Throughout this whole “Web 2.0″ craze a lot of things online have become much better. From email, to photo sharing, to keeping track of content…But one thing that hasn’t changed too much is the way we do searches. When we want to find something, we still just google it. However, I don’t believe the future of searching lies in Google’s machines, but in normal people.

The new social bookmarking site Ma.gnolia has a quite simple slogan, but it says a lot:

Found is the New Search

The New Search–they’re on to something. I believe search engines like Google will eventually be non-existent (unless they start moving, and fast), as well as much of what we currently call SEO. In Google’s place will be new players with new technologies. SEO will be less about optimizing, and more about content.

Sites like Del.icio.us, Technorati, Digg, and now the new player Ma.gnolia have already started this process. Ma.gnolia seems to be starting with the ideas that Del.icio.us and Technorati have created and taking it all a step further.

Ma.gnolia, like Del.icio.us, is a social bookmarking site. Ma.gnolia, unlike Del.icio.us, allows contacts, groups (much like Flickr), and looks nice. It also allows users to vote on bookmarks on a scale of 1-5, though I haven’t really figured out how it’s currently helping users. However, it could fit very well with the idea of a “New Search.”

We’re coming closer to the time when search engines will not be ran so much by machines as they will be people. We’ve finally advanced technology far enough to where we can allow users to socialize and provide the content to run sites, and this could include the indexes of a new type of search engine.

Currently if you do search Ma.gnolia it works a lot like Del.icio.us, with the results be returned sorted by the last bookmarked, and it also shows you the rating the bookmarker gave it. That’s great…but with what they’ve got set up, I think they really could take the “New Search” that their slogan hints to a lot further. In fact, I think they could really start the future of searching.

Ma.gnolia also allows you to find new bookmarks by making contacts, keeping track of the bookmarks posted in your groups, and looking at the latest bookmark additions. This is a great idea. If I want to read about photography, I can visit a photography group and look through their tags. Similarly, I could do the same for graphic design, or CSS.

But I still think they could take things further.

Just think about it. What if you could search and have your results sorted by the number of users that bookmarked it, the ratings it got, the age of it, etc.? Not only would this ensure quality results, but it would also encourage better content. After all, who’s going to bookmark or give a high rating to crappy sites? Just imagine the type of search we’d have on our hands if the results were determined by actual readers.

Google’s got a lot of work to do if they want to keep up. With Yahoo’s recent purchase of Flickr and Del.icio.us, as well as having their new “My Web 2.0″ service, I think they’re in a good position to start moving on this, but really anybody could take the lead now. I think that if this is where Ma.gnolia wants to go, they definitely have a chance to drive the new search industry.

Now for anybody to succeed in this, they need to get it out to normal people. Web developers aren’t the only people using the internet, yet look at the most popular tags on Del.icio.us and tell me who their userbase is. Newsvine understands that if they want a successful news site, they need to get the general public in on it, not just geeks. Social bookmarking sites need to do the same if they really want to become “The New Search.” Now I’m not saying all social bookmarking services want to become a new type of search engine (or even that Ma.gnolia does), but if they do, they could and they should. Because that’s where the future of searching will lie.

Now even though these social bookmarking sites haven’t yet become the standards for searching, they are being used tremendously among the tech-savvy. And as such, web designers need to start thinking and acting on what I am now naming BCAA: Bookmarkable Content and Availability.

As the name applies, this really comes down to two things:

  1. Bookmarkable Content. If you want to get your stuff out there, make it worthwhile. Because remember, users who can read are now deciding your rankings, not machines. Make sure that when a reader bookmarks your stuff, they rate it a 5 and pass it along to their contacts and groups.
  2. Availability. Provide easy-access links that your readers can use to bookmark and post your stuff, and encourage them to use them. And of course, you can always bookmark and post your own stuff and submit it to appropriate groups. If it’s any good, chances are it’ll catch on. If it doesn’t catch on then improve your stuff. You’ll also want to make sure you’re correctly tagging and pinging services like Technorati.

Well that’s all I’ve got for now. If you liked this article or wish to voice your want for this new search, why not help me with my BCAA? You can Ma.gnoliate it (yeah…I made that word up), Digg it, Seed it to the Vine, and bookmark it on Del.icio.us.