A test phase is currently running for some users, which enables commenting on live TV shows in Google Search. Users who are selected for this test phase can post comments and read those of other users and even rate them if desired. This feature was previously available for various sporting events in certain regions.
The layout of the comment function is somewhat reminiscent of Twitter. Platforms like this could compete strongly with Google’s new social features in the future, since this new feature will probably not be the only one. Statistics from last year showed that click-through rates had already plummeted at the start of 2019. Almost 50 percent of all search queries, according to Onlinemarketing.de, were determined by Google to be No Click. Here, No Click means that users are already getting their information from Knowledge Panels and Featured Snippets, rather than scrolling through displayed search results and getting their information from web pages. SEO guru Barry Schwartz documented Google’s current testing phase at Search Engine Land.
However, the approach to a social media platform on Google’s part is not new. In 2018, Google had already introduced the Follow button for companies within Google Maps. This was followed in 2019 by a test phase of the share button, which was intended to enable the sharing of search results. This feature did not make the permanent inclusion to Google Features, however. The new comment function is also not yet very prominent, and whether it will then make it as a permanent option in Google Features is not yet known.
In order to generate your own traffic via Google, it is recommended to rely on structured data to give your content the best shot it can get.
