- We’ve been playing with Google Buzz since last night, and we see a lot of potential here. It builds on some already solid foundations, and does things that prior players in this field – specifically FriendFeed – couldn’t do because of lack of scale. That said, we think Google has PR problems that Buzz largely amplifies. Here are our thoughts:
Google’s Good Buzz
- It has users! Google handled Buzz’s launch better. Wave introduced its platform without users, so while it was technically adept, it gave users no incentive to join. Buzz solves that problem by plugging into Gmail’s wide usership.
- It’s easy-to-use Another big problem with Wave is that while it was technically executed well, it was so complex to use that Gmail users couldn’t grasp it easily. Buzz’s interface is simple by design. There are options, but they’re fairly simple.
- It notifies! Perhaps the biggest mistake that Wave made was that it had no built-in notify feature via e-mail; it was designed to replace it, really. You had to check it to see if people were bugging you. Buzz is tied directly to e-mail.
Google’s Bad Buzz
- Do we need another? If Google had created Buzz three years ago, it would have seemed revolutionary. Now it just seems like Google’s trying to catch up. Facebook has this market cornered; why spend time focusing on this specific angle?
- It eats wave’s lunch Even with all the differences, most users will compare Buzz to Wave. Many people already see Wave as a failure because it never answered a simple question: Why? Buzz is closer to that answer, but the effect is that it neuters Wave.
- Can’t make up its mind The biggest problem Google faces is one due to its size. Google is so big that they try get involved in everything. Apple is successful right now because their decisions are deliberate. Google’s aren’t, and they seem indecisive. source
Posted by Ernie Smith •
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