Facebook Makes Its Messenger App More Like Texting

Facebook is updating its standalone messaging app, Messenger, the company announced Tuesday.

The new version of Messenger, an app that lets users send messages on mobile devices, will be available to both iOS and Android users in the coming weeks. The updated app works a lot like SMS or texting; users can send messages to any of their mobile contacts through Messenger, not just their Facebook friends or friends of friends. This requires app users to include their mobile numbers in order to receive messages from non-Facebook friends.

Recipients who don't have the app will receive messages in their Facebook inbox. The new version of the app sends messages more quickly and better identifies which of your Facebook friends or mobile contacts actually have the Messenger app by listing a small badge next to their pictures in your contacts list. This helps eliminate the confusion of not knowing which platform the recipient will see your message on, according to Peter Martinazzi, the Messenger product manager at Facebook.

Once a mobile number is added, it appears on that user's Facebook timeline under the "Only Me" default, meaning no one else can view it. Users will automatically be searchable on Messenger by their mobile numbers, a setting that they can opt to turn off.

Each version was designed specifically for its operating system and works better for mobile-to-mobile conversations, said Martinazzi. The Android app allows users to swipe between tabs across the top, including messages, contacts and settings. Every icon and button in the app now fits the traditional Android style, said Luke Woods, the design lead for Messenger. Previously, both Android and iOS versions of the app used iOS icons.

On iOS, the app is designed with all three tabs across the bottom. Both apps have new sounds for sending and receiving messages as well as a slightly redesigned app logo and coloring, Woods said.
Both versions also allow users to mute sound notifications for specific conversations and utilize Facebook's Chat Heads feature.

For people accustomed to using standard text and SMS, Messenger still provides benefits, Martinazzi said, For starters, messages received from users not in your contact list still contain the sender's name and profile picture. The messages are also free, and

Facebook is hoping Messenger can provide an alternative to those paying for traditional texting services

Facebook is hoping Messenger can provide an alternative to those paying for traditional texting services, particularly in emerging mobile markets.

"In other countries, one of the big draws is going to be that instead of paying 10 cents per SMS or whatever the cost is, it's free," Martinazzi said. "But we're hoping people in the U.S are going to love it too. And while the free-value prop is not the reason they're going to use it, all of the other features are hopefully reasons they'll like to use this."

The rollout begins Tuesday with a small group of Android users and should be available to all iOS and Android users icn the "coming weeks."

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Image: Nicolas Asfouri/AFP/Getty Images, Facebook

Google+ Overhauls Photo, Video Features in Major Update

Google+ announced 18 new features on Tuesday, including multiple updates to Hangouts and additional tools for users who utilize the site for photographs. The updates will roll out in the "coming days," according to a spokesperson.

Google+ also shared new user metrics, confirming that the site has 540 million active users if you count log-ins through Gmail and 300 million monthly active users in the stream (users who visit the website or app directly). Users also upload 1.5 billion photos per week, said Google VP Vic Gundotra.

Among the Hangouts updates, Google+ has added SMS to the messaging service, meaning users can message with others using text. The update comes on the heels of Facebook's similar update to its Messenger app on Tuesday.

Other Hangouts changes include a new geo-location feature that adds a user's location to a message with a single click using Google Maps. The updated Hangouts also supports animated GIFs.

Video Hangouts are now in full-screen HD for all devices, and Hangouts has new creative tools that let users focus or change the video view. Users can chat in black and white, or blur out the background using the new "Spotlight" feature so that the speaker is the sole focus of the conversation, said Gundotra.

On the photo side, Google+ continues to market itself as the best social platform for users who care about their photographs. One new tool, Auto Awesome Erase, removes other people or objects from your photos. If you pose on the street with friends and have strangers in the background or foreground, Auto Awesome Erase can automatically remove them from the image.

Google also made it easier for users hoping to search through their photo library. The site added more than 1,000 search terms that Google's image algorithm identifies automatically, meaning users can search for terms like "apple pie" or "sunset" and Google will return relevant photos even if the pictures aren't tagged.

Users will also be able to search in a similar fashion for photos shared by connections in their circles.

Google+ will support photo uploads in all sizes and resolutions so users don't need to compromise the quality of their photos to upload, Gundotra said. For users with iOS devices, photos were only backed up if you had Google+ app open. A soon-to-be-released version of the iOS app will allow users to have full size backups and sync on at all times.

Google+ also unveiled a new Auto Awesome Video feature that automatically converts a user's photos and video clips into a short movie, complete with an audio overlay. Once Google+ determines that a group of videos and photos were taken in the same time period, the site will automatically filter them to choose the most interesting, highest quality images and video to include.

Users can then manually edit the video if they want, changing the theme and filters, duration of the clips, or sound.

The updates will be available soon, once an Android update becomes available in the Google Play store, according to a spokesperson.

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Image: Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Why It's Important to Stay Active on Social Media

Facebook and Twitter are always there. You can pop in and check your accounts, disappear for a couple of weeks, and when you come back, everything is just how you left it, people carrying on the global conversation without you. What you're not seeing, however, is what your silence is costing you in followers and potential customers. Here are some reasons why it's important to stay consistently active on your social media accounts.

1. It makes you look reliable. Like it or not, if you only post on your social media accounts every once in a while, and are lax about replying to tweets and Facebook messages, people will make assumptions about your customer service ethic. If you can't even be bother to respond to tweets in a timely fashion, why should they believe you'll respond when they have a real need to speak to you?

2. It keeps your followers from getting bored. There's a balance to be achieved with posting frequency on social networks. On one hand, you don't want to spam people, but on the other hand, you do want to look like you're there and participating in conversations. If there are huge gaps in your timeline, people will start to wonder why they bother following you at all, and many will unfollow.

3. It reminds people that you exist. Not everyone thinks about your company all the time, but being active on social media keeps you on their radar, and gives them a gentle reminder that you're still around, and still eager to help them with whatever they need. This means that when it comes time for them to make a purchase, your company name will be fresh in their mind.

If you're going to participate in social media (and you definitely should!) it's better to stick with a couple of networks that you know you can keep up with, rather than signing up for every network and spreading yourself too thin.There's only a finite amount of time you can commit to social media, so use it wisely, and make the effort to participate enthusiastically and regularly. You'll definitely notice a difference in how people respond to you, and that in turn will translate into more shares and retweets, better interaction, and of course more followers, which is what everyone wants. How much time per week do you devote to social media marketing?

Do you notice a difference when you don't keep up with it regularly?

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