As Google Plus continues to undergo regular changes, users are wondering what will become of this platform, and is it going to suffer the same fate as previous social media attempts by Google?
The latest tweak is the separation of Google Plus and YouTube accounts as part of a recent upgrade, which will be welcomed by users who don’t want everything Google has to offer. The Guardian put it best when it said, “Google+’s short history has been marred by instrusive integration.”
In the coming weeks, YouTube will not require a Google+ profile when you upload, comment, or create a channel. This is part of a recent announcement by the video sharing site with 10 new features to improve the user experience.
The addition of these features also comes with the removal of Google Plus Photos, which is being replaced with Google Photos.
All of these changes are leading many to question if these attempts are only delaying the inevitable. On the official Google Blog, the company is putting a positive spin on it saying:
“Google+ is quickly becoming a place where people engage around their shared interests, with the content and people who inspire them,”
For the announcement of Google+ Collections, the company had this to say:
“Every collection is a focused set of posts on a particular topic, providing an easy way for you to organize all the things you’re into. Each collection can be shared publicly, privately, or with a custom set of people. Once you create your first collection, your profile will display a new tab where other people can find and follow your collections.”
A study published in April of this year by Eric Enge at Stone Temple Consulting revealed of the total 2.2 billion Google users less than 1 percent are actively on Google Plus. This data point clearly highlights the problem Google is having, even within its core users, it is having a hard time converting them to its social media platform.
It should be noted, the company has tried, and its graveyard is littered with proof. Orkut, Dodgeball, Jaiku, Wave and Buzz are some of the examples that were ahead of Facebook and Twitter in delivering similar and different functionalities. But for some reason, Google didn’t have the foresight to see the domination of social media and further develop these services.
Google Plus Photo via Shutterstock
Aira Bongco
I am all for that. They are separate social platforms to begin with. It is better if your accounts are not connected.
Michael Guta
Hi Aira,
Companies should always give their customers options.
Why not just kill it off, rather than let it die the death of a thousand cuts. No one in their right mind is going to join now and invest time in creating a social strategy for a platform that is being dragged across the ground to its grave.
Michael Guta
Hi Igor,
Google needs a social media outlet, but for some reason it just hasn’t been able to get it right. The question is, will the company “kill it off” like you said, or try to make work?
Google are unlikely to admit failure and it is highly likely that it will try and re-incarnate G+ as it can’t ignore social media and risk losing more business to Facebook and Twitter.
Michael Guta
Hi Tim,
I think they have to just come out and say it is not working. We all know it is not working, they just have to come to that realization also. But like you said, they need a social media outlet, so we will have to wait and see what Google’s next step will be.
Jake Holloway
I think separating YouTube from G+ is a step in the right direction – people don’t want to feel controlled and obliged to log in with their G+ accounts when it comes to YT. But whether it is a good strategic move or just procrastination of the inevitable (as some say) – only time will tell.
Michael Guta
Hi Jake,
Google just revamped the company today by separating its many different entities, and making Sundar Pichai the new CEO. This might end up giving the company the jolt it needs to finally get social media right. Like you said only time will tell what all these moves mean for Google+ and the company as whole.
Jake Holloway
Let’s hope they will get it right soon
Joanie
That’s great!!! I can’t wait! Will we still be able to set up our YouTube account where no one can reply to our public posts on videos if we don’t want them to? I don’t care to be trolled.
Also, is YouTube ever going to bring back “Friend-lock” where we can keep people who are not approved from sending personal messages to our inbox? I think that would be a great idea and I’m not sure why YouTube got rid of of it in the first place. “Friend-lock” is NECESSARY in this generation of cyber bullies and trolls.
Michael Guta
Hi Joanie,
You can still block all comments, but I didn’t hear anything about “Friend-lock.” I agree with you, in this age of bullying and anonymous commenting, publishers should have more flexible options for controlling what can be posted.