There's considerable chatter about a seismic shift in search. A lot of it's overblown, but the central idea is intriguing: Google's biggest problem -- the one that keeps company execs up at night -- isn't Bing or Ask or traditional search. The real threat is social search.
Or so the thinking goes ...
Earlier today, I ran across a data point in Aardvark's new social search report that I find way more interesting than Google's theoretical downfall. It's not whether social search will displace Google. It's how -- and where -- social search can actually be useful
TechCrunch's breakdown of the Aardvark report includes this bit of analysis:
[Aardvark's] average query volume was 3,167.2 questions per day, with the median active user asking 3.1 questions per month. Interestingly, mobile users are more active than desktop users. The Aardvark team attributes this to users wanting quick, short answers on their phones without having to dig for anything. They also think people are more used to using more natural language patterns on their phones. [Emphasis added.]
The real seismic shift in social search will come from its commingling with mobile applications.
Why? Because mobile is a different animal than the desktop. No one wants to fumble around for queries. People on the go don't have time to scan listings. The screens are too small, and the input mechanisms -- improved as they are -- are way too clunky.
Mobile search has to be concise and targeted. Results that emanate from a trusted network of friends and associates certainly fit that bill. Toss in more geolocation features and improved speech recognition, and the utility of mobile-based social search could get really interesting.
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