[3-9-10: It's been 25 days since I looked in my Google Buzz folder. I'm starting to get tempted, just to see... But nah... ]
So even if you have high hopes for the newest social media platform, Google's Buzz, you might make a note of the information that is still clear on new technology champion sites like Mashable and ReadWriteWeb.
If you look at the tab on the left there <<< you will see that the Tweet to Buzz ratio is over 200 – 1. And the Tweet to F-Book ratio is 100 – 1. So let's imagine how BUZZ is going to make a long term impact or not.
First Problem with Buzz: It's tied directly to your G-Mail account.
While this is often mentioned as a feature. The reality is, if you don't use G-mail as your primary email platform you are likely to not Buzz at all. Where I work, we use the MS Outlook platform for all things email and scheduling. And Buzz and Outlook aren't in sync. To that point, Twitter and Outlook aren't buddies either, but the Twitter connectors are plentiful. What's coming for Buzz is yet to be seen.
Second Problem with Buzz: Much of what is mentioned as the secret sauce that Buzz has that Twitter does not is "simplification."
The problem with that idea is, your social media accounts, all of them, are managed by you. And you either do a good job of managing them or you don't. With Twitter there are a ton of tools to help you manage all of the incoming information. There are Twitter Lists (on Twitter.com) and amazing desktop/web apps (Tweetdeck, Seesmic, Hootsuite) that help manage the volume of Twitter traffic that you might expose yourself to.
What does Buzz have at this point? I'm not sure.
Third Problem with Buzz: It's just another tool.
How many new software programs are you willing to learn this week? How much time do you have to spend "learning" new programs, in addition to doing your work? My guess is, if you are anything like me or my close associates, a new tool is only relevant if it fills a need that is not being met by your current tool kit.
Fourth Problem with Buzz: Adoption is the killer app.
Twitter is HUGE. Twitter is 100th the size of Facebook. For all the love we give Twitter, Twitter is a tiny piece of the social media pie. Google Buzz would have to have some kind of killer sauce to make a real splash. As Google WAVE shows, just because Google launches it, does not mean it will grow or be significant.
And if you look everywhere you do your social media networking, check out how invasive and persistent Google Buzz is relevant to Twitter or even Facebook. And if you are interested in being at the front of the power curve with a social media app, you might still focus your energies on Twitter. OR FACEBOOK, though I hate to say that.
But BUZZ is not going to get you a huge audience, no matter how BIG the MS-SM-M (Main Stream SocialMedia Media) would like you to believe BUZZ is going to be. And I believe in order to hedge their bets they are working it hard:
Well, you check it out and let me know. Even Mashable's enthusiasm for BUZZ seems to be waning. I mean the numbers at the top left of this post don't lie. If people aren't BUZZing, it's not gonna be a "force."
Facebook = Force. Twitter = Force. Google = Force.
WAVE is a QUESTIONABLE FORCE.
BUZZ is not a FORCE.
We're looking for the Force. And I can hear the words of the Storm Trooper, "These are not the droids you are looking for." Sorry Google. But hey, let's make the WAVE happen. We need some good applications of the WAVE. Not more pretty movies about how cool the WAVE CAN BE. But actual use of the WAVE to bring an EVENT or SUBJECT to LIFE.
I have an idea for SXSW Music, Film and Interactive. SXSWave.com. But I'm just starting to set up the framework. I've got some friends at both Google and SXSW, so, ya might keep your eye on it. Or wait and see if it TRENDS. (grin) Or perhaps we'll wait until next year to really launch it. It all depends on the weather and the price of tweets in China.
@jmacofearth
permalink: http://bit.ly/SXSW-WAVE
