Google+ vs. Facebook: Will General Audience Accept Google’s Social Network?

“It’s fair to say the initial market response has been very positive overall, with accolades going to its design, usability and approach to group networking with Circles,” comScore’s Andrew Lipsman said on Friday.

The 20 million estimated by comScore is based on unique visitors, which is different than “users” in that people who never sign up may visit Google+ pages.  Google CEO Larry Page told analysts last week that 10 million have joined Facebook just two weeks after its release.

Lipsman said that the 20 million visits worldwide as of July 19 is extraordinary number in just its first three weeks.  That number represents an increase of 82% from the previous week and 561% vs. two weeks prior.  The U.S. audience recently surpassed 5 million visitors, up 81% from the previous week and 723% from two weeks earlier.

Google, Lipsman notes, does have a built-in visitor base of more than 1 billion to work with, so there is clearly potential to convert a high number of users to its new social tool — even if it is still invite-only.  Google is ranked #1 in the world according to the three-month Alexa traffic rankings, with over 50% of Internet users visiting Google.com, Gmail or other Google sites everyday.

“What is also interesting about the rapid growth of Google+ is its proliferation on a global basis,” Lipsman also points out.  The U.S. only accounts for 27% of the total worldwide audience of Google+. 

Google+, according to comScore, has clearly captured the attention of the technorati and as usage incubates among this crowd it will likely continue to proliferate to a more general audience.

While Google+ has certainly gained momentum, it’s still unclear if Google’s social network will be able to beat, or even fly as high as, Facebook.

Facebook already has more than 750 million users worldwide and its user-base is expected to continue to grow despite Google+’s entry.And Google+ could be so late in the game when Facebook has already reached most countries (except China where it is banned) and the number one social network in 119 out of 134 countries (based on Vincenzo Cosenza’s “World Map of Social Networks” last month), and could reach 1 billion users soon.

Inside Facebook Gold analytics service — which gets its information from Facebook’s advertising tool — said last month (before Google+ was launched) that having reached around half the total populations in Europe and North America, Facebook had slower growth in these regions.  However, it noted that Palo Alto, California-based Facebook continues to rise rapidly in developing countries.

“As we’ve seen in the social networking market before, success often hinges on a strong network effect, which says that the more people in the network the more useful it becomes to others and the more incentive there is to participate.  Early interest in Google+ is certainly important, but it will also need to attract regular participation among users to cultivate such an effect.  In the past week, we have seen the number of average usage days via home and work computers increase by more than 30%, an early indication that the network effect just might be beginning taking hold,” comScore’s Lipsman says.

“Time will ultimately tell if Google+ can leverage its early momentum to reach critical mass among users and capture a firm foothold in the well-established social networking market.”

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Facebook Rankings Reflect National Stereotypes

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Users of the social networking site Facebook often obsess over numbers of virtual friends and update their status on the hour. But the popularity contest is no longer limited to people’s profiles. Companies are paying close attention to countries’ most popular Facebook pages for brands — which often reflect national stereotypes.

Take a look at the most popular US Facebook pages and you could be forgiven for thinking that the stereotype of fast food-scarfing Americans is true. According to the statistics portal Socialbakers, the top 10 most popular American sites on the social networking platform include the fast-food chains McDonald’s, Taco Bell and Subway.

And the rankings for Ireland do nothing to dispel the country’s image as a nation of pint-swilling tipplers. Its top 10 Facebook pages include four alcohol brands, with no fewer than two appearances by the national beer, Guinness. Meanwhile, the sweet-toothed Brits love their Cadbury’s chocolate, if the Facebook rankings for the United Kingdom are to be believed: Half of the 10 favorite sites involve confectionary.

Many people might be surprised — or even alarmed — to find how closely the rankings of each country’s most popular Facebook pages reflect national stereotypes. But should US citizens be annoyed that their country’s most popular brands on Facebook reinforce clichés about hamburger-chomping Americans? And wouldn’t Ireland rather be recognized for something other than booze?

Already, the data has been used as evidence to support longstanding national stereotypes. In May, bloggers in France seized on the US Facebook stats to reinforce common French perceptions of Americans. “In the United States … national pride is found between the two slices of a hamburger bun,” wrote one blogger for the technology website TechCrunch France, commenting on the data.

Princeton University psychology professor Susan Fiske, who has done extensive research on stereotyping, feels a little friendly banter across borders can’t hurt. “Given that people tend to categorize, stereotypes about food products are not the worst cultural stereotype,” she told SPIEGEL ONLINE. “Some people might feel pride in their national identity being linked to some famous food.”

Counting the ‘Likes’

From Nokia to Coca Cola, many brands have established corporate Facebook pages. Facebook users follow a page by clicking on its “like” button. The more “likes” a page has, the more popular it is. The Czech Republic-based statistics portal Socialbakers ranks the most popular brand-related pages on Facebook around the world, classifying pages by country and determining which ones are the most followed.

In addition to food companies, the pages of automakers, national airlines, television shows and sports clubs are also highly popular. According to Socialbakers, the football team Bayern Munich currently ranks top in Germany, while the top spot in Spain is occupied by FC Barcelona. Scandinavian Airlines is the most popular Facebook site in Sweden. In the Netherlands, it’s Dutch airline KLM.

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