Why Google+ is the place for passions

Twitteristas and Facebook folks just don't understand Google+ people. I'm here to help.

 

The single biggest controversy about social media, and one that has persisted for two or three years now without resolution, is whether Google+ is a dying wasteland of non-activity, or a hive of conversation and engagement.

It can't be both. So which is it? And why can't this fundamental question be answered?
I believe I have the key to the puzzle, and I'll attempt to solve it once and for all.
So which is it?
TechCrunch co-editor Alexia Tsotsis, whom I respect and know to be earnest about her social media pronouncements, tweeted this week that "Google+ isn't dying anytime soon because it already died."
Tsotsis is the perfect representative for the legions of Twitter users who dismiss Google+ as a non-event because she's a well-known, educated and popular (116,000 Twitter followers) content creator and influencer.
Google+'s bad reputation is based entirely on such pronouncements by such influencers.
The conventional wisdom about non-activity on Google+ among Facebook users is pretty similar.
And yet Google+ fans will tell you that it's buzzing with activity, with many saying that they feel overwhelmed by the quantity of posts, comments and engagement.
I think I know why Twitter and Facebook fans don't get Google+.
Google's current head of social networking, Dave Besbris, really nailed what people misunderstand about Google+ when he said this in an interview this week: "People underestimate the connection Google+ has with its users around interests." He went on: "The social networking space is really dominated by audience as much as features. I'm really happy with the audience that we have. They're very passionate, they love Google+ to death. [They see] Google+ as a social network for their interests."
And that's exactly right.
So if Google+ is a social network for people to share their interests, what are Twitter and Facebook?
In general, Twitter is dominated by news, celebrities, pundits, professionals and narcissists.
Facebook is mostly about family and friends. And narcissists.
And each social network draws people who are seeking the type of engagement a particular network specializes in. That's why Twitter and Facebook people don't get Google+.
They've tried it. The Twitter people come to Google+ looking for Twitter type engagement, but they don't find it. Likewise, the Facebook people come looking for Facebook-like engagement (family and friends) and don't find it.
It's like a Chinese tourist going to France looking for Chinese food and concluding that the food in France is terrible. Or a Hawaiian surfer bringing her surfboard to New York City and, finding no waves, concluding that there's nothing to do in Manhattan.
It's true: Google+ is not the best place to get the type of celebrity and pundit engagement you'd find on Twitter, or the updates from family and friends that you get on Facebook.
The truth is that Twitter and Facebook people are blind to the astonishing activity on Google+. So allow me to take you on a tour inside the Google+ world of interests and passions

Check out the incredible activity around baking bread, robots, quilting, drones, sushi, cosplay, fishing, motorcycles, scuba diving, ice cream, space, wedding dresses, coffee, martial arts, yoga, chocolate and tattoos. (Note: I picked these interests at random -- any passion will illustrate my point.)
Contetnt from :Computer World