Where does Google+ Fit In?

Have you asked people whether they have set up their Google+ account yet? Working within social media as a component of our overall communications expertise, we know that our colleagues within the industry typically respond with, “of course, you want to hangout?”

However, when we leave the office and go home, talk with our family, go out to dinner with our friends, and perhaps bring up the topic of social media, the Google+ question is often met with a different response:

“Ugh, another social media site? I still haven’t uploaded myvacation pictures to Facebook or canceled my mySpace account.”

In December, we posted on our Twitter page something that we deemed to potentially be the statistic of 2012…if it happens: Google+ will grow to 400 million users by the end of 2012 (right now, it still remains our Prediction of the Year).

The reason it is an amazing statistic / prediction is because as of the end of December, Google+ had 62 million users which−while a tremendous accomplishment −still leaves them well behind the more established social media sites (and as for social media traffic, Google+ was barely over 1% as of the end of last year).

So, the story is over, right? Wrong. Despite having to increase six-fold, we aren’t counting Google+ out yet because, to date, they have already done a number of things right:

• They made the capability to create a page temporarily exclusive.
• They added the ability to create Brand Pages at a perfect time after enough individual pages were created.
• They have gotten celebrity buy-in.
• They have integrated their platform with other media. 

And, perhaps most importantly, they have integrated the other Google products as well. As VentureBeat put it in a recent article:

“…One major strategic move has helped Google achieve steady growth: Google+ has been slowly integrated with other Google mobile and web applications, starting with Google Reader’s integration back in October. Now, you’ll find G+ features in Gmail, Google Apps, Blogger and more.”

However, the next step is up to us: The Public. Those of a certain demographic and / job description have created their pages already because that is how they stay plugged in. However, the people that will determine Google+’s true success are those that were forced or guilted into creating a Facebook page in the first place. People that check their page almost by accident if they are in front of their computer and don’t care if their Facebook URL is customized. If Google+ converts these people into joining, then it has a chance at 400 million in 360 more days.

Working with clients in various industry sectors, we have been asked the Google+ question a lot since its launch over the summer, specifically as it relates to Facebook or LinkedIn Company Pages. We know what our answer is, but we want to hear from you first.

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Direct Choice Inc. is a full-service direct marketing agency that has worked with national and regional brands in a wide variety of vertical markets. In addition to this blog, you can also find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn.