Google+ was first launched in 2011 and many people in the design community thought that it would be an instant flop. With Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and a myriad of other social networking sites already available, was another social media site really needed? Would people really convert and start using this one instead of their current choice?
Well, that was then and this is now. Today, Google+ has become the second-largest social networking site, surpassing Twitter, and now being second only to Facebook. Apparently, over 300 million people are now using Google+ monthly to post messages, make video calls and so much more. Google+ is still far from being a success story but it has achieved remarkable progress in such a short time.
So, why is Google+ gaining in popularity so quickly? One reason is that despite people’s initial reactions, once you really dive into this new product you realize that Google+ is actually quite different from both Facebook and Twitter. Google+ isn’t just another social networking website. Google+ is offering its users a very unique experience, which starts to become apparent the minute that you dive into this wonderful, and the still very much growing, world of Google+.
One of the main differences/features that Google+ offers its users is Circles. Circles is a way that you can specifically categorize the people linked to your Google+ account. They are groups such as Friends, Family, Co-Workers, etc that allow you to filter the content that you both share and experience. Circles are fantastic because unlike Facebook where you share everything with anyone from your friends to your acquaintances, with Google+ you can now specifically tailor with whom you interact and share your information.
Another really fantastic feature that Google+ offers is Hangouts. Google Hangouts allow you to instantly and easily chat and even video chat with anyone in your circles. Now, staying in touch or working online has never been easier. Google+ has also done a really great job in terms of how your media is displayed on Google+. Pictures are large and if you want a close up view of an image, the rest of the site is grayed out with comments off to the side allowing you to see a photo clearly.
Google+ InterfaceWith a simple search, you can find many great guides with hundreds of tips and tricks to Google+.
Here are 3 tips to help you instantly get more comfortable with Google+:
1. This is a super cool feature that is unique to Google+. Have you ever wanted to know who is reading and sharing your posts? Now you can. Simply hover over the top-right corner of a post and in the drop-down menu, you will see ‘Ripple’. Click on this to see how your post has been spread around your circles
2. Ever get annoyed by those long strings of conversations that go off-topic? I know I do and Google+ has a feature for just that. If you hover over top-right corner of a post, you will see a ‘Mute’ option in the drop-down menu. Brilliant!
2. To bold text in your posts or comments, surround the sentence with asterisks. To italicize, surround it with underscores and add hyphens to cross out text.
Google+ Logo Version 2The Google+ logo has also gotten a lot of attention lately. What do you think of it? Do you like it? Do you think that it is a perfectly streamlined logo design or do you think that it is too simplistic and boring? Let me know your thoughts. If you are looking for a competitive logo for your company, I highly recommend that you check out Pixellogo's amazing collection of affordable logos. Click here to find your new logo today.