Saturday, November 26, 2011

Google+ was never a comptetior to Facebook

The social web is a well reported topic within the media today, and for good reason. We are in a transitional change with how we communicate with each other online, how brands reach consumers and how organisations market to their audience. We are undoubtedly immersed in the technology age, and our lives, the way we 
interact with others, is changing totally.

The monumental success of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg's world leading social platform, has enticed brands, consumers, investors alike, and the world is continually awaiting for that 'next big thing'. A likely reason therefore that the majority of news stories, magazine articles and blog posts on Google's latest foray into the social web repeatedly draw up comparisons to Zuckerberg's global giant.

Predicting the next big thing is often easier than some might think. You simply have to look at what is already out there, not at who's focusing on doing something different, but rather someone who's doing it better.
Take the iPod for example. Certainly not the first digital music player on the market, but Apple's cult status products have led the way in both design and function. Google was certainly not the first search engine. Remember the likes of Lycos, Hotbot and AltaVista? Google simply developed a product that was faster, cleaner, and easier to use than its rivals, and they now command a dominating portion of the search market.
Skype too was not the first online video chat service, but with successful brand building and fantastic integration with offline communication, it continues to be the world's favourite online audio/video communication tool.

Contrary to popular belief, Google+ was never created to directly compete for people's time on the internet. A simple, ad free system, Google+ was launched to compete for users' personal data. Becoming the primary platform for social networking would simply be a bonus.
Speaking at the Monaco Media Forum recently, Nikesh Arora, Google's chief business officer said that Google+ is a platform that allows the bringing together of all the services and products that they currently offer. It was never 'just about getting people together on one site and calling it a social network'.
The real power behind what Google has created comes down to the integration of Google's products, meaning that as people are using the search engine, they are also logged into Google+. The combination of that user data and knowing when people are actively searching for something opens up the possibility of the most targeted advertising platform in history, and Google are very aware of the fact.
Contrary to popular belief, Google+ was never created to directly compete for people's time on the internet. A simple, ad free system, Google+ was launched to compete for users' personal data. Becoming the primary platform for social networking would simply be a bonus
Little over a week into taking the reigns as CEO, Larry Page prioritised the company's social media strategy, by directly linking the annual bonuses of over 25% of Google employees to the success or failure of their social products.