Google competes with Facebook and Twitter

Is Google BUZZ replacing the Google Wave?

Hey Realtors – did you wake up with a BUZZ in your Gmail inbox?

I did and from the looks of the dozens of blogs I read daily it seems the blogoshpere is buzzing with conversations about …

… Google just anounced its own Social Media Service, "BUZZ"

When I logged into my Gmail account there was a new message from Google introducing their newest product …

It would seem that Google is ramping up to become a serious competitor in the Social Media space with the release of BUZZ. 

The new Google BUZZ combines quite a few Social Media tools into one platform:

• Friends
• Comments
• Media (Photos & Video)
• Location based updates

Someone emailed me today to say this is just another Facebook/Myspace site to waste time on …. I see it a little differently!  My take is this; not everyone is using Facebook and/or Twitter, but may be using Gmail for their email. Watch the video:
 

In fact 175 Million people are using Gmail, so if this connects me to a few prospects or past clients that I am not connected with on other Social Media sites then it works for me.

Tips on how to use Google BUZZ for your Real Estate Business

For those of you not using Twitter, here are a few quick tips to get you started using Google BUZZ …

1. Create a new gmail account for your real estate business.  You want to use an email name that is consistent with your company name, facebook page name, twitter username, etc… (yourbusinessname@gmail.com)
    
2. Follow and be Followed … just like with Facebook and Twitter you want to search for friends, co-workers, clients, etc… and follow them.  They will then be notified that you are following them, this will encourage them to follow you. 
    
3. Photos & Videos … Multimedia is all the rage!  And I think we can all agree that it is easier, maybe even preferred, to watch a short video or browse photos.  Video is much more likely to be spread through social networks, so start using multimedia today!  
    
4. SEO … Let's not forget the SEO juice gained from all of these Social Media sites.  If you follow our blog you already know that SEO is not rocket science!  The cool thing about Social Media Sites like Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, LinkedIn and  now Google our status updates & tweets are regularly showing up with top placement on the search engines.  Google recently launched their Social Search platform to help keep your content in front of your network.
    
5. Spread the BUZZ … If you are a company that employs people you want to make sure they are all using Google BUZZ, the more employees you have active on Social Media the further your marketing efforts will reach!  Realtors I would encourage you to get all members of your team using the BUZZ (Vendors, Title Reps, Escrow, Inspectors, etc…)
    
6. Viral … This is the elusive goal of all Social Media.  Nobody really knows what the tipping point will be, but everyone is hoping their video, photo or blog post spreads like wildfire.  My advice is to make sure your content is relevant and interesting.  Google BUZZ helps you with this by doing something slightly different than the other SM sites … Google BUZZ filters the content from those people you are following, this will help the most popular content rise to the top.  Additionally the BUZZ will recommend the most popular BUZZ to people they are not following!

Want more information on the BUZZ? 

Below are some direct links to other informative blog articles:

Official Google Blog Article

http://mashable.com/2010/02/09/google-buzz/

http://techcrunch.com/2010/02/09/if-google-wave-is-the-future-google-buzz-is-the-present/

http://www.fastcompany.com/1545754/google-buzz-social-networking-realtime-advertising-personalized-location-aware-ads?partner=homepage_newsletter

What do you think?  Will you BUZZ?  Will it change your real estate business?