Google not jumping on social networking bandwagon trend

I am glad to see a company resist "fads". I know Google has not exactly stayed with a bread and butter product only, but at least most of their amazing products are somewhat related.

It appears they are taking a page out of Apple's book instead of old Microsoft. Do something well and stick to it...don't be mediocre (at best) at a ton of things.

Creating a MySpace ambassador Web page has been an important strategy for Strilka (see myspace.com/strilka). MySpace allows us to create a
gathering area that introduces our company to new customers, surgically promote our brand with informal announcements, custom personal messages, and connect with people. MySpace has also stimulated our affiliate programmes, co-marketing initiatives, banner exchanges (important for Google's PageRank number), and even spurred business development.

It would be a greedy mistake, however, to use MySpace as a funnel or meta advertisement board. There has to be give and take, so we prefer to think of it as a two-way street and have several links to MySpace
sites and YouTube videos that rotate from time to time on strilka.com. The activities mentioned above, however, are hardly new since many artists, musicians, bands, record labels, authors, and companies, especially Web firms, have promoted themselves on MySpace for years creating their own cultures and identities.

Despite rumours that MySpace is "teen trash", or that growth rates are peaking (particularly with Friendster), leveraging ambassador pages on
key social networking sites can be an effective online marketing strategy that stimulates growth.

Judging by the humbling public comments that we have received, myspace.com/strilka has created a certain amount of goodwill for us. Outside observers have even instructed us to introduce a goodwill line
item on our balance sheet (though that sounds premature to me). Strilka is a very small start-up, barely 1 year old, with no resources. Yet, after creating a MySpace ambassador site in March 2006, our membership doubled.

William Szuch,
Co-founder
Strilka - The New Ukrainian Singles Network

strilka.com

I think you may be a bit behind on the popularity of orkut. Its picking up here in Ireland, I know amoung my group of friends it is spreading very fast. Just due to the brazilians and portugese working around dublin and telling us their Irish friends about it.

I think Google is smart because it sees something coming. Social networking is NOT new on the Web and anybody who has been on it long enough knows. Tons of message boards harness the same kind of viability for a business to brand or an advertiser. The fact that everybody is fixated on MySpace and its format alone shows me two things: MySpace has a hell of a PR machine pushing (and believe me, their PR firm is one of the best) and that people - including major companies - are really very ignorant about internet communities and connectivity on the Web. We haven't even begun to see the transformation of internet usage and I think Google's very wise to stay back and let the bubble continue, because that's really what "social networking" is at the moment. Everybody wants to have one, everybody thinks they need one, everybody thinks its sustainable and isn't going to change - sounds like 1999 all over again.

I think it is a very smart idea for them to resist the social networking fad for now, at least. Myspace is the top social networking site, and will be for some time. I believe that Google would have a better chance at being myspace.com's search company, when in competition with Microsoft, which has tried rivaling myspace with its "msnspace", or yahoo which has also done so with its "yahoo 360".

^ but I think it's extremely niave to assume MySpace or any social network site will hold that kind of post.

Sigh. Has nobody learned anything from the previous years of technology business?

Social networking is certainly not a fad. Just the way we do it. Before was AIM, now is MySpace. The reason why it is so popular now is because, well every one is on it... and that is the point of a social network right? Why would I join Google network if all my friends are on MySpace... Google knows that this is the case and is smart by not entering this realm. MySpace will be the dominant player until some other company does something drastic to change the way we network. There will always be kids who want to stay in touch with their friends...... therefore, always some social network system