In this third post in a series on using social media for your online community building, we are going to look at the most recent entrant into the world of social networks: Google+. For all of the social media addicts out there, Google+ has been the latest craze, with people commenting and lining up trying to get an invite to the largest "invite only" social network I have ever seen. With the network projected to have hit 20 million people by the end of this weekend (today is July 20th, 2011) and all of the buzz generated around the network, it is hard to believe that most "normal" people I have spoken to have no idea what it is. However, from this soft launch of the site, it is clear that the network is here to stay. For those of you who haven't explored Google+ yet, or couldn't get your invite to work, I am going to give a brief overview of the network and then discuss how it plays into the overall community development strategy.
So after a week or so of playing in the network, it seems to me that Google+ lays somewhere between Facebook and Twitter, with an interface that seems familiar enough to get around, but with some very interesting and streamlined ways of managing your onliine profile. The user interface is similar to Facebook, with a much cleaner look to it than most Google properties. On the top of your page, you will find the black Google+ navigation bar, which is now displayed on all Google properties. On the left side you have your profile photo, your Stream , Sparks and a Chat box with option for video chatting. On the right side you have photos of friends in your various Circles, the ability to create a Hangout, as well as to invite new friends to join the site (though that doesn't always seem to work).
Your Stream is displayed right in the center of your profile, and is similar to the Facebook Newsfeed. Similar to Facebook and Twitter, you post content, and mention users using the “+” or “@” symbols, and the person will be notified that you mentioned them. You have the ability to share with specific circles, though the privacy is not as locked up as Facebook, since someone in your Circle can share your post, and it will be visible to people in their circle (so no real privacy there). A nice feature related to the stream, is the ability to "Mute" a post, so you don't receive notifications when other people comment on it.
You can filter your stream based on your Circles, so you can look at only Family or Friend streams. Of course you have the ability to create posts, and share content with people in your various Circles as well. Each Circle represents a group of people that are segmented based on their role in your life. for example, you can have a different Circle for friends, family, business contacts, etc., whom you can share specific postings and information with. This offers an easier way of privatizing certain information you don't want to share with everyone. Of course you can do this with other networks, but the interface is considered to be the easiest of all major social networks to date by many social media pundits.
The Sparks feature is very interesting, as it allows you to save searches based on specific keywords. This allows you to search and filter out content throughout the web and serve it up by date, similar to an RSS/syndicated feed. Each day you can look at your "Sparks" feed and there will be updated information based on your interests, which is a great tool for finding the latest news on your industry. You can use this feed of data for sharing content in other networks like Twitter, or share posts with your Google+ Circles. The "Chat" function will be familiar with people who have used Gmail, and also offers video chat. A cool feature that builds on this is the "Hangout" feature, which allows for group video chats, or as Google puts it “the unplanned meet-ups”.
Another aspect of Google+ is the +1 button! You may have noticed it on some blogs (see and click it below) and websites, next to other social buttons. This is similar to the Facebook "Like", with the exception that it can actually help with your search engine ranking! In fact, if you log into your Google Webmaster Tools account (or ask your web developer to do so) you will find a tool dedicated to the +1 button, showing the amount of times people have +1'd your website pages (if you don't have a web developer, you can contact us and we can assist you in implementing this button).
Of course no social media site is complete without it's own mobile application. Google+ App can be found in the Android Market, and is available for in a mobile web version as well. A nice feature of the app (that is installed seperately) is the “Huddle” feature, which allows for group chatting via your mobile phone. Another nice feature is the automatic photo upload. Every photo you take is automatically uploaded to a private folder, which you can share with people online. This skips the need to upload a photo, and also gives you fast access to all of the photos you take on your desktop (not just the ones you upload to Facebook or Flickr).
So how does Google+ fit into your overall social media strategy or online community development? Well, first, it is important to know that the network is still not fully launched, and most of the people using it are early adopters who like to be in the cutting edge of technology. So it does not represent the various groups of people you find on Facebook. There is also no ability to create a business page, similar to a Facebook FanPage, and creating a commercial page out of a personal one is grounds for being kicked out (with the exception of Mashable). So until the site is fully launched with all features, you may not be able to promote your business the same way as you do in Facebook. However, the tool is a great way to promote your personal brand, similar to how you would use Twitter.
If you are able to get an invite that works, and want to join the site, I would recommend you first complete your Google profile (Gmail accounts only, no support for Google Apps users yet). Second, create your Circles to differentiate your contacts (i.e. seperate friends, family and co-workers). Next, explore some of the features, such as Sparks, so you can access some of the latest news on your specific industry. You can use these topics for sharing with specific circles and start building your reputation or expertise. Finally, after you connect with people you know (if they are on the site) try sending a Huddle message to a group of your Google+ friends, and ask them to join a group video conference using the Hangout feature, for an online demonstration or webinar!
It is still too soon to see what kind of impact Google+ will have on on-line community building. There is no doubt that Google+ will become one of the top 2 or 3 social networking sites. Considering the number of people who use Google everyday, as well as their resources, they can easily gain enough users to be a serious contender. That said, their main competition, Facebook, will not sit down and let their 750 million users migrate so easily. Facebook is still the 800 pound gorilla of social networks. For that reason it is still better for building deep relationships with your customer base. That said, in the next posting we will discuss how you can use Facebook to reach their 750 million users.
