Your business has a Facebook page. If you’re really ambitious, you’re tweeting its praises. So why in the world would you expend any more of your precious energy on another social media site? Opinions on the value of Google+ are certainly mixed among marketing professionals, but you should at least have some basic information before you decide to dive in head first or head for the hills.
If it Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It.
Google has kept most of the basic functions necessary for a proper social media experience for both its individual profiles and business pages. You can share the same content, including photos, videos and articles. People can comment on your posts and you can do the same. And, of course, there’s a mobile app to do it all on the go.
Selective Sharing
A main selling point Google+ touted upon its launch was its use of Circles. Rather than “friending” someone, users can add people or pages to their Circles. No permission is needed, but the person being followed is notified and can opt to follow back. When you choose to follow a person, you put them in one or more of your Circles. You can then choose who can view your shared content.
Personal profiles are given default Circles: Family, Friends, Acquaintances and Following. The Circles feature can be very helpful for those who don’t want their New Year’s Eve photos popping up on Grandma’s stream.
Business pages utilize Circles, as well. If your company serves several different demographics, you may want to specify which of those groups receives certain information and content. As with Facebook, businesses cannot solicit people to follow a Google+ business page. However, once someone does follow your page, you can add them to your Circles and their activity will show up in your stream.
Do You “Like” It?
If you like a photo someone posts on Facebook, you can “Like” it. If you like a photo someone posts on Google+, you can “+1” it. The same goes for that interesting article you read or that great post by your favorite blogger. But, Google+ lets users do something they can’t on Facebook. Type anything in a Google search box and it’ll give you results. Google+ lets you “+1” any of those results. You can even “+1” a resulting article about why Facebook is better than Google+.
So, why does that matter? Well, because Google is the largest search engine in the world. Companies spend a lot of money on search engine optimization (SEO) to make sure their websites get to the top of Google’s results. The more interaction Google sees on your website, the higher your site will rank, meaning those “+1”s can add up to a better chance of being found by potential customers.
An Internal Tool
Google+ has some additional tools that make it great for collaborating among colleagues. The Hangout feature allows up to 10 people to video chat with each other. The screen sharing option lets all users see what one person is viewing on their computer. Integration with Google Docs means one document can be viewed and edited by multiple people in the Hangout. Hangouts even allows for phone participation if a computer is unavailable.
Hangouts can also be used to gain a more personal interaction with followers. Companies are already hosting Hangouts to share tips and information and gain feedback from customers.
Getting Started
So, you’ve decided to at least try out Google+. What’s the harm, right? Setting up an account is pretty simple. You need a Google account to start. If you have a Gmail-supported address, you can log in with that. You’ll just need to create a public profile. Once you have your own Google+ profile and are logged in, you’ll see the square Google+ Pages icon on the right side of your screen with the option to “Create a Google+ page.” Once you click it, you’re guided step by step to create a basic page.
We all know basic doesn’t cut it in the world of social media, however. You’ll have to jazz it up a bit with photos and interesting content. Don’t just dump over everything from your Facebook page, though. Take this as an opportunity to start over with best practices for social media.
Here are some quick tips to keep in mind:
- Post relevant and interesting content at least once a week.
- Use the “Search Google+” bar to find conversations about your product or cause.
- Search for other pages to follow that relate to your business.
- Use the “Recommended Links” section to direct people to your other social media pages.
And, don’t be afraid to look around a little (or a lot) to see what other companies are doing and how it might work for you. Google+ is relatively new to everyone and we’ll definitely be seeing some changes, so don’t worry if you don’t get everything right away!
This article was originally printed in the January 2012 issue of the The Rockford Chamber VOICE.
Liz Kulevich
