The fourth is cross-platform support. Hangouts actually did this quite well, but Google’s implementation of Allo along with their current implementation of Android Messages does this less so. They are not cloud-based messaging platforms, which means the desktop app runs through the middle-man of the phone. Therefore there are constant sync problems and the requirement of having one’s phone constantly connected to the computer. It becomes a pain and ultimately hard to set up and annoying to upkeep.

Lastly is of course poor SMS support. This is a generally a more US centric problem as most other countries rarely use SMS, but in any case it is still a problem. I’ve already touched on SMS support in Hangouts and iMessage and why iMessage is superior. Despite SMS being on the decline, there are still billions of these messages sent out annually, and in order for Google to truly insert themselves into the US market, they have to get this correct.

So how do we address these problems?

The first step is to boil them down to a more concise thesis. For this, we should address the third stated problem (which is really also the second). People don’t want to install new messaging apps (or really just apps in general), which leads to low user counts. According to Statista, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger are the most used messaging apps in the world, with WeChat coming incredibly close in third with its absolute domination of the Chinese market. One might notice the lack of iMessage — unfortunately Apple holds all of its statistics in house for that, but we can safely assume it has a huge user base in the US. So these are the giants of the messaging world. How does one make an impact into this space? Well… Google is really really big. They have a vast empire of resources along with over 85% market share in the mobile sphere on the global stage.

It is incredible to think that the Android operating system has become so ubiquitous yet has no primary messaging system across even its own platform, let alone desktop and iOS. Google has the power to do this, though, and this is how:

Appeal to user complacency by inserting the service in a product they already use.

Funnily enough, the way to accomplish this is by looking at the desktop first. Usually we think that we must do everything mobile first, as desktop usage is now far less than mobile usage, but in this case we have to think about the target market. Long term, this messaging service intends to become one of the most used messaging services in the world, so it is important to target the youthful populous — i.e. those in high school and college. These are the most tech savvy people around, and will ultimately be the ones to set future trends. On first thought, it might not seem very clear why we want to look at the desktop first for this market, as the younger generations are stereotypically (and perhaps rightfully so) always depicted on their mobile devices. However, one of the most popular chat apps for the age group is Google Docs.

Students will always slack off. Who provides the system for them to do so?

Why is this? Well, it’s because it is already ingrained within their workflow and can easily be used without being detected. It is easy to pass notes in class and talk to one’s friends while giving off the look of doing work. From this we should take two key ideas: Docs is a successful messaging app because it’s on a device already being used for work, and it is being used for messaging because of how easily it is assimilated into the workflow of a student. This is a perfect example of placing a product into people’s workflow to get them to use it — even if Google didn’t have this intended effect at the time.

Chrome is the king of the internet. How can it be utilized as such?

Google has the tools to accomplish this exact same effect with Chrome. Chrome, like Docs, is ubiquitous not only in schools, but also worldwide, with it owning over 60% of the global market share. Safari doesn’t even come in at a close second with around 15%. Not only this, but within a younger target market Chrome is the browser of choice as well, with many schools going so far as to partner with Google to provide students with Chromebooks. The more one looks at it, the more it makes sense to put Google’s universal messenger in Chrome. Most people use Chrome because of its deep connection with the Google ecosystem, whereby it syncs their passwords, themes, bookmarks, apps, Google accounts, etc. By adding a messenger, it only deepens the user connection with the product. Messengers of course require a phone number to work, and a large majority of users with Google accounts have their phone numbers linked to their account already for 2FA. However, if they don’t, Chrome can be utilized. The next time they sign into Chrome the messenger can easily be introduced and they can be prompted to add a number.

This solution works not only in solving the problem of user complacency, but also the SMS problem. Hangouts couldn’t default to SMS when someone didn’t have Hangouts because anyone with a Google account who didn’t use Hangouts would just not get the message. However, with Chrome being so ubiquitous across all platforms — desktop to mobile — the chances of a user missing a message are relatively slim. However, it is important to account for these cases. What if a user has linked their phone number with their Google account — enabling the messaging service — but for whatever reason doesn’t use Chrome? Simply any time they would visit the Google homepage, they would have the message notification there waiting for them, as we all know how many people visit Google Search based on the fact Google has quite literally integrated into our verbiage. Basically, as long as a user has a Google account with a phone number, they will get the message via Google’s new messenger. If not, SMS fallback! What a beautiful dream.

The final problem that needs to be tackled is the mobile front. This solution puts a messenger in Chrome, but if the messenger is in Chrome on mobile, the app could easily get congested and confusing by identifying as two almost completely separate applications. For this solution we look to Facebook Messenger. It started as being integrated into the mobile site and then was ultimately disabled and pushed its users to the mobile app. For the most part many people were upset about this when it happened (including myself), but today we’ve all forgotten about it — and now Facebook Messenger is the second largest platform in the world. By having this probationary period where Chrome acts as a messenger, it allows time to garner users and then ultimately herd them to the real app once they’ve bought into the platform, forcing them to combat user complacency.

Ultimately this all amalgamates into a universal messaging app that is easy to access and easy to understand. Now, let’s get into the app itself and some of its hero features.

The App