Are We Writing Off Google+ too Early?

Fortune Magazine screamed a few months back “Is Google dead?” On similar lines are the articles about the utter failure of Google+ and how it is the next failed platform of Google.

I beg to differ. I believe Google+ is quite different from other Google products such as Buzz, Wave, etc. Google+ is Google’s first serious social media attempt that has the might of the entire organisation behind it.

I shall prove through this post that Google+ (G+) is here to stay and does not have to kill Facebook to find its place in the sun.

Here are some key points that will ensure the success of Google+ over the next few years.

Speed of growth: G+ has crossed more than 25 million users. Its first 10 million users took less than 16 days. In comparison, Facebook and Twitter took approximately 800 days to reach a figure of 10 million. I agree that it may not be fair as G+ is powered by Google to reach these numbers, while Facebook and Twitter had to do so organically, but that is exactly my point.

Platform: One has to agree that G+ is a superior platform. It has the best of both Facebook and Twitter. The concept of circles, huddle, hangout, sparks makes it one the best social media technology platforms.

Data portability: Social media is about our network. I love the stand that Google has taken where everyone can transfer data in and out of Google Platforms, Facebook seems to have taken a stand of trying to restrict movement, I feel sooner than later that could affect its credibility in the market.

Google as a marketing powerhouse: All other social media platforms are still in the process of building their marketing prowess while Google has mastered that over the last 13 years. Today, millions of organisations around the world are comfortable using the AdWords platform; a single additional tab called Google Plus in the AdWords platform would expose G+ to millions of potential advertisers.

+1 strategy: Google launched +1 tab on web results a few months before the launch of G+; imagine a world where one can get recommendations not only from your friends but even friends of friends. It is not about a social platform but making the web itself social. Google is the only organisation that had the capability to do this, and it has through G+.

Google can afford zero revenues from G+: Most social media platforms are struggling to find sustainable revenue opportunities and have finally had to settle to advertising as the only viable one.  As everyone agrees, social media is not the best place for advertising, it borders around interruption marketing. Google can continue advertising through PPC, AdSense, DoubleClick, and use G+ as mainly the engine to collect data about users. Google may be able to use the data collected from G+ to add a multiplier to its current advertising revenues that will allow it to become the only social media network with no advertising, will that give it a competitive advantage? Sure.

Ecosystem of Google properties as a multiplier: Google owns Google Search Engine, YouTube, Picassa, Gmail, Google Talk, Blogger, Android, DoubleClick, Admob, etc. Most social media platforms only own mindspace of the user when the user is on the social media platform. What Google as an organisation allows is to own engagement with the consumers across their entire lifecycle on the web, I believe that makes Google and G+ as a more effective marketing vehicle for marketers.

I agree that many of the points work in the favour of G+ due to Google rather than the platform itself, which is exactly what I am trying to prove. If Google did not own G+, it may not have gone far, however with the might of Google behind it, things will be different. One must take note of the fact, Google has named it Google+ rather than a new product name. I believe G+ is not a product for Google, but it’s evolution from a search to a social company.