Author: Claire Cain Miller (Claire Cain Miller), correspondent for The New York Times, covers topics of venture capital investments in technology startups . Until 2008, she worked as the chief correspondent of the magazine «Forbes». She was directly involved in the formation of the annual ranking of the most effective entrepreneurs in high-tech .
Source : http://www.nytimes.com
Google+ social network is often compared to the " ghost town ." It is unlikely you would ever think to look for pictures of children on Google+ a classmate or publish notes about how you spend your vacation . For this purpose, there has long Facebook.
However, the Google team is not worried about it. Moreover, there is no need Google+ Facebook'om fight for leadership . Google is the brainchild of long-term investment in a comfortable future . In other words, it is a tool by which all Internet Corporation deeper into being online users. Today Google+ accumulates inside a huge amount of personalized information that is so eager to get the marketing departments of companies. Some reputable industry analysts are inclined to say that Google « knows" about the social activity of users is much more than Facebook.
The main reason for such a detailed knowledge about the life of Google users is the fact that by signing up to Google+, people have access to all products from the Internet giant one account - from e-mail and Google Maps to the video sharing YouTube. Thus, the company receives the information about who the user is in real life, which countries and regions visited than interested in what action makes the Internet and so on. Information is automatically available to Google even if the user never went to your profile on Google+ after registration.
If earlier Google had no technical capability to identify what content to YouTube consumes a particular user , and what questions he introduces the basic search , with the advent of social networking situation changed . Today, the Internet giant easily gathers information about all hobbies and preferences of users.
Back in February 2014 Google representatives have stated that half of the 540 million registered users in Google+, do not visit social network. «Google+ gives you the opportunity to remain a corporation and allows Google to get an idea of who you really are ," - says Bradley Horowitz (Bradley Horowitz), Vice-President of Google+ product .
Today, social networking is so important to us that Google has obliged all users who want , for example, leave a comment to the clip on YouTube, recorded in Google+. So actively promote registration in Google+ by Internet companies has caused a lot of suspicion among users. People seriously began to worry about the privacy of personal data , and attracted to investigate U.S. Federal Trade Commission . Chapter Google Larry Page (Larry Page) had to make every possible effort to resolve the situation . Guarantor of users' personal data made Vic Gundotra (Vic Gundotra), Google's vice president for development of social services , its task was to ensure the security and integrity of personal information in social networks .
In 2013, the value of Google+ for the company increased by objective reasons : profit growth of search advertising , the main source of revenue for Google, - has slowed somewhat . At the same time, today occupies a leading position is highly targeted advertising that is based on user data .
Leading brands have long since learned to advertise their products using broad categories of information available to potential consumers . However, the mechanisms of targeting can be much more effective if organizations that promote their services on the Internet, will be available for more data about users : such as , for example, interest in a particular sport , specific genres of films. All these data today has Google.
"Database user preferences can be a " Holy Grail " to improve the effectiveness of brand promotion ," - says Nate Elliott (Nate Elliott), an analyst at Forrester, who specializes in the study of social media and marketing.
In Google argue that data collected social network , be it information about traffic from a variety of mobile platforms , or information about what users are looking for a specific network - help to significantly increase the effectiveness of advertising.
" Today, Google's actions are aimed at providing users " seamless " experience with the services of the corporation. In other words , people need to take different projects like this one and the same product , "- adds Bradley Horowitz .
Through the creation of a single account , Google understands , with whom, and how closely users contacted using Gmail; defines the space in which they are ; reveals how people spend their leisure time ; see which sites included in the ad network GDN, they visit. All this information is gathered irrespective of whether the people come in Google+ or not.
Every month, the web version of the social networking site is visited by 29 million people ; while 41 million users on Google+ comes to smartphones. For comparison, according to statistics from Nielsen, the number of monthly active users of Facebook's web-based version is 128 million people. At the same time from smartphones to Facebook each month comes 108 million users.
Google also actively encourages companies to create a public page on the social network . As an incentive to companies with + pages , promise high positions in search results for semantic search «Knowledge Graph». "In fact, it is progress that can not be bought for any money ," - says Nate Elliott, " the company will receive billions of dollars if these will sell advertising space , but instead Google distributes them free of charge - in exchange for joining the social platform."
Coffee chain Starbucks, for example, has 3 million subscribers in Google+, that can hardly be compared with the 36 million "likes" on the Facebook . Nevertheless , its managers actively working with the social network to get good seats in the SERP . Starbucks representatives regularly update content on a page in Google+ and constantly follow the advice of representatives of the search , optimizing content for the best presentation in the SERPs . "When we put the information on the pages of Google+, I always appreciate how it will affect the promotion of our brand in the search ," - says Alex Wheeler (Alex Wheeler), Vice President of Global Digital Marketing Starbucks.
Another example , the publication The Economist has more subscribers in Google+, than in the Facebook - 6 and 3 million users , respectively. Correspondents Publishing actively interact with the audience Google+ using different instruments : in particular using the service Hangouts (HangOuts). Chandra Magee (Chandra Magee), Director General of Public Relations , uses social networking as a tool for search engine optimization. "We consider Google+ not only as a tool to attract new readers , but also as a valuable resource for the implementation of our SEO- strategy. News, which we publish in the social network , really show up in results , "- said Ms. Magee .
"If you want to use the search engine Google, you will constantly be encouraged to register in Google+. The user is forced to agree to use the service , it does not need to gain access to what he really needs , "- says Tim Wu (Tim Wu), Professor of Law at Columbia University , specializing in the study of antitrust laws in the Internet environment . "It draws attention to the problems associated with antitrust policy , and a bit reminiscent of the situation around the Microsoft Corporation in the 90s . To avoid competition with Netscape Navigator, Microsoft has attempted to integrate Internet Explorer into its operating system , making the browser free "- Tim Wu illustrates the situation .
Representatives of Google has not responded to such a comparison .
In protest, some people refused to use products Google. Business Analyst Houston Bright Melissa (Melissa Bright) shares the view of this category of users : "The company too aggressively enforces its use of social platforms: no matter what you do on the site Google, you always stumble on offer to create a social network ."
Once Google developers have introduced compulsory registration in a social network for users YouTube, Jawed Karim (Jawed Karim), founder of the video hosting , removed most of the data from your account ; and one of the most popular video makers under the name PewDiePie protest temporarily closed comments to your video.
Trying to overcome the resistance of users dissatisfied mass integration of Google services with a social platform , Bradley Horowitz assured the public : " We take note of the words and actions of users and try to find a middle ground ."
Yet, despite the ideological reaction most users , few people refused to Google services because of the need to join the social network. This once again underlines the degree of influence of Google on the global Internet community . "If your product is good enough that they really want to use , you just a lot " - sums up the Forrester analyst Nate Elliott .
Editors note Searchengines.ru: nevertheless, in the near future can wait Google+ significant changes . Last week, Google's vice president and concurrently head of social Vic Gundotra network officially announced that leaves both positions in the company after eight years . The new head of the social network , according to preliminary data, will be Besbris Dave (Dave Besbris), Google's vice president for technology.
This change can not affect the future of Google+. Industry experts will make their first forecasts for the further development of the social network. One version is to ensure that the team will try to concentrate on the development of mobile social platform . In particular, developers tool Hangouts join the team and creators OS Android will work on the development of the mobile platform .
The second case scenario is to refuse mandatory Google+ integration with other services corporation , except Gmail.
Another category of the industry suggests that the leader of the search and did swerve project , as has often happened with other social services from Google. The last assertion , however, was refuted by representatives technology corporation .
In fact will develop a social network - users will learn in the near future .
