The Google+ Question

Has Facebook finally met its match?

Last month Google+ appeared on the social networking scene, and in two short weeks the invitation-only network boasted 10 million users.  While still in the trial phase, Google’s new social media site has taken the Internet by storm, acquiring members at an exponential rate that has never been seen before.  Hitting the 10 million member mark after two weeks officially makes Google+ the fastest growing social media network to date.  But will it last?

No social network can be unveiled without being compared to those already in place, and Google+ is no exception.  Better than last year’s Google Buzz, the interface is reminiscent of Facebook, but with one noticeable difference: Google’s use of “circles.”  These circles allow users to share different information with friends, co-workers, and family members – greatly improving upon Facebook’s ever-changing privacy settings.  These streamlined circles offer users a new way to filter information, challenging the way established social  networks operate.  People are responding to Google’s use of social circles to organize online sharing, and that response shows in the rapidly growing number of Google+ members.

Gmail users have an advantage on people using other email clients, as Google+ seamlessly incorporates itself into the gmail interface.  Users who sign up for Google+ are instantly connected with friends already using gmail, and gain a Google+ dashboard at the top of their gmail inbox.  Google makes it easy for people to post while they are checking their email, a tantalizing convenience for existing users.

Although it seems Google+ is catching on, it is hard to make any concrete predictions about its future.  Can people accommodate yet another social media site?  How many accounts are people willing to sync – or give up?  People who network today are experts at multitasking, but the question is how far they are willing to stretch that expertise.  Twitter turned into the perfect sibling for Facebook, allowing users to link their accounts in order to update statuses.  Google+ offers the same syncing option with Twitter, raising the debate of whether people will give up Facebook for Google.  Whether it makes sense to keep up with Twitter, Facebook, and Google is up to the individual, but it is hard to believe that people will maintain that many social media outlets.

Currently Google+ is merely a baby in the wide world of social networking, but with its streamlined interface and seamless integration with gmail, it is off to a good start.  The social networking trend is one that is increasingly hard to predict, and networking junkies are known to be more than a little fickle.  Once Google+ moves out of its trial phase users may find more reasons to love it, or reasons to hate it.  Only time will tell.