"Google is trying to throw it's weight at something it's competitors already do better."
Google has one thing to offer its competitors don't - they can use the +1 button as a signal for their search algorithms.
As good as sharing a site on Facebook/Twitter is, it causes only a "momentary" increase in traffic. On the other hand, if the +1 button actually helps a site improve its rankings in Google, it could cause a sustained increase in traffic, something most websites will look very kindly on.
On the other hand, the fact that adding a +1 will cause much less of a single, highly visible high-impact traffic spike will mean its effects are harder to feel, which might make people consider it less important.
All in all, the war over widgets is just beginning.
I'm not quite clear in all of this whether clicking +1 will only tend to promote that content in the search results of your friends (Buzz connections) or whether it may have a wider SEO effect.
Google has one thing to offer its competitors don't - they can use the +1 button as a signal for their search algorithms.
As good as sharing a site on Facebook/Twitter is, it causes only a "momentary" increase in traffic. On the other hand, if the +1 button actually helps a site improve its rankings in Google, it could cause a sustained increase in traffic, something most websites will look very kindly on.
On the other hand, the fact that adding a +1 will cause much less of a single, highly visible high-impact traffic spike will mean its effects are harder to feel, which might make people consider it less important.
All in all, the war over widgets is just beginning.