In our last post, we gave you the scoop on the features that would be available to businesses once Google+ greets them with open arms. Below I wanted to outline specifically what it is that Google+ Pages will bring to your social media tool belt that will be good for small to medium-sized businesses. See below for the top 5:

• A New Meaning for Live Streaming? Recently, Google disabled Realtime Search, which displayed tweets from Twitter and posts from Facebook. The end of Realtime Search might be a hint for what Google has planned for the future – Google’s live feed. If Google integrated this feature into its search options businesses with a Google+ page could utilize live streaming to appear organically in real-time on a search query.

• Location, Location, Location. Facebook uses location so it’s inevitable that Google+ will too. Companies may also have the ability to link their Google+ to their Google Maps and Google Places listings. The Google+ profile “Info” could be directly linked to a Google Places page. This could also allow users to have a live feed of business reviews from customers and feedback or promotions from the business owners and employees all in one place.

• Apps & More. Google’s Apps for Business productivity suite offers businesses everything they need & more once you look at the benefits of being able to share spreadsheets, calendars and documents online. These tools, in addition to Google’s booming Apps Marketplace & Google+ provide companies with a web presence and social networking platform in one – quite possibly the perfect pair.

• Click +1. Facebook users can “Like” and comment on Web pages, but Google lets you help your friends find the best products, sites and services by simply clicking “+1″. The Google+1 system only arrived in March, but is quickly catching on. If Google+ grows in popularity, it’s possible that the “+1″ could become the new “Like.”

• Google+ Sells. Google+ may be competing with more than just Facebook. PayPal may also have a new rival in the Google Checkout payment system. If Google+ utilized the Google Checkout system on business pages, customers could actually purchase products on Google+ business pages.

Taking a new spin-off of what is currently available to you through Facebook Pages, Google+ is planned to be much more robust. It will be interesting to see who wins out in the long run, but one thing is certain: If your target audience is represented on Google+, your brand definitely should be as well.

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