A simple flight search shows just how sophisticated search is getting.

My colleague and I are traveling to Denver in a few weeks.  I asked him to find a flight and send it to me so I could buy it.  I was surprised when he sent me a simple Google search link.  It took me here:

I already knew I could check flight status just by typing the flight into Google, but today I learned that through rich data pumped into Google combined with the right ad (and probably some API integration),  conversion is ridiculously straight forward.  When I clicked on the “Book with Delta” link, it took me straight to the checkout pages with the flight data already set. The process was effortless.

I’ve been a big fan of “rich snippets” for a while now.  It’s one of those things that just feels like the future of search and SEO.  Yet, I haven’t seen an example of the value it can truly bring to a organization.  Although this clearly involves a greater integration than simple rich snippets, it’s clearly the direction search is moving…and its really easy for end users.

Most nonprofits have not yet fully embraced rich snippets, but over time expect to see more and more direct links to donate from Google for nonprofits that have added the appropriate mark-up.