Google+ has been up and going for a little while now. Some say that with the launch of Google+ Facebook has a new serious competitor. Others do not think that is the case, due to the fact that Google tried to beat Facebook before and failed. Of course nobody knows what will happen, but what we can do is give you an update about the project so far.
Google Plus
We have known the world of online communities for a while now. We have YouTube, MySpace, Twitter, Facebook… what makes Google+ so different? The main functions of Google+ are the same as with other communities. You can upload photos, chat, change your status and so one. The difference is that you can control which group of friends can see your posts. There is a lot of privacy for the user. You can divide all your connections in so called circles and differentiate them. Google+ has ‘Hangouts’. A user can go to there and chat with people. The connections receive a message if they are online. This way you don’t have to speak to somebody directly.
What happened in the first two weeks?
In two weeks time 9.5 million people singed up for a account. Google launched a trail version first and right now it is impossible to sign up. You can leave your email address. You will receive a note as soon as the server is open for everybody. This strategy is working pretty good; the ones who cannot get it now, want to have it in the future. On Twitter the first reactions to the social network were positive. Since the launch of Google+, more websites have added a +1 button, next to their ‘share in Twitter’ and ‘Like’ buttons.
Why now?
Why did Google launched Google+? And why is the community online, even though a lot of features are not working yet? According to Google we should not see Google+ as a social network. Google is slowly transforming all her features into user generated/ social orientated products. Google is well known for its fast way of making things available (think about Gmail). Their strategy is not the one of the ‘Facebook-Killer’, is the all about relations, data and people. The introduction of Google+ is just the start of a huge social immigration between the products of Google.
Google+ for your business
The network is not available for businesses yet. In their blog Google points out that they are working on special profiles for companies. These profiles will be connected to Google Analytics and Adwords