Google+ opt-in software keeps #customers happy
Google+ gains favor with users by offering them facial recognition software instead of forcing it on them.
In the earlier years of social media, it was all about the technology. Services focused on having the best interfaces, the most options, and people were easily impressed. Companies had yet to take advantage of their customer’s privacy, or more likely were not yet getting caught for doing so.
Now, however, the industry has changed. With things like Facebook, Twitter, and smartphones serving as part of many people’s everyday lives, users are becoming harder to impress. While the public obviously still gets excited about new ground-breaking apps and additions, there is also that nagging voice that wants to know “what does this mean to my privacy?” and “who is this information going to be available to?” In a time when we mostly take new technology for granted, users have come to care more and more about how much respect they get from companies.
One prime instance of this is Facebook. Oh, Facebook. Any regular user of this website anywhere can tell you exactly what their newsfeed looks like the day after the site institutes the most recent change.
“Omg i hate the new layout”
“I can’t find anything:(“
“What happened to my profile???”
“Ugh hate it!”
“I want the old Facebook back!”
“If you change the language to Pirate you get the old layout (33 people like this)”
The problem with Facebook is that it has a dictatorial way of going about changes. The company decides it’s going to make a change, and you will deal with it. I’m sure those running the show will say they research to give people what they want, but the words of the majority never seem to be those of approval. Worse still, it seems that every time something new is added, it’s done sneakily and in a way that people who try to keep their personal lives private find very alarming. Of course, there’s always the option to opt out, but one usually has to dig through hidden settings menus and carefully make sure each box is checked or unchecked.
The Facebook privacy issue that has made the biggest splash as of late is its facial recognition software that suggested tags without the knowledge or consent of the person in question. Facebook didn’t make its users aware that it would begin implementing the software, or if so, did not do a very good job of letting them know. Like many of Facebook’s controversial features, users can opt out…but only if they find the proper tick-box first.
Fortunately, the almighty Google seems to have learned from Facebook’s past foibles (as well as its own). The Google+ photos application now has a “Find my Face” feature. How is this different from Facebook’s creation? Google’s version is opt-in instead of opt-out. Meaning you’re not automatically signed up for anything you’re not interested in. Chester Wisniewski, a senior security advisor at security software provider Sophos Canada weighs in on the subject, saying "It is up to every individual to make an *informed* choice about how their personal information is shared and asking their permission is the right approach."
So here’s where the difference lies between what is essentially the same service. In one instance it was forced on users, in the other it was offered. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what people prefer. "Google is not interested in making the same mistakes Facebook made," says Rebecca Liev, an analyst at Altimeter Group. "They are ensuring users they have their privacy interests in mind."
This just goes to show that in the end, no matter how good what you have to sell may be, the product or service is only half the battle. Treating your consumers right is always important.
It’ll be interesting to see where Google+ stands in relation to Facebook five years down the road…
Read Clint Boulton’s article on the subject
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