Actually I stopped blogging about recent hypes and stuff that is cool just at the very moment since I think there are many platforms out there that cover all the new fancy things, there is no need for my humble little opinion (or to say it like a friend of mine “there are enough smart asses out there, sometimes you need to keep yours in”.
Nevertheless I decided to let it out again. Since Google Plus raised some questions among my friends and clients here my point of view about current discussions.
google plus
One of the most common discussions right now: Will Google Plus be a Facebook killer? I say, obviously, no! Not that Google Plus does not have a lot of potential, but it takes a LOT to kill well established brands and services. Just take a look at the current social media scene. Sure Facebook is the biggest network right now but there still are a heck of other networks (hi5, netlog, badoo, myspace…) out there that simply won’t die. So Google Plus is going to be a major facebook ass kicker, but no killer. Remember….don’t be evil!
It is not only about facebook & friends
The thing about Google Plus is that it is not only a new facebook rival. Google Plus has the potential (even right now, but surely even more when more features are being rolled out) to hurt a lot of other networks as well. Linkedin or Xing for example. It is quite easy to establish business related relationships on google plus and maintain your personal sharing needs as well without letting both worlds collide. The data about user behavior and current network usage lets Google also connect you to more and more persons of interest so that your professional networking can grow way faster than on any other platform. Right now everybody is talking about facebook vs. google plus. Actually facebook is the only platform that shouldn’t be thought of endangered species while other networks might be considered exactly this.
Jack of all trades
While Google Plus is still a nerd playground (until it opens completely for registration) it has a big potential to become the one go to web solution for your daily needs. No matter if business or personal. While business opportunities are on the hand and everybody already is waiting for the first business ‘hang outs’ (group video chat) there is also a good chance that non nerds adopt google plus as their favorite online location. When I think about my mom the thought comes up we she should bother to learn how to handle skype, mail, a german social network, picture sharing and whatever else when she can have all in one with google plus?
I am really looking forward and quite curious to see how google plus will behave in the wild when it is open for everybody and what ass will be kicked first or if google, despite all the awesome approaches with Google+ will, once more, fail miserably in hitting the social media space.
