Goodbye, Google+
It was only a matter of time, but now, Google+ has officially been marked for execution.
Although it started out promisingly enough, Google+ never really amounted to more than a discounted Facebook clone. And it’s surprising, really.
A platform designed by one of the greatest companies in the world should’ve had continents full of user data, preferences, and other resources need to create the best social media platform to ever exist.
So, what went wrong?
To start, Facebook had the first mover advantage over Google. By the time Google+ came around, Facebook already had a whopping 7+ years on its nemesis. This provided Facebook with more than enough time needed to develop a deathly loyal user base and “bring social media” to the rest of the world.
To make matters worse, Google didn’t learn from Facebook’s mistakes or lack of certain features. Had the team at Google spent more time attempting to distinguish itself from its rival (similar to how other platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat have), it most likely would’ve succeeded to some degree.
Instead, users were treated to a platform that attempted to mirror Facebook, plus a few features it thought we’d want. For instance, the circle feature is neat in theory, but in practice, sectioning off your friends to one world and your family to another just doesn’t work.
Another aspect of Google+ is its brand loyalty to other Google products. While this makes sense from a business perspective, people rarely display that kind of dedication to one brand in the real world.
Apple’s pre-installed mobile apps are a great example of this. Although having a plethora of apps to handle productivity, fitness, and other daily needs sounds great, these apps aren’t the go-to choices for everyone.
Despite these flaws, Google+ did have some interesting ideas. As an example, Collections were a pretty efficient way to follow a certain topic. Similar to Tumblr Boards, this feature allowed users to easily find specific content.
Another idea is its seamless connection to Google My Business, which provided companies with a near-guaranteed route to positive SEO. As a matter of fact, we still share some of our own content there simply because it ranks high on Google’s search engine results.
That said, these pros were not enough to overcome the fiercely growing social media competition. The only thing that’s surprising is that the platform is ending because of a data leak and not a sluggish user base.
To start building your presence on a social media platform not named Google+, send us a message at RizzoYoungMarketing.com.