google + in mainstream

[greenoak]

i saw google + in political media.... DAILY BEAST is having a google+ HANGOUT at a certain time...with a featured guest...
sounds like a neat feature.... like i could have a live hangout with a featured person to explore some furniture process...
if and when i start getting requests from enough people in my world..i havent heard a word yet...

[vangogh]

The hangouts are one of the features people like. It allows you to set up a video conference with a group of people while others are able to watch. I think you can also keep the conference hidden from the general public.

Interesting that the Daily Beast is setting one up. Shows that at least some in the mainstream are trying Google+ and giving it a chance.

[Dan Furman]

I don't have a lot of hope for Google +, and think in years, it will be viewed as a terrible blunder and a textbook case of how to NOT roll out a product.

To be honest, the whole "limited invite" thing was silly. Google + only works if your friends are there. I realize "invites" worked well with Gmail, but Gmail works even if your friends don't have it. Different products. I got in, made an account, and... nothing. Nobody was there. What, *I* have to invite all my friends? What am I, an Amway salesperson? And they aren't guaranteed to get in. Silly.

So instead of just opening it for everyone, they showed their hand, and intentionally held back, which alowed Facebook to make the changes it needed to make.

[vangogh]

I have to disagree. The invite only was probably a reaction to the previous year's rollout of Buzz, which was dead on arrival because it was rolled out too quickly and automatically. It also helped to keep things smaller for a time until Google could work out some of the bugs. It's pretty standard practice with any kind of software or network.

Keep in mind Facebook started as invite only too. It was only available to Harvard University students at first, then other universities, and finally high schools, before it was open to the general public. The average person didn't know of Facebook until it had been in existence for several years.

You're right that until the people you know are on the network it's not very useful, but it's silly to think they'd all be there immediately if the network was open to all from day 1. You're friends weren't going to be there until their friends were there, same as you. A network like this needs time to grow before the masses join in and by limiting who could get in at first the initial people were the typical early adopters who would fill up the place with content and help test the system through use. Had everyone signed up on day 1 they would have found an empty site and likely never returned. Now if and when interest filters to the mainstream people will find an active community when they first take a look.

I can't tell you that in 5 years everyone will be on Google+, but so far it has grown quicker than most would have expected and Google has a lot of users across all their products that they're currently directing toward Google+ It's looking like they will succeed in growing the network to where most people are aware of it and have accounts.

[KristineS]

I'm still on the fence about Google+. I set up a personal account for work, and then a page for EnMart when pages became available. So far, I don't see a lot of chatter or anything much from the people in my circles. A lot of these same people are very active on Facebook, so I'm not sure what the difference is. So far Google+ hasn't impressed me, but I haven't put a lot of effort into widening my network either.

[greenoak]

WE SIGNED UP TODAY BUT IM NOT TOO INTERESTEED.... THERE IS ONLY SO MUCH TIME IN THE DAY AND I CANT IMAGINE it catching on in my world.......but IF MY PEERS JUMP INTO IT WILL TOO...
the part im paying attention to is that it would help web surfers find our store, help us be found easier WHEN PEOPLE USE GOOGLE...... that is my main reason for signing up at this point...... if the industry gurus start showing big use or if i start getting requests from my buyers THEN i will be MORE interested....
i figure pinterest is invisible on here except for kristine, but its definitely got my attention as a pretty major driver to OUR website and also as a great and popular non selling post for our business page ON facebook..so thats where my time is going after i get facebook done...
its pretty amazing and just starting aand my customers fit right into it and really like it... its mainly by invitation also... altho they dont come out and say that.......... we will see!!!

[vangogh]

True about there only being so much time in the day. There are far more social networks out there than any of us can really participate in. Google+ is still mainly the early adaptors at the moment. The reason some think it's worth paying attention to now is that it seems to have enough momentum to jump past the early adopters and into the mainstream. If that happens then we'll all likely see many of the same friends and family we now see on Facebook. Only time will tell whether or not that happens.

Ann I've seen more talk of Pinterest here and there recently. I can see the appeal, though I don't think the site is for me personally. It does make sense for your business. If you haven't already done so you should add Pin It buttons to your site and blog.

[greenoak]

right, thats on my to do list.... for my web person to do..after she gets our u tube channel going.and our mobile updates.....lol
.. its really perfect for us, women and the fun side of life....altho i am following a couple of great guys on there too...they are probably in the arts tho...i have somany questions on it...i will be glad when more of the web people get up on it...for instance...they say no ads, but places have things with prices on them.... that seems to be a very grey area right now....its growing so fast , im sure many things on it will change and get sorted out......

[vangogh]

It's easy to see images of your products on Pinterest. I think your customers will naturally like their service. Seems like such a good fit.