Mike Andrew Consulting

Google+ Making Strides Online

By mike, Feb 13 in blog with 0 comments

The popularity of Google+ has showed dramatic growth recently, according to February 2012 analysis from Compete, which tracked the the landing page for the main feature of the social network, the +1 button (google.com/+1/button, or plusone.google.com), beginning in November 2011. The page drew over 40 million unique visitors in December alone, with more than 10 times that amount in visits, while also passing 3 billion page views.

Computer Users Demonstrate Strong Growth

Compete also looked at its panel of 2 million non-mobile US-based users, representing a 1% sample size for the US, to determine the website’s popularity among non-mobile users. The company found that Google+ has grown by about 40% for US non-mobile traffic in each of the primary metrics that shows website performance. In fact, in December, Google+ reached a new peak of 20 million unique visitors, 50 million visits, and 200 million page views.

Share of SocNet Visits Up M-O-M

Google+ ranked 9th in the top 10 social networking websites and forums in December 2011, with 0.41% share of US market visits, according to Hitwise data released in January 2012. This represents 24% growth in just one month, after earning 0.33% share of visits in November. In fact, in December, Google+ grew its share of US social networking site visits to rival myYearbook, in the process also halving its gap with LinkedIn from 0.3% points to just 0.15% points.

Tailored Search Results Not Popular, Though

Google+ may not find its mark as a vehicle for tailored search results, though. According to an AYTM survey conducted in January 2012, just 7.5% of respondents said they would more inclined to use the social network if they knew they would get more tailored search results from doing so. By contrast, the vast majority (92.5%) said they were either ambivalent (48.1%) or not more likely (44.4%) to use the network to get more tailored search results.

Overall, 19.3% of the 400 US adults surveyed said they use Google+, although that was matched by the proportion (19.5%) who said they did not know what the social network was.

About the author

Mike Andrew has been working with the Internet and small business for over 12 years. Mike has been a keynote speaker at conventions and seminars and conducted social media training sessions all over the world. Mike has an extensive media background having worked in electronic media for over 30 years. Mike specialises in social media and Internet marketing strategy, SEO techniques and search engine marketing campaigns. His articles appear on numerous blogs around the web as well as national magazines.