Martine Rolls: Facebook or Google+

Here at the Bay of Plenty Times, we have received lot of positive feedback on our Saturday lifestyle magazine indulge. This colourful magazine comes with the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend and it brings readers an entertaining mix of local features and stories, fashion, beauty, food, lifestyle and entertainment.
Because the time was right, I set up a Facebook page for indulge on Friday. The plan is to put this page to good use and we will regularly post links to stories on beauty, fashion and lifestyle. You can also expect to see lots of photos of glamorous local people snapped by our photographers at parties or on the street.
If you know of an upcoming event you think we should cover, feel free to post it on the indulge Facebook page or send us an invite. You might have some great recipes or cooking tips you'd like to share? Is there a local restaurant you'd like us to review? We'd like to invite everyone to join in and if you have questions for our fashion, beauty, food or lifestyle editors, this is the perfect place to ask.
The Bay of Plenty Times' own Facebook page is also becoming more popular. It's a lively discussion forum and we welcome your ideas and feedback. As soon as we reach 1000 'Likes' we will randomly pick a lucky winner for a special prize. We're not at all far off that number at the moment so if you want to be in to win, you better be quick.
We'll soon announce on Facebook what this first giveaway will be. There will be more giveaways and competitions in the future on both our Facebook pages so make sure to go online and find us, like us, and join in the fun.
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Speaking of social media and online networking, have you heard of Google+? It's been recently released without too much publicity.
Google said: "Today, the connections between people increasingly happen online. Yet the subtlety and substance of real-world interactions are lost in the rigidness of our online tools. We'd like to bring the nuance and richness of real-life sharing to software. We want to make Google better by including you, your relationships, and your interests. And so begins the Google+ project."
One of my Facebook friends who lives in Tel-Aviv posted: "Got onto Google+ today. Can't see why the internet needs another social network. I guess there are some advantages to it, but honestly ... I can't be bothered with figuring it all out."
So the question is: Does the internet need another social media network? Facebook has more than 750 million active users worldwide so I guess it's fair to say that they still lead the way. Bebo is also still operational, but the word around town is that it's not cool anymore.
Then there are networking sites that are only popular in Europe, Asia, Latin America or the Arab world. There are blog spots and special interest networks, and of course we can't forget about the professional and business networks like LinkedIn.
But wait, there is more. You'll find social networks for mums, for green living, for artists, for Catholics, for gamers, investors, people with disabilities, baby boomers, and let's not forget the ever popular dating sites. The choices of where to hook up online with others are plenty.
Google is the most popular search engine and people who still use a hotmail address instead of Gmail are looked upon as old-school. If you already use Google and Gmail every day, you might as well sign up to their new social network. If it's good enough.
So what are the benefits of Google+? Is it the Next Big Thing and perhaps the Facebook killer?
As long as users get a seamless and well connected online experience, this could become a very successful product. Google+ looks promising. On first sight it is colourful. What I like most is that anyone can become a trendsetter by sparking things into action.
People in your network can be dragged into circles and that is also a bit more advanced than what Facebook offers. Group chats are called Huddle which is cute. Games can be played and uploading photos and video is instantly sorted with your smart phone. All you have to do is sign up with your Google account and start networking.
Maybe Facebook is getting a bit rusty? If this Google+ thing offers more interesting features and more people keep raving about it, would you jump ship? I might just give it a go.