Why We Are Still Reluctant to Switch
http://socialmediatoday.com/talkwheel/562101/why-google-wont-succeed
I’ll be the first to admit it. Google is amazing. You could convince anybody to switch over to CS just by offering the perks that Google offers alone to its employees. And how many of us don’t use Chrome or google search on a daily basis? We use search, YouTube, Google Documents, GMail, and Google Maps so effortlessly, but why are we still reluctant to switch over to Google+?
The above link is to a blog post that discusses why Google’s implementation strategy could have been better. Google made its release of its highly anticipated social network site very exclusive by only letting people in via invitation first. However, even though a good amount of buzz was built for the site, we simply don’t flock to it because nobody is there. The blog makes a good point in explaining why Google fell flat was because they did not target a single established community like Facebook. Starting with the Harvard university community, Facebook grew steadily and had a certain functionality within the network. However, Google didn’t target a certain group nor did they offer a great functionality toward the network that would surpass Facebook.
Google needs to seek out certain members of the community to bolster the technology. We learned in class that people will only use the technology if the majority of the network uses the technology. So, to take a broad and wide spread approach when switching people over is a fruitless idea. However, this does explain why Google+ is popular with niche communities due to its circle mentality where users can share ideas and news with certain groups of people. But it will take a long time for users to convince their friends and family to switch over because the people who do use Google+ are not concentrated enough in the network. If Google is going to really make a mark in the social scene, they might have to stay away from Facebook’s audience, which consists of friends and family, and keep targeting the use of Google+ in passionate hobbyist circles filled with total strangers. It gives a new definition to how we are all connected.
-ericranc