Google’s announcement regarding the renewal of its social networking site cannot be taken lightly.
Currently, the tech giant has acknowledged that it had made some choices for Google+ in the past that it needed to rethink. Now, Google has made those changes and is introducing the world to the new Google+, which puts a greater focus on users’ interests.
“Today we’re taking a big step toward making Google+ an even better place for your interests. To do so, we’ve drastically simplified nearly every aspect of the product,” Google’s Luke Wroblewski said in a Google+ post.
Still not convinced? Here are three facts every web professional should know about the new Google+:
1. There is a big focus on Communities and Collections.
Google+’s “Communities” feature averages 1.2 million new joins per day. What’s more, Google notes that its “Collections” feature, which was launched just five months ago, is growing even faster. The brand new Google+ puts both features front and center. Its new navigation is centered around both features, which enables users to immerse themselves in content about topics they are interested in. With this new interest-focused design, it will be simpler for users to discover amazing things. Web professionals will want to continue to build content and share it on Google+ as there is little doubt it will make its way to the search engine result pages.
2. It has become more mobile-friendly.
It is pretty obvious that Google takes mobile case seriously, especially after the release of its Mobilegeddon update earlier this year. This makes it no surprise that Google put a focus on mobile during its Google+ redesign. In fact, Google notes that Google+ is now more mobile-friendly (as it had been rebuilt across the Web, Android and iOS). With the rebuild, users should experience a faster and more consistent Google+ experience across screens.
3. You have the option to “opt-in” (at least for now).
It is important to note that the new Google+ design isn’t available to everyone just yet. For now, users can have a quick glance on the new Google+ on the Web by signing in and clicking “Let’s go” when they see the prompt. That said, Website Magazine editors had not yet received the prompt at the time of this writing. Users that do decide to opt-in, however, should know that they can toggle back to the classic Google+, as not every Google+ feature has made its way to the new design yet.
Google says that it will be rolling out updated apps for Android and iOS in the coming days.