Google is unveiling new analtyics for Boutiques.com to give retailers insight on the most searched styles.

Last fall, Brafton reported that Google had unveiled a visual and social ecommerce site – Boutiques.com. Though we haven't heard much about the site since its launch, Google claims Boutiques.com has developed a strong user base, and now the company has announced it will help partners use social data culled on the site to better understand the retail market.

Boutiques.com gives users the chance to “love” or “hate” products, and Google says it has gained a “unique, aggregate view” of the latest fashion trends based on users' feedback. This will give partners insight on shoppers' opinions, so they have a better understanding of which of their products are searched and well-received.

“Today, we're unveiling Designer Analytics, a tool that enables our design partners to benefit from this collective knowledge,” the company says.

Retail marketers might also be interested to learn that Google will be launching a Trend Analytics page for all users to keep ahead of the most popular items on the page. This page will offer data from both Boutiques.com and Google search trends to offer consumers insight on the most popular styles and colors for the season. Brands that collect a lot of social recommendations may benefit from having their products featured on this page.

This is just one of the many indicators that Google is moving into a more social space. Recently, Brafton reported that the company is now offering Hotpot in general search so users can get socially recommended business results.

Brands should consider the value of claiming Places pages or posting products on Boutiques.com in order to refer social users to their sites. Brafton covered a study showing that consumers' reliance on search engines to find websites is declining and optimized content must be delivered through myriad online channels in order to make brands discoverable on the web.

Katherine Griwert is Brafton's Marketing Director. She's practiced content marketing, SEO and social marketing for over five years, and her enthusiasm for new media has even deeper roots. Katherine holds a degree in American Studies from Boston College, and her writing is featured in a number of web publications.