“Actively Discussed On Google+” Now Showing In Google Search Results

Google’s results are getting even more deeply intertwined with Google+. New links are now showing under results that show “Actively Discussed On Google+.” The link is expandable and brings in Google+ comments or posts when clicked.

The “Actively Discussed on Google+” displays much like a sitelink with a blue “Show” button that will expand the discussion without taking users off the results page:

When the show button is clicked we’ve spotted either comments or posts from Google+ displaying.  Comments look quite similar to the Google+ execution and are nested as responses.  To no-one’s suprise, a link at the bottom of the expanded unit allows users to go directly to Google+:

A few implementations spotted weren’t actual discussions, rather just Google+ posts.  This example for instance pulls a Google+ post under the result with the Google+ post basically replicating the URL above.  While it makes sense to tie in discussions, pulling in post without comments like this seems like a bad idea.

This implementation furthers the Google+ification of Google search, many times pushing Google+ over relevancy.   The “Actively Discussed” links are in test mode currently, no official release has been announced.

About The Author

Greg Finn

Greg Finn is the Director of Marketing for Cypress North, a company that provides digital marketing and web development. He is a co-host of Marketing O'Clock and has been in the digital marketing industry for nearly 20 years. You can also find Greg on Twitter (@gregfinn) or LinkedIn.