Google+ History: Why the Platform Failed and Lessons for Social Media Marketing (2011-2019)

Written by Top Draw guest contributor Dan Taylor. Originally published 2016. Updated 2025 to reflect Google+’s shutdown and provide historical context.

When Google+ launched in 2011, it did so with great expectations that it would compete with Facebook. As a social media marketing platform, Google+ aimed to revolutionize digital marketing strategy. The social platform quickly reached a million users, and within a month had grown to a user base of 25 million.

It wasn’t just the social aspect that saw businesses and marketers quickly adopting the platform; many proclaimed in most circles that ‘Google+ was the best social network to be on, and being on it could give your search engine optimization strategy a boost‘.

By 2014, Google+ was boasting 540 million registered accounts, but rather than users spending time on Google+, most active users were on other Google products (such as YouTube, where a Google+ profile was required in order to contribute to the YouTube community). This forced integration created inflated user numbers that didn’t reflect actual platform engagement. Google eventually severed this relationship in 2015 when it became clear users resented the mandatory connection.

2015 was also a pivotal year for Google+ before its facelift and redesign in November. The social platform entered a period of ambiguity. Facebook and Twitter were going from strength to strength, enhancing their user interfaces, improving their video offerings and analytics. Understanding social media metrics and user engagement proved crucial for success on any platform—and Google+ was struggling in all these areas. The only thing that Google+ gained was doubt and questions about the platform’s long-term validity. Google attempted to answer these doubts by splitting the platform into two separate parts: photos and streams. From these announcements, speculation mounted as to whether it would be discontinued, much like Google’s previous forays into social media such as Google Buzz and Google Wave.

At the time, the question was: should marketers and brands continue to spend time and effort sharing content and being active on Google+, or should they focus on other channels such as Facebook, Twitter and the other main platforms?
In 2016, the answer seemed to be yes to Google+. The social platform still had approximately 20 million unique monthly active users who genuinely engaged with the platform, which wasn’t negligible. However, history proved that this wasn’t enough to sustain the platform, and Google ultimately shut down Google+ in April 2019.

Why Google+ Failed: Lessons for Digital Marketers

Google+ offered several features that seemed promising for businesses and marketers. Understanding what worked and what didn’t provides valuable lessons for evaluating new social platforms today.

Google+ & SERP Presence: The Integration Advantage That Wasn’t Enough

Google integrated Google+ content into its Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs), which was one of the platform’s main selling points. It was common to find a brand’s business page within search results. If you were logged into your Google+ account when you searched, you saw additional G+ posts from accounts that you followed (if their posts related to your search query). Google+ directly influenced the search results that Google presented to users, which demonstrated the platform’s potential for improving brand visibility through social media integration.

What We Learned: Search integration provided short-term benefits, but it couldn’t overcome poor user engagement. Today, effective SEO strategies focus on creating valuable content across multiple channels rather than relying on any single platform integration.

Google+ Collections: Content Organization Features

Collections was a relatively late addition to G+, and it allowed users to create a specialized page within their business page. You could customize it with a name and header image, and from there you could post content about specific topics in one place—very similar to how on Pinterest, you can have different boards for different topics.

This was a smart way to segment content rather than sharing to a wide, untargeted audience. Collections also enabled users to save posts for future reading, similar to Facebook. This opened up a layer of social sharing—users had the ability to create private communities that only they, and other select members, could share posts within.

What We Learned: Content organization features matter, but they need an engaged user base to be valuable. Today, platforms like LinkedIn and Pinterest offer similar organization features with much larger active audiences.

Google Hangouts: The Feature That Survived

Hangouts was Google+’s most successful feature and enabled brands and content producers to record and stream webinars. The platform was eventually decoupled from Google+ and became a standalone communication tool. If video and vlogs were part of your marketing strategy, this feature was genuinely valuable. Producers were able to promote planned hangouts using their G+ page along with other platforms.

What Happened Next: Google Hangouts evolved into Google Meet and Google Chat, which remain active products today. This demonstrates that while Google+ failed, some of its features had real value and survived in other forms.

Google+ and Website Traffic: Did It Actually Help SEO?

Posting content on Google+ with website links helped drive some traffic to your site because Google+ posts showed up in search results. There was ongoing debate about whether Google actually favored G+ posts over Facebook and other social platforms. A statement made by Luke McKend of Google South Africa in 2012 suggested the advantage was technical rather than preferential:

“It’s not that we favor Google+, it’s just that we are unable to get data out of other social media sites such as Facebook. It is a commercial issue between Google and those social sites. If we can’t see the data, we can’t use it as part of the search rankings.”

What We Learned: Platform-specific SEO advantages are temporary and unreliable. Google’s search algorithm has evolved significantly since 2016, and modern SEO strategies focus on content quality, user experience, and earning backlinks from authoritative sources rather than social signals from any single platform.

Google Local Reviews: The Legacy That Lives On

Google My Business pages (now called Google Business Profile) were integrated with Google+ and represented one of the platform’s most valuable features for local businesses. These pages were fully integrated into Google search results and could appear in position one as a call-out box. Having an active Google+ presence was meant to strengthen your authority and assist your organic visibility.

What Survived: While Google+ died, Google Business Profile remains an integral marketing tool for any business that wants to acquire customers online, especially businesses with physical locations. Local SEO strategies today focus heavily on optimizing Google Business Profile, collecting reviews, and maintaining accurate business information across the web.

The End of Google+ and What Came Next

Despite the November 2015 redesign and Google’s investment in revamping the platform, Google+ never achieved the user engagement necessary to compete with Facebook, Twitter, or even LinkedIn. In October 2018, Google announced it would shut down the consumer version of Google+ following the discovery of a security vulnerability that exposed user data. The platform officially closed on April 2, 2019.

Google+ for Enterprise (later renamed Currents) continued for business customers until it was also discontinued in 2023, replaced by features within Google Chat and other Workspace tools.

Modern Alternatives: Where Should You Focus Your Social Media Marketing Efforts?

If you were considering Google+ in 2016, here’s where you should focus your social media marketing efforts today:

• LinkedIn: For B2B marketing, professional networking, and thought leadership content. LinkedIn has grown significantly and offers robust advertising options and organic reach for business content.
• Facebook: Still the largest social platform with sophisticated advertising tools and community features through Facebook Groups.
• Instagram: Essential for visual brands and businesses targeting younger demographics. Instagram’s shopping features make it valuable for e-commerce.
• Twitter/X: Valuable for real-time engagement, customer service, and reaching journalists and influencers.
• YouTube: The second-largest search engine and essential for video marketing. Google Meet has replaced Google Hangouts for live streaming and webinars.
• TikTok: Rapidly growing platform essential for reaching Gen Z and younger millennial audiences with short-form video content.

Critical Lessons from Google+’s Failure

1. Don’t Build Your Strategy on a Single Platform: Google+ demonstrated the risk of over-investing in one social platform, especially a new one. Diversify your digital marketing strategy across multiple channels.

2. User Engagement Matters More Than User Counts: Google+ had hundreds of millions of registered accounts, but most users weren’t actively engaged. Focus on platforms where your audience actually spends time and engages with content.

3. Forced Integration Backfires: Google’s decision to force YouTube users to create Google+ accounts generated resentment rather than engagement. Authentic user adoption matters more than inflated numbers.

4. SEO Benefits from Social Platforms Are Secondary: While social signals can indirectly benefit SEO, they shouldn’t be your primary reason for using a platform. Focus on creating valuable content and genuine engagement.

5. Own Your Platform: Social platforms come and go. Your website, email list, and owned media channels provide stability that third-party platforms cannot. A well-designed website remains your most important digital asset.

Original article by Dan Taylor, a UK-based digital marketer and blogger with a background in social media, email marketing and SEO. This article has been updated by Top Draw to reflect Google+’s shutdown and provide historical context and modern alternatives.
Original author Twitter: twitter.com/danny_taywitter
Original author site: keywordsandjargon.com

Need Help With Your Current Social Media Strategy?

While Google+ is gone, the lessons from its rise and fall remain relevant for businesses navigating today’s social media landscape. At Top Draw, we help businesses develop comprehensive digital marketing strategies that don’t rely on any single platform. Our team stays current with the latest social media trends and algorithm changes across all major platforms.

Whether you need help with social media marketing, search engine optimization, or paid advertising, we create strategies built on proven platforms with engaged audiences. Contact us today to learn how we can help you achieve your digital marketing goals without the risk of platform dependency.