Get 'Social' with Friend Connect

Posted on 15th May 2008 at 10:46 am by Christopher Tate

Google has released a number of widgets under the banner of Friend Connect, giving site owners the chance to add social features to their web pages.

'Social' is fast becoming the buzz word in web circles, as numerous social networking sites have taken off and attracted massive followings. The features on sites such as Facebook or Bebo are now being deemed as useful by many site owners looking to create more interactivity and contact with users. With the release of Google Friend Connect, incorporating these features has just got a lot easier.

Previously, adding a social element to your website was difficult for two main reasons:

1. The technology and resource barriers were too high for some site owners, with some not having the skills and/or the time to develop such applications found on MySpace, Facebook etc.
2. The need for assembling login and profile details for different sites and the process of importing friends can put potential users off.

However with Google's new Friend Connect service you can embed social applications into your website relatively painlessly. Choose which applications you need and paste the code into your site. Users can use either their Google account or OpenID for authentication, therefore removing the need to set up yet another profile.

The service has no hidden money-making scheme, but I imagine that it is only a matter of time before some type of ad system will be available to bolt on.

One bone of contention that may arise after a few months of use is that, for all the 'social' features that Friend Connect offers to the site owner, it bars them from accessing a large amount of data about their users. This solution may not suit larger companies and sites who want to find out more about who is accessing their site, how they are finding it and what they want from it, but for those who are not ready to invest in a bespoke application, Friend Connect is a stepping stone into the arena of social media.

File under: google social networking

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