Google+, Is it the future of Social Media? – ‘Dream Run’

March 10, 2013 by solitarysocial | 8 Comments

Is Google’s version of a social network the way of the future?

This was a question posed to me by a friend looking into social media for their business. Unfortunately I didn’t really have an answer for them. I had heard of Google+ and vaguely remembered even signing up for it, but I couldn’t really think what it was for.

I delved into researching it and confirmed that I did indeed have a Google+ account, albeit blank and uneventful. What I found is that my friend may just be right, and Google+ is headed for the top of the social media mountain.

Here is a quick overview of what Google+ actually is, because if you are like me you may have only recently learnt of its existence – or at least understood its significance.

Many features of Google+ you will recognise as being similar to ones on Facebook but with small differences. For example in G+, the ‘Stream’ is the solution for Facebook’s ‘timeline’ and it also has ‘groups’ and ‘Circles’ for friends as well as messaging and gaming features. The biggest similarity would be the ‘+1’ button which is Google’s answer to the famous ‘Like’ button. But it is the differences to Facebook that will ensure it stands out and wins the audience over.

Does Google+ out do Facebook in many respects?
Google+ has a better privacy management system and the ability to restrict what circles see what you post. This feature is sorely lacking in Facebook and will make significant differences to many users. As Google is an internet wide entity and not a single web page they have the ability to incorporate a lot more into the experience. For example they also link your account with Google+ Events and Google+ Local which has huge potential for businesses.

One of the more significant features is ‘Hangouts’. This allows a select group of people to video chat for a time. This once again has so much potential for both the public and business users.

A good article from Paul Maplesden states that the main difference between the two networks is:

There are far too many interesting features to detail here but a full list can be found on the Wikipedia page, or the Google+ help pages.So is Google having a Dream Run with their latest attempt at a Social Network? Although claiming to have over 500 million users, Google+ does not yet have the fame or publicity of its main rival Facebook. As mentioned above it is possible that reading this may be the first you have heard of their new venture.In saying that, the article by Anthony Wing Kosner, explains how Google+ is catching Facebook in terms of active users and dramatic graphs such as the one below by Leon Håland, show us that something really significant is happening here.

So now I ‘m really interested to know, do you have a Google+ account? Are you an ‘Active User’? Will you swap from using Facebook? Or do you think you will use both?
Alternatively you may think Google+ is a flop?I would love to hear you thoughts and opinions so feel free to comment below.