Google says the +1 button will reportedly be available for websites in a matter of weeks, which should be good news for search marketers looking to boost social advocacy for their web content. The company previewed the +1 button today at the Google I/O conference, according to Search Engine Land.
As Brafton reported, the Google +1 feature lets users know when their Google contacts have recommended a search engine result. It also shows an anonymous tally of the number of recommendations popular results pages receive.
Currently, users can only +1 something within search engine results pages, but Search Engine Land reports that Google is going to make the +1 button available for websites soon. At the Google I/O conference, the company explained +1 will be a social sharing button, similar to the Facebook Like button or the tweet button.
Google explained that the button will be installed using a simple code. Once a threshold of +1 activity is met, the number of times a content page has been recommended will appear on the page (and presumably on search engine result listings that include a given page). Search marketers should consider the value of this data in terms of catching clicks, as social recommendations are increasingly considered trusted web referrals.
Google also pointed to the possibility of +1 Analytics, which would give marketers extended insight on which content pages performed best for their business. This will make it easy for businesses to plan content marketing strategies accordingly.
Internet marketers will want to focus on high-quality content for Google rankings – +1 button aside. As Brafton reported, the search giant recently advised site owners impacted by Panda to focus on generating unique, trustworthy site content to enhance SEO.
