Can’t always trust the Internet to give you the right answer? What if that answer came directly from the mouth of the person you’re asking the question about? Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is testing a new feature on mobile where celebrities answer users’ search questions themselves, in the form of a video that will play at the top of the Google Search results.
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So far, the program includes Priyanka Chopra, Will Ferrell, Tracee Ellis Ross, Gina Rodriguez, Kenan Thompson, Allison Williams, Nick Jonas, Mark Wahlberg, James Franco, Seth MacFarlane, Jonathan Yeo and Dominique Ansel.
The celebrities have pre-recorded their videos, responding to what Google knows are fans’ most frequently asked questions about them (based on questions typed into the Google search box).
When users search one of these frequently asked questions, the video answers will show up at the top of the search results. When that video has finished, the next video in the lineup for that celebrities’ answers will automatically start playing, or users can swipe through the video lists themselves.
This form of response gives the answers and the experience, as a whole, a more personable feel to them.
This may stem from the fact that Google has long struggled with developing its own form of social media. The integration of the celebrity videos makes Google Search feel more social, and no doubt Google is hoping to use this to its advantage.
Currently, the video results are appearing in mobile search results and in the Android Google app. Google will be rolling out the videos onto iOS over the course of the day.
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