The reports have emerged that Google has finally done a deal with Facebook which will see Facebook content emerging in Google’s real time search.

After securing a deal with Twitter in December last year (and MySpace also) which saw Google take the lead in the real time search space, this latest initiative will help cement its position forefront.

At this stage, reports suggest that Google will only be indexing status updates from Facebook pages and not users status updates. There are probably a few reasons for this – the noise, privacy etc etc.

What this does mean is that businesses can start looking at Facebook as an important search engine marketing strategy. Where in the past, many businesses resigned themselves to the fact that Facebook did reach the right audience, Google’s indexing of updates extends the reach.

There are already over 3 million active Facebook pages which have some where in excess of 5.3 billion fans. Most Facebook page are used by businesses to promote products and services, so setting up a Facebook page for your business is now more important than ever.

I’m interested to know how this fits into Google’s plans with its own real time life streaming tool – Google Buzz which it recently launched. Until Buzz reaches a critical mass – Google will continue to focus on where the content is.

With the indexing of Facebook content already underway, it’ll be interesting to hear what Microsoft plans to do given the existing relationship between the two companies.

Let us know your thoughts on the new deal and the use of Facebook Pages via our comments below:

• How do you use Facebook pages to promote your business?
• Do you think the inclusion of Facebook pages will enhance or hinder real time search?