Back in February we added a new feature to the Google+ platform: application sign-in. Since then we've launched numerous improvements (like cross-device single sign-on, app activities in Google Search, and over-the-air Android install metrics), and we've seen more and more apps offer great experiences with Google+ Sign-In.

Developers continue to see positive results, so we've highlighted some overall trends and illustrative numbers below.

Google+ Sign-In boosts Android downloads
Developers have found that enabling over-the-air installs on their websites effectively drives Android downloads, leading to a more unified experience across desktop and mobile. On average, 40% of Android users accept the offer to install a website's mobile app, yet some apps like fitness tracker Fitbit has seen a 60% acceptance rate.

Users prefer Google+ Sign-In
Google+ Sign-In lets users sign in to apps with their existing Google credentials, including the sign-in protections they expect (like 2-step verification). Cloud platform provider JoliCloud has discovered that Google+ Sign-In is their most popular option on the web, with 48% of users choosing Google. Movie app Flixster has found that Google+ Sign-In is their most popular third-party option on the web (35%), and their most popular option on Android (45%). Google+Sign-In is also the most popular option on Android for music app Songza, with 40% of users signing in with Google.

Google+ Sign-In increases new user registrations
Adding the option to sign in with Google has advanced the rate of new user growth for many apps. Mobile shopping app Snapette has seen a 16% acceleration in registered users, and pixiv, one of Japan's most popular social networks, has seen a 21% increase in new user registrations. Integrating with Google has also led to a 25% reduction in bounce rate from pixiv’s new user registration page.

To learn more about Google+ Sign-In, check out our Google+ Developers site and view our Case Studies page.


Posted by Seth Sternberg, Director of Product Management, Google+

If you are familiar with social web development, it’s easy to integrate the features of the Google+ platform, including Google+ Sign-In, into your web application. In fact, we’ve written a handy guide - initially focusing on existing Facebook integrations - to help you create a meaningful integration that will work with your existing social and business logic. The guide walks you through:

1. Basic Setup: create a project in the Google APIs console, include the Google+ JavaScript Client Library, and configure the ‘Sign in with Google’ button. 
2. Identity Logic: structure your application to allow for users with multiple social identities, and create readable, maintainable code that allows you to work with users that have signed in with different social identity providers. 
3. Feature Translation: add Google+ platform features that match your app’s other social features to create a seamless user experience across social identities. 
4. Going Beyond: discover the unique capabilities of the Google+ platform, such as cross-platform single sign on and over-the-air installs.

If you’d like to learn more, check out our Adding Google+ to your Facebook Integration guide and watch the related Google+ Developers Live episode.


Posted by +Sam Stern, Google+ Developer Relations

Google+ makes it easy for Google Apps customers to connect and share within their organization and encourage collaboration between teams. Today we’re launching an update to the Google+ Android app that includes a number of new features for Google Apps customers, and a new developer offering, the Google+ Domains API.

The Google+ Domains API allows Google Apps customers to integrate Google+ into their existing tools and processes, and allows enterprise software vendors to access Google+ from their products. Applications using the Google+ Domains API can act on behalf of Google Apps users to share posts within the same domain, comment on posts shared within the domain, and manage circles. In addition, the Google+ Domains API enables Google Apps domain administrators to pre-populate the circles of new employees, or review sharing activity.

For example, Ocado is building a tool that uses the Google+ Domains API to regularly sync team membership stored in Active Directory with the circles of their employees. This will ensure that every employee always has an up to date circle containing the other members of their team. Cloudlock is using the Google+ Domains API to add support for Google+ to its suite of data loss prevention, governance, and compliance applications.



Any developer can begin developing with the Google+ Domains API today. However only members of a Google Apps domain can use Google+ Domains API applications. To get started check out the documentation. If you have any questions, you can consult the google-plus tag on Stack Overflow, or join the “Developing with Google+” community.


Posted by Thor Mitchell, Product Manager, Google+ API


Cross posted to the Google Apps Developer blog