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Google has started rolling out vanity URLs to the biggest celebrities and brands currently using its Google+ social network. Whether us mere mortals will also be afforded the pleasure of being ourselves rather than a random series of numbers remains to be seen.
According to TechCrunch, Google has gifted Google+ vanity URLs to a number of celebrities and brands, including Britney Spears and Toyota. This comes just days after Web comic The Oatmeal was punked with a jokey vanity URL that was character-for-character the same as the one The Oatmeal author Matthew Inman jokingly referred to in a comic mocking Google+.
The reference to “vanity URLs” is a bit of a misnomer. It suggests the only reason anyone could or would want a personalized URL is that they’re vane. The truth is very different. Although I’m sure there are some people out there who would pick a URL for those reasons, most people would choose their actual name and do so purely to make it easier sharing their Google+ profile with others.
These new vanity URLs mean Britney Spears is now reachable on google.com/+britneyspears and Toyota is reachable on google.com/+toyota. The rest of us, who haven’t made crappy pop songs or who don’t sell cars, are still making do with google.com/randomseriesofnumbers … which is just stupid.
Right now I cannot see anyone even remembering the random series of numbers that makes up their URL, let alone them sharing it with someone else who would also need to remember it or write it down. But I bet you could now find Britney Spears’ Google+ profile without sneaking a peek at the previous paragraphs, assuming you have been paying attention to this point.
Facebook started offering vanity URLs in 2009, and pre-empted the rush by allowing its high-profile users to stake their claim in advance. I can only assume this is a similar move on Google’s part, but the company has yet to reveal its plans for mainstream users of the service.
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