Dino Metaxopoulos

Microsoft is deepening its Facebook integration with Bing by powering results with more social factors that will help “fuel faster decisions.” This announcement follows close behind Google’s +1 unveiling last month, which presents the engine’s answer to socializing the search experience.

Bing’s latest update will provide more results that include “endorsements” from a searcher’s Facebook friends (via Like data), a new Facebook tab within the Bing toolbar (for easier Liking, commenting and sharing) and results that tap into Facebook’s entire social fabric – beyond a searcher’s own circle of friends. Bing’s integration of search technology with Facebook’s social data directly impacts natural search rankings, as these socialized results will achieve greater premium visibility in search.

Bing’s “Collective IQ”: One component of this update that differentiates Bing’s social integration from that of rival Google is the inclusion of Facebook’s social data without requiring searchers to log in and sync their Facebook account prior to searching. Certain search results Liked by the greater Facebook user base will be pushed to the top of results. We expect such “socially popular” results to offer much greater click-through appeal given this additional qualifier of relevance.

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