from another site – someone says “this guy knows his stuff”.

Of course, we won’t know for a little while how much of an impact the +1 button has on search rankings, but I think it’s pretty safe to assume Google will take it into account.

In fact, Matt Cutts – the head of the Web Spam division at Google – has repeatedly said in the past that they want to integrate social interaction into determining content quality. Presumably there was an issue with spam regulation, but now that the +1 button has been rolled out, it’s only a matter of time before this very social tool becomes an important part of their algorithm. After all, they track, monitor, and gather all the results from those clicks. You can bet they’ll use the data.

Further supporting this is a quote from the Webmaster Central blog:

“We expect that these personalized annotations will help sites stand out by showing users which search results are personally relevant to them. As a result, +1’s could increase both the quality and quantity of traffic to the sites people care about.

But the +1 button isn’t just for search results. We’re working on a +1 button that you can put on your pages too, making it easy for people to recommend your content on Google search without leaving your site.”

That last line in particular is interesting to me because it basically says right out that Google will soon try to use these +1 recommendations to influence search results.

If there’s anything we know for sure, guessing Google’s intentions is tricky. But, with so much evidence pointing toward social integration into search and the +1 button finally rolled out, I can safely say that a smart webmaster and Internet marketer will keep a close eye on these tools. Soon enough, I believe this tool will become a fantastic resource to better connect with readers while improving rankings in Google.

For more details about the +1 button and Google’s plan for it, here are some links:

http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2011/03/introducing-1-button.html
or 
http://www.google.com/+1/button/

Good Luck Everyone!
Adam Short

P.S. If you enjoyed the above post, make sure you check out my Niche Profit Classroom product.

Note: The above guest blog post by Adam Short may not reflect the views and opinions of Affilorama.

60 Comments

View all 60 comments (Currently displaying latest 50)

Tony 13 years ago
It's an interesting development and I am sure they must have thought through the implications of such a tool but if I click plus1 on several P*RN sites what will my kids see when they use my computer to search for say, 'blue bird cartoons'?
I suspect this will be yet another feature that will get gammed by autobots and armies of outsource workers but lets hope it does lead to better quality sites rising to the top. Time will tell.
Rusty Ferguson 13 years ago
The +1 button is already on Google search results? I don't see it. I'm currently in the Philippines, perhaps it is not global yet.
Mike Davis 13 years ago
Good info Adam, I'll play around with the Google +1 button... however I do have concerns very similar to what other folks have already mentioned here.
Devin 13 years ago
If Google allows this to influence rankings, expect a *flood* of manipulation.

They've got to know this, and not everything Google rolls out is a success. I don't expect +1 to have the widespread adoption that 'like' has, but time will tell. Thanks for the article Adam!
Karleenandhercalmdog 13 years ago
I agree there can be both positive and negative effects with the new +1. Struggling marketers such as myself may find it more challenging to move up in the ranks, but I can see where Google is once again trying to promote quality content and get rid of the crap. Except for those who will abuse the +1 button, it will be another good way to encourage us to take the time and effort to create quality information and content that viewers will want to read and recommend.

Thank you for sharing this information and thank you to those who have commented. I always learn from both posts and comments.
Brian 13 years ago
I look forward to putting it on all posts both new and old
Wariya 13 years ago
Thanks for your opinion, Mark.

We have to keep our eyes openned all the time if we need the good placement on Google.

Sheers,
MIKE 13 years ago
So now we just go to Fivverr.com and pay for example 3000 different people to go to our site and hit the button. Sounds like a plan.
Stan Rosen 13 years ago
Mark,

It's an excellent idea. I'm sure when I'm ready which will be shortly, I will also use it.
Thanks for letting me know.

Stan R.
Wolverhampton Plumber 13 years ago
This is an interesting observation. What do you think Mark? I would also think that membership sites could easy get there member to click on the button and boost their rankings.

"Current page 1 ranked sites will naturally be getting more traffic and therefore more use of +1. This will help them to solidify their positions in the rankings while making it harder for perhaps better, more original site to move up the leader board."

It will be interesting to see how this develops.
Presents for Dads 13 years ago
There will always be people who try to abuse any system, so we'll see how effective Google can be to reduce & minimize the abuse possibilities with this. I also see more 'entrenching' of sites making it harder for newer or less-established sites to break into the top rankings for search, and there are definite drawbacks to that! But the Plus-One thing might not really take off anyway, as there have been other failures from Google in the past.
Woman's Wealth System 13 years ago
Hey Adam,

Great Post about Google plus one, Thanks!

We waiting +1
Cleofe Betancourt 13 years ago
The +1 button is Google's best chance to take the lead in creating a true "social search" experience before the Facebook boys figure it out. Does the world need another "like" button? Probably not. The +1 button will succeed, however, because it will offer site owners and businesses something that the FB "like" button never will; a potential boost to their organic ranking at the click of a mouse.

I will definitely add one to my personal websites to gauge whether it pays off
AlexCH 13 years ago
Really interesting. I can see it developing into proper spam central. Heaps of proxies from different ip addresses hitting +1daily, slowly......
Expect tons of bots on the market soon.

How +1 is going to be beneficial to my sites it is to be seen...

Cheers
Alex
JCB frc 13 years ago
I believe the conception of +1 is very positive, and yes, inter-netters may it be the commoners, nobles, and/or internet business(Corps) will try to maniulate it to their favor, however, Google employs some of the brightest minds in their market, they WILL satisfy a playing field where all who use the service can benefit from......Hopefully, we can adopt a merrier forcast rather than a negative viewpoint when ever something new is created......yes, there will be some unjustly things performed by a few scrupulous individuals, by far and large in the long run Google will encourage quality congruity service accross the board.......WAY TO GOOOOOO--->>>>>
GEORGE HUTCHEON PATERSON 13 years ago
I find facebook ideal for creating fan pages to drive traffic to my websites. Maybe google will be as helpful? lets see meanwhile I just published a new website and will use facebook as part of my seo tactics along with traffic travis
Siddharth 13 years ago
What you think it will affect the affiliate marketing or not... because i guess as of now i see big opportunity to exploit +1 buttonthis thing up
Siddharth 13 years ago
What you think it will affect the affiliate marketing or not... because i guess as of now i see big opportunity to exploit +1 buttonthis thing up
Russ 13 years ago
I am sure there will be attempts to abuse this as has been suggested but I am equally sure Google will devise ways of policing it. It does encourage us to concentrate on providing useful content on our sites thus getting visitors to +1 it.

Time will tell

Mark 13 years ago
The only thing that indicates I landed on a site I was not interested in is when I hit the back button a few seconds after I land on that site. I doubt the +1 feature will be a good indicator of search relevance.
David Withington 13 years ago
Thanks for the advance notice on this. Could be a useful tool both for Google and Internet marketers.
Robert 13 years ago
- Yes it will be gamed...
and you can bet the Panda update offenders (like Sears and Overstock) will be all over this. There is just too much money on the line. This will become a larger issue for niche affiliate sites and autoblogs.

Curious to see how it affects they way programs like Affiliorama and NPC are taught. They both tend to lean on SEO and blogs rather heavily.

Of course this could end up another "bust" like google buzz.
Leonard Aberts 13 years ago
Hopefully, this will not be like some of the other things Google has planned and announced and not really happen. It does have some interesting possibilities.
Darryl Hudson 13 years ago
I've used this in beta, but I haven't used it alot I almost forgot about this tool google put out earlier in the year
Peter 13 years ago
It's a good idea but it will be manipulated by marketers all over the world. The only question is - who will be the first person to develop software and sell it to us.

Google will of course try to block it..........they already know they will have to.....so around and around we go.

I have ordered my button.
Janice Womack 13 years ago
Thanks for the information. I look forward to using this on my site. We can only hope it will be as good as they are saying.

Saqib Khan 13 years ago
Hey Mark. I hope you are well.

Thanks for this information brother, it is much appreciated. I knew about the +1 but was not aware of how it worked or how it could work for marketers like us. You learn something new every day huh?! ;-)

Thanks again and I hope you have a GREAT weekend!

Kind regards
Saqib Khan
mark fewsmith 13 years ago
This move by Google into social media will be very interesting! thanks for the heads up!
Mark
training courses 13 years ago
That was the really excellent idea by Google. I've been watching the video on how Plus One (+1) works into the website. And I found out that it is really great tools to increase the rank of the particular site.
nokz 13 years ago
i like +1 it is so useful and cool. i have now on my blog.
brandon 13 years ago
I like plus one. I think it is useful and I already "liked" some of my favorite pages. Hopefully this doesn't have a huge impact on SEO because the top sites will get the most likes in the beginning and it would be difficult to get a new page up to the top, even if it is legit and better than the top sites. my 2 cents.

B
Blogger Designs 13 years ago
I think the whole plus one thing Is a great idea, the only thing that sucks is now there's one more button below my blog posts for people to use, which lowers the chances that they will use it! But anyways, I think it's gonna be very important for SEO purposes......maybe not quite as important as backlinks though, but still essential. Thanks for this awesome post.
bennix 13 years ago
I agreen to all points above. I just realize the thing after Google launch the Google+ Social Network and along with that is the Google Plus button. It's like facbeook then, the Like button.

Thanks a lot for this review.
Google Business Page 13 years ago
SEO, for now, stays rooted to its original grounds and do minute changes in their strategies. If however, people contribute with their votes with plus one, Google can surely make a more refined people-centric search experience by integrating this.
Jordan Brown 13 years ago
The plus ones are having a huge impact on search results and it is only getting better.

I have been usinga software to help me gain plus ones for my website and I continue to watch my search engine rankings grow at a very fast rate. I love the Google plus ones!
Patrick Walder 12 years ago
you can have as many methods you can in doing seo.. really when you are so into it you really need to look for any possible method or way may it be blog posting article writing joning community websites and building social community.
Patrick Barnaby 13 years ago
The Plus One by Google is a great idea and they should have the button on any webpage. Another idea for Google is to allow a search option for Plus One so when you do a normal Google search you can click show "Pluse One" Results, so that you can see how others have said this site is more relevant 'cause as the algorithams work now it never gets it correct as to say which is the most relevant site that should be in one position!
William 13 years ago
I really like the idea of google plus one. I think that it will help smaller sites grow faster when combined with other SEO strategies.
Combining this will facebook marketing and getting in to other social networks it could easily increase web traffic to a site.
Ashley 13 years ago
SWEET! So I see this ad on Craigslist to test a new social media site... Curiosity gets the best of me... and I go in to test it. Wow! Was I in for a shock. If only Facebook new what is coming! While Google+ was rethinking social media and came out with a copy of Fb another team of people was unthinking it. For real. Unthink social media is literally the name. They have been in secret development for over 3 years!!! Kidding you not. This will blow the market open. How did they keep this SECRET? From what I saw it's about to launch. Facebook and Google are in for a huge surprise.
Rhonda Clark 13 years ago
Plus one can be great for companies that already exist and have some sort of following.

I am just curious to know what effect the plus 1 button may have on sites that contain valuable information that has not yet been discovered. Great way for Google to get back in the game!

I will be watching the evolution.
Google plus Login 13 years ago
excellent piece of information, I had come to know about your website from my friend kishore, pune,i have read atleast 8 posts of yours by now, and let me tell you, your site gives the best and the most interesting information. This is just the kind of information that i had been looking for, i'm already your rss reader now and i would regularly watch out for the new posts, once again hats off to you! Thanx a lot once again, Regards, google plus login
Stephen 13 years ago
I see the +1 addition as a great move simply as Google need to link to social media signals more as businesses trust how votes can boost a brand.
delu 13 years ago
we see google+ votes is one of the top social stuff but here is also many site like that gplusvotes.com now its time to see their activities and how much they will satisfy us with their performance. will come here to see your reply, thanks.
robozou hentai german 13 years ago
Thanks. Very nice post. Your web site is very beautiful.
marco 13 years ago
The Google +1 button is similar to the facebook like button. However, I think the +1 button will dominate as the Google+ network grows.

Also, I found out that you can even buy +1 now on sites like http://plussem.com and http://plusonefans.com

What do you think about this?
Andrew Ha 12 years ago
Very useful info that is balanced and practical. Thanks! Any new updates to add since the last post or marketing ideas on how to increase Google Plus likes?
jenny.adlaon 12 years ago
Very nice article. The ideas you gave about marketing are really helpful for us. Now we know a lot about it. Thanks again.,
Forum Backlink Store 12 years ago
Great read. The plus 1 button is going to be and is huge for Google. If you cant come up with the idea first, make it better......right Apple...lol...j/k Thanks for the article.
Matthew Kenneth 12 years ago
Hi Mark, is there any impact on Google Panda update over Google Plus one?
George Lucas 12 years ago
Hi Matthew Kenneth, I believe Google Panda update doesn't have any influence over Google Plus
Sydney Chiu 12 years ago
this is a test comment

View all 60 comments (Currently displaying latest 50)