By now you probably know that there’s a new social network in town, and it’s not going away any time soon. Google+ has been hyped throughout the blogosphere as “the next big social network”. Some have even gone as far as calling “better than Facebook”.
So, should we freak out just yet? We all know that upstart social media websites can come and go like the wind… But this one is Google, and grew to over 10 million users in just 16 days, compared to the approximately 800 days it took Twitter or Facebook to reach the 10 million mark.
So why are people flocking to Google+? From what we’ve seen so far, it might be for good reason. Google+ has some very flattering traits:
Smart UI. It has a delightfully simple user interface. You log in, and there is a scarcity of crap. Google + is clean and easy to navigate. The “Circles” feature serves two purposes: sharing the right information with the right people, and viewing only the kind of information you want to view. Now you can share bad humor with your college buddies and not with your mom!
- Initial thought: IF Google+ becomes a behemoth like Facebook – and that’s still a big if – the Circles feature will force any marketer on Google+ to develop nothing but awesome content, or it will never be seen. This is because users can easily filter their activity by Circles. If they don’t want to see your boring, sales-y posts – they won’t.
Instant ubiquity. It’s a Google platform, and integrates with [most] other Google platforms seamlessly. Gmail, Google Talk, Google Reader, Google News, Google Calendar, and now Google+: All accessible and sharable with one login. You’ll notice the Google navigation bar received a facelift recently. The newly added “Share” button allows you to share any content viewed on any Google platform in Google+.
- Initial thought: This allows for super convenient and super rich posts! Check out this example: This person is sharing their location with Google Check-ins, with along with a Google Map, and a picture, right from their Google phone.
Unique features. Case in point: Hangouts. Essentially, Hangouts is a platform for spontaneous video chats. With hangouts, you can broadcast to any of your circles that you are up for hanging out. Up to 10 people can join in at one time, and share text, their screens, and YouTube videos. Other very notable features include Huddle (for texting in real time with a group of people) and Sparks (Google’s new “social media reader”).
- Initial thought: These are all great – but are people going to “get it”? Younger generations that have grown up on MySpace and Facebook might thrive on this technology, but will this be tech-overload for the masses?
Speed bumps for the future… There ARE some minuses when it comes to Google+.
- For one, the most recently updated content rises to the top of the stream, no matter what it is. We’ve all seen the annoying Facebook posts that have 957 comments, and this is the kind of post that Google+ will keep right at the top of your stream!
- Also, there’s no stream search? Seriously?! The worlds most popular search company didn’t build a stream search into their social network?
- Also, it’s silly how many steps it takes to send a private message to someone. I won’t go into detail, just trust me.
- And no YouTube integration? The new navigation bare and share button would be way cooler if it were on YouTube as well.
- Lastly, although the Google+ team HAS addressed the issue: There are no business pages, and no marketing tools for businesses – yet.
Despite the minuses, and the uncertainty of any social network’s future, Google+ is an exciting new online experience for us to partake in. The best part about it, in this social media guy’s experience, is that other social networks (ehem… Facebook!) will certainly have to up their game in order to compete. So, whether Google+ succeeds or not – the Internet will become a better place for all users because of it.
Check it out for yourself, at plus.google.com.
