Daily Buzz: Goodbye Google+, Hello Currents

It’s no surprise that a rebrand is in effect for Google+, the social network owned and operated by the tech giant: The interface was shuttered for business and consumer use this month after low usage and several high-profile data leaks.

What’s changed?

Currents, a company news release says  (opens in a new tab), is a G Suite app “that enables people to have meaningful discussions and interactions across your organization, helping keep everyone in the know and giving leaders the opportunity to connect with their employees.”

In other words, it’s now positioned as a workplace tool—and not a platform to, say, share family vacation photos with friends. An organization’s existing Google+ content will automatically transfer to Currents after enrolling in the beta version, the news release says.

Currents users may compose content, tag others, attach documents or images, and provide feedback. The goal: Encourage shared communication and reduce emails.

For some, the new name may sound familiar. Currents was the former iteration of Google Play Newsstand (which predates the Google News app). The name is meant to evoke the flow of information, a company executive told TechCrunch  (opens in a new tab). He added that “very low recognition” of the former Currents platform won’t cause any confusion going forward.

Whether the revamped tool finds wider adoption is another story.

why brands are investing in Live Events

Inside the ‘economics of attention’: Why live experiences drive brand loyalty https://t.co/m2NE1VazuB  (opens in a new tab) pic.twitter.com/KMcZl176Uz  (opens in a new tab)

— Event Marketer (@EventMarketer) April 2, 2019  (opens in a new tab)

Getting a customer’s attention is costing companies more these days, according to Harvard Business School professor Thales Teixeira.  More crucial, they need to reach people offline to attract “high-quality attention.”

The good news for associations is that their models are already well-honed for such interaction: Experiential events can “fast-track” a courtship with consumers, Teixeira told Event Marketer magazine  (opens in a new tab) in a blog post about his “attention quotient” framework. The formula measures how live events can drive brand loyalty more effectively than the crowded field of television and digital advertising.

The in-person approach may require more money and reach fewer consumers, but it can produce a tangible return on investment.

Attendees “go to your event to entertain themselves, to learn, and to experience something unique,” Teixeira says. “And after that, it’s like you just bumped them halfway up the ladder” of engagement.

Other Links of Note

A happy conferencegoer is a repeat one. MemberSuite shares 17 ways to welcome first-time guests  (opens in a new tab).

Good company culture can define your brand and workplace. One CEO shares a how-to  (opens in a new tab) with Inc.

Has the ease of digital communication made human contact a “luxury good”? The New York Times investigates  (opens in a new tab).

(Handout photo)