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Is Your Social Status Affecting Your Google Search Ranking?

If you are one of those people still skeptical about the business uses of social media, you may be interested to know that Google's Social Search is no longer just an experiment. Though it does have the BETA tag on it, it is now mainstream. This is something we've all known would come sooner or later, but now it's here.

If people were already seeing different search results from one another before, that is really going to be true now, now that Google is plugging results based on the individual's social circle. This is one of the many ways getting found in search results is changing, and it would appear that any business looking to get some play in Google search, would do well to have as many connections established as possible, via various social networking sites and tools.

Google's thinking is that if the user is connected to certain people, results from those people will have relevance because you know and trust them. Google says, "You can improve social search results for your friends and contacts by linking to content you have created such as blogs, photos and videos on your Google profile."

Appearing in social search results means:

1. Make as many connections as possible.
2. Encourage customers to follow you via social networks.
3. Participate in social media so people will engage with you.
4. Encourage sharing of content (there are plenty available social media buttons)
5. Include social network info on business cards/signage, etc.
6. Include social network info in your online advertising

Google's social search doesn't end with regular web search. They're adding it to image search, and who knows what else. Look for a lot more features to become part of social search, as Google leaves that BETA tag on. Let's not forget that Gmail only left beta last year, and I don't have to tell you they've added a lot to that over the years.

Social results will always be clearly marked with "Results from your social circle". And as for the competion in rankings,  there is one more thing to stay on top of.