Google has watched with envy as Facebook institutionalized the ‘like’.  Danny Sullivan, who is Editor-in-Chief of Search Engine Land, a top Search Technology consultancy, said in this article that +1 is just like Facebook’s “like” button so it will influence website SERPs.  In fact, Danny goes on to joke that Google should have named the feature “PageRank” in order to strip the pretense that it is anything other than a clue to help Google’s algorithm determine rank authority.

Google’s position is straightforward:  “We’ll look at it as a potential signal to improve search quality”, said Matt Cutts, the head of Google’s WebSpam Team and a member of their Social Search launch team.

The bottom line?  If you’re offered an opportunity to buy a package of +1 influence, turn it down.  Instead, build your Google Plus social network and invite your customers to +1 your site.  You should also build your Facebook, Twitter and YouTube (or other) social networks in order to cast as broad a net as possible.  In that way you’ll catch more fish in the social sea.

ICANN is using dramatic language to introduce this change, perhaps to go along with the dramatic $185,000 price tag for each new domain.  Rod Beckstrom, President and Chief Executive Officer of ICANN said “ICANN has opened the Internet’s naming system to unleash the global human imagination.  We hope this allows the domain name system to better serve all of mankind.”  Thank goodness for mankind they are releasing these new domains!  While new domains will provide a higher level of branding, the elephant in the room was not mentioned in the ICANN press release.  The elephant question is “what will the search engines do with these new domains compared to the existing .com, .org and other suffixes that are already well established online”?

So far Google is silent on the matter.  Well, sort of.

Here are a couple of scenarios that might happen, and how your business may be affected:

A)  The most likely scenario is that search engines will not reward these new domains with higher visibility in SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) for relevant keyword “organic search” and the well established sites will remain on top.  Of course if someone searches for the new domains directly they will find them, but otherwise it could be buried beyond visibility.  Matt Cutts, the head of Google’s Webspam team recently indicated that Google will “dial down” the influence of keyword enriched domains (watch this video).  This suggests that a keyword-trained domain may not be rewarded with authority in Google’s future.

In scenario B)  the search engines might deliver these new domains at the top of organic search results for the keyword or category they mirror.  As an example, if a company buys homes.chicagorealestate, and someone searches for “chicago real estate”, the search engines may reward the exact-match domain as long as it’s a credible site with good content and traffic.  Another example might be rustoleum.paint, where the search engines reward the “paint” suffix above the brand’s domain, which is rustoleum.com.

Only time will tell what the exact impact will be, but I wouldn’t rush to buy your category or brand domain unless there is a solid, strategic, financial or competitive business reason to buy it.  This will not change the way sites appear organically in the near future and you don’t have to rush to make a decision.  But you should strategically evaluate the opportunity – assuming you’re large enough to pay the $185,000 fee – to make sure you don’t miss an opportunity that may only fully reveal itself in the years to come.

Ask your marketing or PR partner for their input and opinion.  We don’t believe this is a “mankind-changing” issue, but it is worthy of review and thoughtful consideration.  Good luck!

1. Too many companies are gaming search results using “black hat” techniques and Google appears to be passively accepting these violations. Link spamming, black hat boot camps and many people unfortunately consider influence pedaling ethical. A woman recently had to return a $50,000 grant to Pepsi because she allegedly hired a company to boost her vote totals in the contest. She justified her actions as “marketing”. This is a pervasive mentality with individuals and companies trying to game results and Google must take more aggressive action against it. The results you see in your search are heavily influenced by these illicit techniques.
2. Google’s mantra “Do no evil” requires a higher standard of business, especially in light of China. Reversing its decision last summer, Google agreed to allow the Chinese government to censor search results. Worried about going “dark in China”, Google acquiesced to the Chinese government, thereby celebrating commercial gain over freedom. Larry Page can become a better business leader by understanding the shareholder value that will come from setting the highest bar for humanity. Short-term losses in China would occur, but Google’s brand value would have soared.
3. Protect more children from pornography and predators. Google’s SafeSearch Lock is an excellent tool that very few parents know about. Move the SafeSearch button up to the homepage where it will be visible. Since SafeSearch (thankfully) filters advertising content too, I suspect that’s why few people know about it. If you don’t want your children to get their sex education from the (raw) internet, turn this feature on.

Larry Page is in a position to build Google’s value, both to users and shareholders. As one of the creators of this life-changing instrument, let’s hope he understands the power he wields to improve both the value of the Brand and the value of the human experience.