Google Debuts +1 'Like' Button

Google has finally made a big step towards its 'social' future. It has been saying that it's working on integrating a social layer into its products but so far it hasn't had much to show for it. Google +1 changes that. Essentially it's a Like button for Google search and ads, albeit one with much smaller social graph attached to it.

"We recently started to include more information from people you know—stuff they’ve shared on Twitter, Flickr and other sites—in Google search results," Rob Spiro, Product Manager at Google writes.

"Today we’re taking that a step further, enabling you to share recommendations with the world right in Google’s search results. It’s called +1—the digital shorthand for 'this is pretty cool'," he announced.

"To recommend something, all you have to do is click +1 on a webpage or ad you find useful. These +1’s will then start appearing in Google’s search results," he added.

The concept is rather simple, especially now that people are so used to Facebook's Like button. For some users, rolling out gradually, Google will be adding a +1 button next to search results.

Users will be able to click on the button to indicate that they like that certain page. Their Google contacts will then be able to see what they've liked if the web page shows up in one of their searches.

Google contacts are gathered from several Google services, Gmail and Talk, people in Google Contacts, and those you follow in Google Buzz and Google Reader.

That's quite a motley crew and most people don't view their friends and contacts from these services as one solid group. But it's the best Google can do for now.

Interestingly, Google doesn't tap into external social graphs like it already does for Social Search where it links to Twitter and other accounts. Social Search is very similar to +1 in many aspects, except the links recommended don't come from people explicitly 'liking' them.

To use +1 you'll need a Google Profile. If you've used the feature, it will show up in a tab on your profile. This explains all of the housekeeping work and the recent revamp of the service. All of your +1s will be public as well.

If you don't see the buttons just yet, you can head over to the Experimental section of Google Labs. The +1 button will be available for websites in the coming months as well.

The +1 button is clearly linked to Google's social ambitions, but it's unlikely that this will be the end of it. There are no guarantees that the +1 button will be as popular or as useful as the Facebook Like button, so it's hard to say if Google is headed in the right direction or has already lost the social web fight.