Summary: In this post I attempt to rationalize the creation of Google Buzz.

How I see it
Google Buzz is a subset of email, optimized for sharing information and discussing said information amongst a network of followers. I’m sure Google noticed that a large number of users send short messages, occasionally accompanied by a link or an attached image, to the same people over and over. I know I do; Regardless of Twitter or Facebook, Email is still my preferred medium for propagating content to my close friends. In fact, the first browser add-on I install is the “send via gmail” to automate this process. So upon seeing Google Buzz, instead of seeing it as “another social network”, I saw it as a streamlining of my current link sharing workflow.

Sharing
Sharing things on Google Buzz is pretty easy (although I’m still waiting for my chrome extension). It’s faster than sending out an email because you can create groups of those you would normally CC and you don’t have to think about a subject line.

Private Groups
I believe that this is Google Buzz’s killer feature. As our social graphs increase and intersect/overlap, the importance of segregating information increases. For instance, your Mom/Boss/Girlfriend(s) seeing pictures of you at that raunchy party the other night. This is a common problem that anyone with a Facebook/Myspace can attest to having (at least once). Not just for privacy’s sake but for the sake of your followers. I used to have every tweet posted to my Facebook but people complained that they didn’t understand 99.9% of the things I posted (programming links/info usually). And inversely if I started posting non technical/silly things to Twitter, I’ll lose the technical audience there (this is why this app rules). Google Buzz allows me to share content with just the people I want (and discuss with the people I want).

Discussion
Let’s face it, trying to have a deep discussion is next to impossible on Twitter (not that this is bad). Meanwhile, Google Buzz inherits gmail’s threaded conversation feature (one of it’s best features) which makes discussing buzzed items a breeze. Also the “Like” concept is not to be underestimated, how many times have you seen email replies with “+1” in them? Or, if a discussion you don’t care about keeps showing up on your stream you can simply Mute it. Crazy Speculation: This may be what’s coming next for Google Groups.

Pain Points
Nothing is perfect, and Google Buzz is surely is not. For one, it’s, some say, intrusive, arrival rubbed a lot of people the wrong way. You’ll find all kinds of posts on the internet about how they feel betrayed by Google for forcing a social network down their throat. Others felt that their gmail was their “work area” and didn’t want to bothered with such folly (understandably so). That’s why I feel it should’ve been deployed like this: Wave style invites and if you buzz someone that doesn’t have an invite, they just get it like a regular email with a link on the bottom to join. The early adopters will bring in those they feel will like the service and use it with them. The other point is that you can’t filter out buzzed tweets (when you tweet, Google Buzz will buzz it automatically) so you end seeing tweets twice.

Conclusion
So in conclusion, will Buzz replace Twitter for me? No. But it will definitely replace those quickie emails I fire off to the same group of people over and over. I feel like they are trying to market Google Wave to a bigger, more mainstream audience. If that’s the case, I look forward to see what else Google Buzz will bring to the table in the future.