Facebook Graph Search Vs. Google Search: A Comparison

The latest rabbit Mark Zuckerberg pulled out of his hat earlier this week is a new feature called the Facebook graph search which, according to it, is the social networking site’s alternative to Google search.

Facebook graph search is the popular networking site’s challenge to Google search, though in a different format.

According to Zuckerberg, “Graph search is a completely new way to get information on Facebook”.

Another of Facebook’s executives specified, that this information “might include Mexican restaurants in Palo Alto that his friends have “liked” on Facebook or checked into. It might be used to find a date, a dentist or job”.

Currently available only in the beta version to a few thousand users, it will soon be extended to all its users.

Facebook Graph Search Vs. Google Search: A comparison

For eight long years now, Facebook has been gathering info from millions of fans and addicts about what they LIKE, where they are, and what’s on their mind. And it intends to use all this data to help its dedicated users know about things, people, foods, books, etc that interest their friends, and even friends of friends…

1. While Google search helps us to surf through web pages for information related to our query, Facebook graph search intends to use the information we have been giving to the networking site by way of LIKEs, status updates, chats, shared pictures, etc. As opposed to Google search where web pages appearing on top will be determined by the number of back links they have, the items which move to top in Facebook graph search will be influenced by the number of LIKEs they get! So, it is LIKEs vs. LINKS..is it?

2. Facebook graph search offers multi-dimensional searching as compared to a single-dimensional view of situations, places and things on Google search. While Google search can help you know about the cab operators in your area, or about the game of football, or the latest movies running in the theaters near you, Facebook search helps you refine this search by taking it to the next level.

It can tell you which cab operators your friends have used in the past or which of your friends likes football or which of the movies running at present were liked by the people you know. While Google search can help you know about the ‘restaurants serving Thai food’ in a new city, Facebook search can help you know about the ‘restaurants serving Thai food visited by my friends’.

Facebook is sure (and very rightly so) that people are more likely to follow recommendations from people they know than rely upon information served by Google!

3. Now, while we are more likely to follow our acquaintances’ recommendations since we trust them more than Google, the results will depend upon the third party’s online presence as well.

Supposing you need someone to fix your running tap, Google search can tell you about the plumbers in your area. Perhaps, even provide you with their addresses and/ or phone numbers. Facebook graph search can only tell you about the plumbers which your friends have LIKED!

Now, how many plumbers in my area have a Facebook account??

Even if a couple of them did have accounts, how many of YOU actually take the trouble of LIKE-ing your carpenter, plumber, electrician, dentist, restaurant, movie, etc all the time??

I, for one, do not!

Why the hell would I need to inform Facebook about my favorite brand of running shoes, the soap I like most or my preferred breed of dogs for having a pet at home!

Give me a life…I have better things to do than this stuff!

4. Not only that, will all cab operators, all dentists, chartered accounts, restaurants, plumbers, books, holiday resorts who do not bother to create a Facebook account be left out altogether?

I mean, you HAVE TO HAVE a Facebook account to get noticed. Doesn’t it come to that?

And even if you did, doing good work might not help you as much to get noticed in future as getting a LIKE for your services would!
Just imagine- the next time your plumber comes home and fixes your tap, he’ll make sure to say this before he leaves, “Sir, please don’t forget to give me a Facebook Like!”

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Well, though Facebook promises not to invade upon users’ privacy in revealing the search results, serious doubts are already being raised over privacy issues!

While there is no denying that the Facebook graph search might get lots of curiosity-driven-searches initially, question marks are being raised about its potential to replace Google search in the long run!

Facebook, with more than 1 billion users at present, stands to earn a whopping $500 billion by way of additional revenue even if all its users clicked it just ONCE every year!!!!
You truly are a magician, Mark Zuckerberg…