Google+: A Real Social Competitor or Online Buzz?
The Google+ buzz is unavoidable lately with articles and blog posts either detailing the new social network’s features or lack-thereof, comparing it to Facebook or mentioning its explosive growth of over 25 million users in just a few weeks. Initially, it seemed that we’d all abandon our Facebook profiles and pages to make a new home on the search giant’s social platform.
However the excitement over Google+ is no different than the hype created around the launch of Google Buzz and Google Wave — both of which fizzled out rather abruptly.
Meanwhile Facebook is undoubtedly winning the social network race with over 600 million users. So the question remains; can the King of Search really go to war with the King of Social? Despite being well-positioned for growth, Google+‘s traffic and usage is steadily dropping (10% as of the end of July). The drop in usage indicates that after checking it out, users may be simply abandoning the site altogether. It should also be noted that while Google+ boasts easy privacy features in comparison to Facebook‘s more complicated options, issues such as the deletion of profiles without “real names” are undoubtedly keeping people away.
The verdict is still pending on whether Google+ is the “Facebook killer” that many imagined. Now we await the roll out of brand pages and games which will undercut both Facebook and Apple.
About the author
Written by Lanae
Lanaé manages graphic and web design and development for all ProActive accounts. She brings over 11 years of design experience and is a self-diagnosed tech addict who can be found blogging and coding into the wee hours of the night.
