Marketing Matrix: This is not a post about Google+

Saturday, July 16, 2011

This is not a post about Google+

by Mike Moran

Google+ is the big news. It is what everyone is talking about. Just Google it, if you don't believe me. Check out the reviews. Hear what the pundits have to say. Try to wangle an invitation. Decide if it is a Facebook killer. You have fun with that. This is not a post about Google+, because I don't care about any of that. This is a post about Google, because what you really need to know is staring you in the face. Everything else is just horse race reporting.

Here is the big news (and this has been true for years, not just today): Google will not stop until it has a presence in social media that it is happy with, or it runs out of money. So, we can make fun of Google Wave and Google Buzz. Perhaps Google+ will become the butt of new jokes. Or maybe it will emerge as something credible in social media, just as Google owns Android, Blogger, and YouTube. Perhaps, as with those successful properties, Google will eventually have to acquire someone to succeed in social media.

Image representing Google as depicted in Crunc...

Image via CrunchBase

You don't care.

What you do care about is this: Google has enough money to wage this battle for a very long time. They might or might not win, but don't count them out. Look at how Microsoft refused to give up on mobile phones, Web apps, and Web search engines and on lots of other areas. They are still not the leader in those areas, but they are a contender. And they have the money to stay in that game for the foreseeable future.

So, definitely take a look at Google+ and see what you think. But if you think it is crap and should be ignored, and even if everyone thinks it should be ignored, don't make the mistake of ignoring Google. I've heard many pundits declare this race over. Facebook has won. Don't bet on it.

It's not to say that Facebook won't be a big winner here, but understand that there is room for many winners in social media. Google has many times the resources of Facebook, Twitter, and many other social media winners. Google has substantial advantages in social media, even if it has not yet delivered a credible social network.

And the biggest thing of all we constantly forget. Social media doesn't stand still. Whether it is Foursquare, Groupon, or something no one in talking about yet, there are many more ideas to play out in social media. Don't be surprised if Google wins one of them.