Have you signed on to Google+ lately? This new social networking venue that is gaining traction with 40 million users and counting has made a major difference in my workflow since I began using it shortly after the Beta launch. The following are just a few of the ways that Google+ is helping me to get things done:
- Great integration -- I'm a Google girl, which means that I use gmail, google calendar, and google docs every day in my home office. The fact that I receive + notifications in each of these venues, but in a non-obtrusive manner, makes it easy for me to not "stop by just to check" as I do with Facebook and avoids major time dumps.
- Great sourcing -- I've used my social networking venues for the past few years as great places to crowdsource, to get quotes and content for my writing, and to seek out experts. Since beginning to use Google+ I find the response rate there amazing: the information I'm able to get is high level, well thought out, and amazingly quick. While I have far fewer contacts there than at Facebook, the noise level tends to be lower and the interactions tend to be very high value.
- Great friendships -- On Google+ I've reconnected in new and fun ways with contacts I've had for a while, but have also built some amazing new friendships. Using the "hangout" feature felt a bit awkward at first, but now I love the great conversations I'm having on a regular basis with folks who are quickly becoming good friends. When I recently has a chance to meet a few Google+ friends "in real life", our connection felt instantaneous.
I have lots of friends who tried Google+ for a few weeks and left quickly, but for me it's one of my new "go to" solutions for productively interacting online. Have you used it and what do you think?
