Usually I try most new Google services shortly after their release. I did with Google Buzz as well and I didn’t like it because it didn’t even show up for 24h while the call to action “Try Google Buzz in Gmail” was already in place.
Thus I decided to abandon Google Buzz for good like I did with Google Wave. Also I almost never use Google SearchWiki, Google SideWiki and other old and new Google attempts to get into social media.
Unfortunately you can’t ignore Google Buzz. Especially as an SEO. This time the news is too big to just test and forget it. There are at least 10 reasons for that.
I know “10 reasons” posts are quite boring these days but this form is very apt here.
Google Buzz buzz – Google Buzz is in the news all the time. Indeed the bad publicity even helped it. Most people will notice it sooner or later. Twitter needed years to get as much attention.
Google Buzz is connected to your Google Profile – The Google Profile becomes more and more your homepage on the Web. People will find all your other links there and Google will show it in results for your name. Of course it’s linked to all kinds of Google tools already.
GMail is very popular – I don’t know by heart but I assume that Gmail is one the most popular mail services globally. In July 2009 146 millions of people already used it. All these people will have to deal with Google Buzz, at least by getting rid of it.
Google Buzz will show in real time results – You don’t have to be a prophet to predict that Google Buzz will show up in Google real time results alongside of Twitter.
You either opt out or you’re in – Google loves to make you a user of its new services lately. Whether it’s Google SearchWiki, personalized search or Google Buzz they switch them on by default and you have to opt out to get rid of them.
Google tests trending topics for news – Google has hot trends based on search frequency but now it also tests trending topics on Google News. The new feature is similar to Twitter’s trending topics. I doubt that these will be based solely on Google News stats. Rather Google will determine trends via search and social media analysis.
Your privacy – There were so many privacy concerns over Google Buzz and so many quick fixes by Google last week that I have completely lost track of them. I only know Google Buzz still sucks for privacy. Google CEO Eric Schmidt is known to dismiss privacy altogether (“you don’t want other to know, don’t do it at all”). So you have to check it out, fix your default options at least or even opt out to protect your privacy.
People follow you on Google Buzz – unless you don’t use Gmail (or Google services?) at all you’re on Googel Buzz already and people are friending you. It would be a waste not to follow your friends you now from elsewhere back. In case you use Gmail for business it’s even possible that your clients are following you already. Can you afford not to follow them?
A real link from Google.com – As many people in SEO still like to get links, especially from an authority domain: All your buzzes are extra pages with their own clean URL. The links don’t use the infamous nofollow attribute that renders them useless for search engines.
Email notification – Whenever you like you can address people via email in Google Buzz. You can’t do that in Twitter or Facebook that directly. So even people who would have ignored Buzz will be forced to notice.
Most of these points are also valid in case you’re not into SEO at all but for SEO practitioners they are even more pressing. Make sure to use Google Buzz to you advantage before Google and others use it against you.
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10 Reasons You Can’t Ignore Google Buzz as an SEO
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