What are the advantages of a google+ account profile?

If you don’t already live within the Google world, you probably aren’t missing anything.

It’s not really a stand-alone product. It’s a reorganization of Google. Google had tons of products (gmail, search, Docs/Drive, Reader, Calendar, Maps/Local, Picasa/Photos, Youtube, News, etc). They want to be make all of these products “features” instead. Your Google+ profile is your google account and thing that ties it all together. Sure, they also needed the social data, but Facebook and Twitter were holding out because that’s how they make their money, so they decided to make the whole Googleverse “social” and tie it altogether with Google+.

To be honest, it’s still a bit a of a tech geek fest in Google+, but I prefer it to Facebook – primarily because I am already a huge fan of and user of Google’s products features. Plus, the interface and security features (circles) work better for me.
If you have to ask, I don’t think you’re missing anything.

Right now, the advantages are kind of hard to quantify. There’s potential, but it’s sort of like owning the first telephone in the world. Who can you call with it?

I guess I’m thinking specifically of the “Circles” thing that’s in Google+.

I like it much better than FB and so do my geeky kids but there are much fewer people using it than FB so I am on there too albeit reluctantly.

Honestly, if you’re just wanting a social platform for your own enjoyment and friend/family networking, stick with Facebook. You’re not missing anything on Google+

But if you’re in web marketing or you do SEO, then you’ll need G+

I love Google plus, much more than Facebook and they are completely different tools. Facebook is a forum to talk to your friends and family. Google Plus is a forum to connect with people with similar interests. I am part of a group of astronomers where we broadcast our telescope feeds every Sunday night in a virtual star party. Astronomers from all over the world participate and it is watched by hundreds and sometimes thousands of people.

My current avatar is from this hangout on Google Plus. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t79iec2b-3M&feature=plcp

For example, today, on Google Plus a guy in Turkey sent me a file of an image he took of Jupiter and Saturn. I processed it, and I sent it back to the group. Yesterday, on Google Plus, a friend and I hung out while I taught him some astrophotography processing techniques while he screen shared his screen on Google Plus.

That is pretty cool, @Rarebear. Thanks. I’ll have to check it out further. And develop some interests, apparently.

@Rarebear I really like what you are doing but I don’t understand how it differs from Facebook. I connect with people with similar interests on Facebook. What makes Google plus different? Everything you described can also be done on Facebook. or am I missing something?

@jonsblond You can’t do video hangouts on Facebook.

Also, G+ makes it FAR easier to connect with people you don’t know with similar interests. For example, 5 minutes ago, a guy in Poland I never met posted on a thread started from a guy in Turkey about planetary imaging techniques and pointed me to his website where he has tutorials. Tomorrow, a guy in Pasadena is organizing a hangout which within which people from Turkey, Poland, New York, Indiana, British Columbia, California, be hanging out to talk about techniques. The resulting video will then be archived and posted to Youtube.

That kind of flexibility is impossible on Facebook.

@Rarebear I see. Thanks.

And one last thing, and then I’ll shut up about G+. From you G+ page you can search for whatever you’re interested in, and top posts will come up. You can click on those people and see if what they’re writing is interesting you, then you circle them into a circle of your interest. Companies will usually come up first, but often they’re companies you’re interested in. For example, I do role playing games in the d20 modern gaming system. I typed in “d20 modern” and an online RPG company came up that sells inexpensive .pdfs for campaigns. I already knew about them and have bought a bunch of stuff from them, but they’re active on G+ creating a community.

Very cool, all this clarifies a lot for me, thanks to all here.

I lied. One more post. Here is a short 3 minute video (produced by Google) about our star parties. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Agrdjd0nyFo

Thanks from your newest subscriber, @Rarebear.

Over other social networks like facebook? Not a whole lot. The quality of content on G+ is consistently better because of a smaller community of people who aren’t the “lowest common demonimator” that muck up facebook the way they did myspace.

The big thing though is personal branding. if people google your name, you’re at the mercy of all your data on the internet, the commonality of your name, and what people write or post about you on the internet in the search results. Having a google+ page will put your name and face and the data you want to show front and center on the search results.

That’s invaluable when you’re trying to create and control an image, especially for work reasons.

@CWOTUS We will be doing a star pary on Sunday night at about 9:00 Pacific time. Circle +Fraser Cain on G+ and you will see a link to the feed about that time.

Ah, I would love to @Rarebear, and most times I would still be up at that time (midnight Eastern Time here), but not this Sunday. I have to be up and away for a 5 AM departure on Monday, so I hope not to still be awake at midnight this Sunday.

Maybe next time. Thanks again.

@CWOTUS We do it every week. I’m not necessarily there every week, but someone generally is.

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