Google Twitter Partnership, Making Tweets Prominent in Search Results
What are the benefits?
The primary reason behind the Google – Twitter partnership is to enable users to get real-time info as and when something is happening. It’s a way for businesses, celebrities and individuals alike to reach a wider audience at the most relevant moments. Tweets have been showing up within Google search results for some time, but this new functionality allows for deeper integration and improved usability.
As for Twitter, they have reported that they are not directly getting any income from clicks within these new search results. The main benefit for the social mogul appears to be the large volume of traffic they’ll no doubt receive when the new search system goes global. When users click on a ‘More Tweets’ link within search, they will be taken straight to Twitter where they are encouraged to sign-up or download the Twitter app.
When and how will tweets show?
As these changes are currently only showing for U.S. users within the Google App and mobile web, it’s hard to know exactly how Tweets will appear in search when the functionality is rolled out on a global scale. U.S. users have reported a carousel display with variation in positioning, with tweets showing in different locations or not at all. Twitter themselves have released the screenshots below as an example:
(Source: https://blog.twitter.com/2015/a-new-way-to-discover-tweets)
As we can see, searches for relevant topics provide information on recent Tweets as well as current events. Using a Hashtag (#) in your search will bring up even more information, as you’ll see within the example above (right). Clicking onto a Twitter result within these pages will take you straight through to the relevant page or Tweet.
When will it be available for everyone else?
For now, as mentioned, this implementation is only available for U.S. users searching in English, within the Google App or mobile search. Twitter has promised support for other languages / countries and desktop usage in the future. They haven’t yet announced a date, so do check back for regular updates on Google search.
Why is this relevant for SEO?
This new Twitter / Google partnership provides users of search with real time updates of current events. Although we’re not sure when this will be rolled out within the U.K. or the level of integration for Tweets from local or national businesses, it goes to stress the importance of social media and keeping on top of current events.
We will no doubt know more when this implementation is rolled out to a larger audience. Do please make sure to check back regularly for updates, or get in touch if you have a question regarding the Google Twitter partnership, Google search, SEO, social media campaigns or with any other search marketing queries.
