I have been on Google+ for 48 hours now. I believe Google has a quality brand. I have a gmail account, I use Chrome, you are reading this via Blogger, we all enjoy YouTube, some of my pictures were sent to me and viewed on Picasa, I utilize Buzz, Images, and Maps. So when I got my Google+ invite I set up my profile, got my “makeshift” vanity url (http://gplus.to/dws) , sent out some invites of my own, got some circles populated, and put it to work.

I read an article by Mike Elgan at http://computerworld.com that essentially anointed Google+ as the “end all, be all” of shared communication. He was very deliberate in not calling it another Social networking site, but rather a Shared Communication site. He went on to say that Google+ is where you can send an email, send a message to a group, blog, microblog, share photos and videos, group chat, video conference, et al. And the potential is certainly there but is it the interface that we want? Are we looking for a one-stop shop?

Each of the big three (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn) has their own unique look, feel, following, and purpose. I don’t know if the “Friends” I have on Facebook, and the “Connections” I have on LinkedIn are going to equally embrace Google+. As a result, I don’t know if this one platform is going to enable me to reach all those “friends, followers, and connections” respectively. Can I reach, for instance, a middle-aged person that just discovered email 5 years ago and set up a Facebook account 2 years ago via Google+? And will the “C-suite” executive that I have connected with on LinkedIn via a professional group embrace the Google+ circles?

Mike Elgan sees Google+ as the end of email writing, e-newsletters, and blogging as he knows it. He views the circles as an end around the Spam filter of the company network email server. Perhaps he is right. However it is interesting that one of those in my circles is already complaining of being spammed and is posting to find solutions around it.

As a business development consultant, messaging is critical. My clients look to me to find the best utilization of Social Media to project their message. Each of the big three has enough features and tools, that clients can obtain a tailored presence. That presence can be managed as humanly or as automated as they want. I think Google+ can certainly aide in the efficiency of shared communication, but as the saying goes, “Jack of all trades, master of none”, the Google universe should be wary of mediocrity. Yes, it has the potential to be the end all be all, but in doing so may only do it adequately.

Obviously this is an on-going paradigm shift. Perhaps in a year or two, Google+ will have realized the potential that Mr. Elgan envisions. I personally like to see my handyman work with a hammer, saw, and screwdriver; not a Swiss army knife. That being said, I think Google+ will hold its own and will find its own, true, best utilization.