Google Buzz Not Getting Much Love

Techwriter10 0 900 Views

As I make my way around the internet today, I'm not finding a lot of love for Google Buzz. In fact, people have been downright hostile to it, from what I can figure. Here are some Tweets from my knowledgeable friends:

* @theskypirate: I tried Buzz for a day, was unimpressed, and turned it off last night. I'll wait for it to bake just a little more.
* @DavidAKnopf: I don't hate #Buzz, but it brings very little new to the party, and some of the new stuff is annoying!
* @techcommdood: You'd think the smart people at #Google could design #Buzz better. #usability #accessibility #fail

That's a lot of criticism from several smart people, and it makes me stand up and take notice, but I don't completely agree. I think there's a lot of potential and I expect the fact it's open will lead to some interesting uses. Patience people, just a little patience.

The Public Followers List Tempest

People went ballistic almost as soon as Google Buzz went live yesterday because Google seeded Buzz with followers from what it saw as your "Frequent Mailers" list in Gmail. Some folks saw that as a I'm not sure I agree, but you have to respect people's concerns and there is a quick fix for hiding your lists, so everyone can take a deep breath on that one, please.

The User Interface Complaints

Some people are complaining about the GMail alerts you get for each response in a Buzz stream. ReadWriteWeb has already posted a fix for an overactive Buzz Stream in an excellent post called 5 Google Buzz Tips for the Advanced User. Others don't like the lack of integration. Can't argue with that one. You can have your Twitter stream posted on Buzz, but not vice versa. And as of now, there is no connection to Facebook at all. This needs to change.

One thing I do like is the easy access to the Google Chat client from the Buzz stream, but I don't like how hard it is to find new followers beyond the ones that Google finds for you to seed Buzz when you first launch. I also don't like that it's locked in the GMail client, but this will probably change soon. In fact, the aforementioned RWW article lists several browser plug-ins that are already available. Like Google Wave, this is completely open, so let's give it a couple of weeks before we start declaring it an abject failure, shall we?

I don't totally love or completely hate it, and as one of my Twitter friends put it, it's going to take time bake. So give it a chance and let's see what the third-party vendors can do with it. Of course, there's always the chance (as I wrote in Can Google Build a Twitter Killer?) that people really, really don't like this tool and it fades to black, Google makes some partnerships with Twitter and Facebook, and we all move along. For now, let's sit back and watch what happens. This could be very interesting, so let's not simply dismiss it out of hand on Day 1.

Dani AI

Generated

Brief expert note: the thread shows a common pattern for an early social rollout — some members see potential (), others report friction with discovery and usability (, @techcommdood). The items below are practical, non‑speculative actions and checks that add value to the discussion and help convert impressions into measurable learning.

Recommended actions include:

  • Claim a consistent identity across properties: same display name, a clear photo, and a short keyword-rich bio on the public profile. Add an obvious link from the primary website to that profile to create a discovery path.
  • Make links measurable: append a simple UTM string when posting (for example ?utm_source=buzz&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=buzz_test) so referral traffic and engagement can be tracked in analytics.
  • Favor permalinks to owned content when possible. Sharing site pages rather than only in-stream comments preserves attribution and helps long-term indexing.
  • Reproduce and document discovery problems rigorously: capture the exact steps, browser/version, device, and screenshots when a profile or post is reported as “not findable.” That makes reports actionable and speeds fixes.
  • Treat autorepair and imports conservatively. Early rollouts change fast; avoid bulk imports or automation until visibility and privacy controls are proven.

Caution and takeaway: for marketers this is a low-cost experiment to claim name space and collect behavioral signals rather than a place for heavy investment. For technologists and power users, the most useful contribution is a compact, reproducible bug list and examples of successful discovery patterns — that empirical record will be more valuable than day‑one opinion.

Member Avatar for anthonyfranco
anthonyfranco 0 Newbie Poster

I think google has always struggled with usability and user experience. Just wrote about their holy trinity : Google: Utility, Usability, Monetization: http://is.gd/8bNAH

Member Avatar for DavidAKnopf
DavidAKnopf 0 Newbie Poster

Ron, I've known you for something like a decade. You are in my contact list. You've been a technology blogger - and had an established Internet presence - for years. Google is the undisputed leader in search. Yet I cannot find you anywhere on Buzz. If you are there, you are not visible (or discoverable) to me. Tell me again why I cannot suggest that Buzz, if not a failure, falls well short of success?

Member Avatar for InsightsDigital
InsightsDigital 57 Posting Virtuoso

I was totally surprised about this Buzz. I do believe that Google should have sent a mass email announcement about this Buzz. The only think I like is the little colorful logo.

Member Avatar for sissydream
sissydream -9 Light Poster

they have too much free time... they start to invent things...

Edited by sissydream because: n/a
Member Avatar for Guru SEO
Guru SEO -4 Newbie Poster

Hello All
I was totally surprised about this Buzz. I do believe that Google buzz.and same as twitter ,Yahoobuzz.


Thanks

Member Avatar for Techwriter10
Techwriter10 42 Practically a Posting Shark

Thanks to everyone for contributing comments. Always great to hear a range of opinions.

Ron

Member Avatar for DavidAKnopf
DavidAKnopf 0 Newbie Poster

Clarification: It turns out I can find you quickly and easily using the iPhone Buzz client. It is only when I try in a real browser like Safari or Firefox that I cannot find you. Weird.

Member Avatar for Techwriter10
Techwriter10 42 Practically a Posting Shark

David,
I just did a search for you in the Follower tool in Buzz and was able to find you straight away. I haven't seen the iPhone client yet. Have to check that out.

But there does seem to be confusion about how to find followers in this tool and it's something that Google needs to straighten out sooner than later.

Ron

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