Google adds Twitter results to appliance searches

Staff searching an intranet will now be able to see relevant results from Twitter

Google has added Twitter results to its Google Search Appliance product. The firm has already launched a real-time results service this week, and has now added Twitter results to the box because of the importance businesses place on social networking.

Employees searching on an intranet will now be able to see relevant results from Twitter, in a move that Google said could improve productivity.

A feature called Related Web Results already produces results from the public internet, but Google expects the more specific Twitter feeds to further help staff. Twitter results are shown on the right hand side of the viewing page.

"Social information is important for businesses. Employees searching for information for their jobs benefit from real-time news too," said Cyrus Mistry, product manager for Google Enterprise Search, in a blog posting.

"They might be developing a new breakfast cereal, or designing a marketing plan for a clothing line, or writing a strategy report for a political campaign. In all of these cases, understanding what is being said just as Twitter users are saying it can be invaluable."

Companies will have to follow some instructions to turn the Twitter option on in their intranet, and Google claimed that it should take no more than 15 minutes to set up. Access can be controlled down to the individual level, the firm said.

"Customers have told us that placing web results next to intranet ones often allows employees to think differently about a particular topic and approach it in new ways," said Mistry.

"By integrating enterprise search with more of the information that exists in the cloud, like tweets, employees can more easily leverage the wisdom of the crowd."