Google announced an new Wikipedialike content site called Google Knol some months ago. However, the site opened to the public with a simple announcement on the official Google Blog this week.

On the surface this looks like a place to go and build pages, or knols as Google calls them, on specific topics of expertise and could eventually be a very hot place to demonstrate your expertise in your chosen area.

The most significant difference from Wikipedia is that the pages are written by named and verified authors. From an author standpoint then there is probably more to gain from a trust and brand standpoint. Each submitting author must have a Google account and then have their name verified by either phone or with a credit card.

Another twist is that while pages can be edited by the community, the original author of the page or knol gets to moderate the changes.

While anyone can submit a knol on any topic this might be a good time to go in and grab some content topic real estate before the real land rush begins.

The obvious question on my mind and I suspect a few others is this. Will this content receive special treatment come search time on Google? Wikipedia content currently enjoys great placement in the Google index, is that about to change?

Here a sample knol I’ve called the Definition of Marketing