The debate over the significance, or redundancy, of social search has been around for decades. Is social search here to stay or has it come and gone without a trace?
‘Social search’ essentially refers to bringing the traditional word-of-mouth experience online. It is now generally accepted that consumers are more likely to pay attention and trust recommendations from some one they know- people are curious about what their networks have to say.
TechCrunch recently made the argument that social search is, well, dead. TechCrunch’s Frederic Lardinois referred to Google’s various past social search launches – such as one attempt to integrate information found in our social networks to our general online search results page. However this information was soon eliminated after users complained that results pages became too cluttered.
“…the data clearly showed that social search wasn’t working,” Frederic Lardinois noted. While “social search” was a keyword in Google’s previous launches, he added, now it seems to have just fizzled away.
What Google’s October launch of its Inbox app, shows, however, is that while “social search was not mentioned, it has discreetly become an integral part of the app.” The Inbox app, which some reviewers have coined the ‘virtual assistant,’ is an alternative to Gmail that offers new additional tools and functions to users. It includes a new highlights tab that extracts the most relevant information from your email content.
“There’s even a Low Priority bundle for emails that Google’s algorithms deem you’re less likely to read, such as store sales…” noted by Amadou Diallo
A mini social profile of your contacts’ is also visible in the inbox, making any need for a quick Google or LinkedIn search of an individual unnecessary. It appears social search has already been integrated in the app. There is even a social alerts function, which, when enabled, can keep you updated with your networks activity in real-time.
Social search may no longer be a buzz-word for marketers, however it would be a mistake to dismiss its existing value in raising online brand awareness, particularly for new, tech-savvy businesses cropping up every day looking to stand out from their competitors. And Google has certainly integrated social search into a function we can no longer live without – email.
Google Inbox Gets Social
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