Is Google’s local strategy all starting to come together?

There have been more announcements from Google this last week as the Search Engine behemoth plays catch up with Facebook, local, mobile check-in’s and ratings.

Before I talk about Google’s new announcements, let’s go back a few steps in an attempt to create a big picture view of what’s happening, with a little bit of reflection.

I was wrong in the past about Google not having a user-base like Facebook’s. Google, I’m sorry. You do have a big ‘community’ (albeit fragmented), so please accept this by way of an apology. What Google has been doing, and still attempting to do, is help all of us connected to Google connect to our friends.

Google had a crack in the past with one of its few ‘swing and a miss’ efforts in Google Wave, and now it’s trying other avenues to help us connect with each other, namely through their Google Places App and (I like stalking you) Latitude App.

See, Facebook has the luxury of all its ‘users’ (I actually prefer to use the term ‘people’ as ‘users’ sounds like we’re all heavily addicted to drugs) in the one place, whereas Google has people using lots of different products from within their Google accounts, like gmail, AdWords, Analytics, Places and all the rest.

The push by Google to promote ‘local’ and the announcement of ‘check-in’ ability in the Google Latitude and Google Places App’s means you can share your location with your friends, as well as communicate with them through the apps.

Then there’s Google HotPot – which is a people-ratings system that allows you to rate your experiences with local stores. This all ties back in neatly with Google Places (and respective Mobile Apps).

And now with the anticipated launch of Google’s own version of Groupon (having been left at the altar when they thought the deal was sealed), Google can bring all the business it has listed in Google Places to a big ‘Groupon-like party’, encouraging local business to promote ridiculous offers.

Personally, I think very few people are connecting with each other right now through this fragmented system of various Google Apps. I know I’m not, but that’s just me.

Latitude leaves a bad taste in my mouth for some reason; it just seems a bit ‘stalkerish’ to be able to see where all my friends are actually located on a map in real time (if they’ve left the default ‘privacy’ setting to ‘detect your location’). Whereas with Facebook Places Check-in, I’m happy to share where I am when I feel like it.

I think the Google Offers Groupon-clone may be the only way that the dots will be joined and people will start to use these Google Apps more heavily. It’ll need the lure of Group buying to get people to start connecting to take advantage of the offers.

But with a market already saturated with group buying sites and Facebook probably eyeing off the idea itself (think Facebook Deals on steroids), I still think Google hasn’t quite got it right just yet, and it may be too late to get in on all the action.

Can they pull it off?

I’m not convinced.

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Chris Thomas heads up Reseo, a search engine optimisation  company which specialises in creating and maintaining Google AdWords campaigns and Search Engine Optimisation campaigns for a range of corporate clients.