The +1 button was Google’s answer to the Like button. While it didn’t survive, its explicit, public endorsement model evolved into LinkedIn’s “Celebrate,” “Insightful,” and “Support” reactions, as well as Medium’s “claps” — both encouraging nuanced feedback beyond a simple thumbs up.
The engine that drove G+ wasn't family drama or memes; it was and Communities . The ability to curate who saw what content allowed for a sophistication that other platforms still struggle to match. You could have a circle for "Photographers," another for "Tech Geeks," and another for "Close Friends," and your interactions in each were distinct. It created a signal-to-noise ratio that was the envy of the industry. g+ survival
So, did Google+ survive?
There is a strange irony to the phrase "G+ Survival." On paper, the platform did not survive. Google pulled the plug, citing low usage and the discovery of security bugs. But if you look closely at the remnants of the internet today, the ghost of Google+ is everywhere. The platform is gone, but its people—and its philosophy—survived. The +1 button was Google’s answer to the Like button
Google+ taught us that social media could be smarter. It could be beautiful. It could be about ideas rather than just updates. The platform is dead. Long live the platform. The ability to curate who saw what content
For photographers, in particular, G+ was a golden age. The platform’s emphasis on high-resolution imagery and the "Engage" strategy meant that visual artists found a home there that Instagram—focused on the square crop and the algorithmic feed—could never fully replicate.