Google has added an interesting new feature to their Google search app – the ability to follow search results, allowing Google to show updated stories related to those searches in the Google search app feed.
Here is what it looks like:
When you click the follow button, you get the confirmation that stories related to the topic searched for will now show in the app’s feed.
It isn’t clear if you will be able to follow any search results, or only ones that trigger a knowledge panel style result, such as the Stranger Things example above. I am sure as it rolls out, we will hear more about whether brand and product searches will be included with the follow feature, or if any search query can be followed.
For the most part, Google’s search app feed is primarily taken from interests such as websites and news stories you have visited or searched for previously. But this is the first time you can explicitly follow something from the search results.
Google does have a somewhat similar feature, Google Alerts, for flagging new additions to the search results for queries you want to watch. However, these are set up to send alerts via email, instead of this, which places news related to the search query directly into the Google Search App’s feed.
This feature will be available in the US starting today and internationally in the next couple of weeks for both Android and iOS, according to Google’s blog post on the changes.
Jennifer Slegg
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