Google Life Coach: The Service of the Future

Google has, at its fingertips, a wealth of information from our grocery shopping habits, favorite stores, our medical ailments, and our hopes and dreams.  But the question is, what can they do to make their ads truly more useful to their users and their advisors?  Google has the information available to create a robust service called Google Life Coach.  The service could be deployed via mobile devices by way of a free app, and would enable Google to reach more information on users’ mobile devices, expanding its information to include text message data, mobile browsing behavior, contacts list, and almost anything else for an individual user. 

This sounds great for Google…but you’re probably wondering how this makes users’ lives better.  In exchange for access to this information, Google a) wouldn’t sell any of your information to others and b) would deliver a robust personal assistant-like service to its users, allowing users to control their settings.

But before we get to these Google Life Coach messages—first, Google Life Coach would improve AdWords results for their users.  By using information stored on Google calendar and G-Chat, Google would offer more relevant, customized, and timely ads, like those below.  By showing users more relevant ads, users are more likely to click—making this win-win for both users and advertisers.

In-Laws in Town Soon!

Shop Clorox Here and Save

Get your place tip top now.

Disinfect and impress your guests!

Your 4th Party is Coming Up

Shop 4th Themed Decorations

Red, white and blue favors,

décor, treats, and more!

School's Out!

20 Activities for an Awesome Summer

Avoid the summer blues and

keep your little ones busy!

Now—back to the Google Life Coach messages.  Users could create goals, and Google Life Coach would help users reach those goals via messages pushed out to users’ mobile devices.  Google Life Coach could even take on a social turn: users could connect via Google+ to share goals or have join goals (read one book every two weeks, work out 3 times a week, cook one new meal a week, try one new restaurant a month, etc.)

Messages are based on settings that each individual user selects and could have personalities (think GPS voices on steroids).  Personalities might be “Nice Nancy,” who is almost too nice about all of her messages suggestions…or “Snarky Sam,” who might be just a touch condescending when he figures out you’re ordering pizza instead of going to the gym for the third time this week…or maybe “Robot Rob” whose voice is an undisguised computer.  Of course, a “Mute Muse” option would be available for those who didn’t want their messages announced.

I might receive Google Life Coach messages like these:

This is the third time this week you're googling pizza places.

Try this healthier homemade option OR

Add one more gym visit to my Google calendar.

You have exceeded your shopping budget this month.

Would you like to add this to your Pinterest?  OR

Would you like to search for part-time jobs in your area?

REMINDER.  It is now 10:00 PM.

You have brunch with your parents at 10:00 AM tomorrow.

Remind you again in 1 hour?  OR

Stop reminding me about this activity.

This idea was inspired by this post and this one via Imgur.

Possible?  Yes.

Extreme?  Absolutely?

Useful?  Maybe, depending on just how customizable the settings are.

Would this idea take off?  Maybe.  Today, we're wary about our privacy, but not so wary that the masses aren't sharing on Facebook, and not so cautious that we've stopped using Google.  The next generations might have social media presences before they talk and mobile devices before they can walk...but they just might be the perfect demographic that finds value in handheld life coach service.

Author's Note:

I am not sure if I would use the Google Life Coach service if it were available.  I think it's extremely intrusive, though also trying to provide genuinely helpful information and a service to help make people's lives better, just like a life coach would!