Social Networking: Google Buzz – A Worthy Addition Or Just Another Social Network To Update?

The recently announced Google Buzz is something that I just can’t make my mind up about.

First of all, here’s what Google say about it:

Go beyond status messages
Share updates, photos, videos, and more.
Start conversations about the things you find interesting.

And if you check out the video on the Google Buzz website, it does what it says on the tin. You’ll see from the video that there are a few things that you already recognise:

• The facility to share your thoughts with people you follow (more on following later)
• The ability to “Like” or “Un-Like” what people share (Facebook anyone?)
• The facility to use @replies to target people in you status updates (sounding familiar?)
• The functionality to share links, photos and videos with people you’re connected with

All that sounds familiar right? Facebook and then Twitter have revolutionised the way we interact online; they’re defining the way teenagers communicate and even my Mum likes everything I post on Facebook.

Facebook and Twitter are also fantastic for quickly sharing content with friends, family and actually just random strangers if you like; they provide a great way to promote your services or (shameless plug) your band for example.

I’ve previously blogged about my use of HootSuite to (kinda) effortlessly manage these two fantastic social networks from a business and a  personal perspective; the thought of having to update another network, such as Google Buzz, fills me with thoughts of slight depression and cash flow which will rapidly dwindle as my time is spent updating the multitude of social networking sites that I use, just to keep my head above water in the rapidly changing world of online marketing.

Add to this the fact that Google Buzz actually only works with a Gmail Account (something I’ve never used) and it’s actually putting me off trying the service out. Sure I might sign up to have a peek but really, I can’t see myself using this like I do Twitter or Facebook, or even the lesser LinkedIn.

Can you see yourself using this new social networking tool from Google or is it just Google trying to capitalise on the seemingly ever expanding reach of social networks?