Google+ is looking better than ever for use by small to medium size businesses and individuals. The simplistic design of the Google+ profile is refreshing in comparison to the new – and extremely busy Facebook site. Google+ has not given businesses permission to set up Google+ pages yet, but it has allowed GM & Ford to set up test profiles. So far, Ford Motor Company’s page is significantly more developed than General Motor’s page.

Google+ reported that a business variant of Google+ pages is set to launch later this year. Entrepreneur.com reported that Christian Oestlien, the advertising lead for Google+, said the new business pages will include “things like rich analytics and the ability to connect that identity to other parts of Google that businesses might use on a daily basis, like AdWords,” he added.

Below are the benefits we compiled of developing a Google+ page based off of Ford Motor Company’s Google+ page:

Google+ Page Features:

o Buzz: “Goes beyond status messages”
 Users can share updates, photos, videos, & more with the circle of their choice. They can also start conversation about things you find interesting.
 Allows users to connect on other sites they already use and has inbox integration.

o +1: Anyone can instantly see how many times a link/information has been shared by users.
 +1 is designed to “get a conversation going.” By clicking +1 a user gives something “their public stamp of approval” – then they can immediately share with their Google+ “circle” of choice.
 Once a user +1’s a topic or item on the next, the next time friends and contacts search on Google, they might see their friends’ recommendation, giving web users the power to help their friends narrow down their search.

o Circles:
 Users can separate friends from the companies they follow
 Allows companies to specifically target certain users by dividing the users into different groups and tailoring specific messages to those users. Circles could help marketers target and tailor messages to a specific audience.

o Hangouts:
 David Armerland’s article “Google+ Business Accounts: What Can You Expect?” said it best: “If we look at Ford’s example of using hangouts, the group video conferencing feature of Google+, to connect directly with relatively small groups of casual users and discuss subjects specific to their cars (like the recent move to integrate Spotify on-demand music services on some models) we can see how what appear to be relatively small, low-cost aspects of social media connections become the seeds which grow into successful viral campaigns.”

o Integration with Google Analytics style reporting tools: Business pages will see where visitors come from and they will also gain stats about how much interaction each visitor has with their actual page.

Pop Labs is gearing up several campaigns to launch once Google+ gives businesses the green light to proceed in a formal manner. We look forward to utilizing this new platform to grow the audience for each of our clients that will gain some benefit from their target audience enjoying Google+.

Need help with your Google+ strategy, get in touch and let us help!

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A little company called Google recently started a new project called Google+. If you haven’t heard or seen (and you don’t live under a rock), Google+ is Google’s social platform that looks to run with the likes of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. Fully integrating itself with the rest of the tools that Google has to offer will set this platform apart from the rest of its competitors.

QUICK OVERVIEW
Google+ features some of the same elements that all social media platforms have, but with their own Googley (yeah, that’s a word now) twist to it. There is a news feed type of element called “Stream.” This will look very similar to other platforms with constant updates of new posts from users that you have in your “Circles.” Circles are customizable, you can have separate circles for everybody in your life (friends, family, co-workers, haters, etc). Like Twitter’s platform, users that you add to your circles do not have to add you to their circles (and vice versa). There is also a place for photos, a group chat element called “Huddle,” and even a place to have group video chat called “Hangout.”

SOCIAL MEDIA OVERLOAD
While this may seem like one more thing to consume your business’s time and money, you must think in terms of depth. Let’s take a football team as an example:
Team One has 11 players – each player plays both offense and defense.
If anyone on Team One gets injured and can’t play, then there is no substitute and both sides of the ball will suffer. Not to mention the fact that every single player is going both ways and working twice as hard.

Team Two has 22 players. – 11 on offense and 11 on defense
If anyone on Team Two gets injured and can’t play, then there are no substitutes for each side. You must rely on a player from the opposite side of the ball to fill in the hole. While it can be done, this will most likely lead to numerous problems and missed assignments.

Team Three has the 44 players. – 11 on offense, 11 on defense, and 11 substitutes for both sides
If anyone on Team Three gets injured and can’t play, then any one of the numerous substitutes can fill in and keep the team pushing towards victory.

Now think of Team One as your business only using Facebook. You still have a chance of being successful, but your chances are less. Now think of Team Two as your business using Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Now your chances of success have just increased substantially. Finally, think of Team Three as your business using Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, AND Google+. You have now increased your chances to their fullest potential, and isn’t that what your social media strategy is all about? (Hint: You should answer yes to this question.)

Now that you are thinking of your social media strategy in terms of depth, you can easily see that adding something like Google+ would just further your chances of success. If any of the other platforms start to decline, then you have Google+ to pick up the slack (and vice versa).

Stay tuned for some follow up info on Google+ for businesses!

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Twitter and Facebook may be “what’s hot” for social networking, but with LinkedIn’s network of over 100 million professionals it’s quickly becoming a hotspot to help grow your B2B business. Most people are familiar with how to use LinkedIn on a personal level, but there are several features available to raise awareness and generate revenue for your business as a whole. The top ones are below:

• Make your profile complete and add keywords.
Your profile is the first thing other LinkedIn users see so it’s very important to list all relevant information about yourself. Also, LinkedIn profiles have a high PageRank on Google, so by completing your profile, adding keywords and making your profile available for search engines to index the easier it will be for people to find you.

• Make connections.
LinkedIn is a social network, but for building relationships with other professionals. You need to remember that this isn’t Facebook, Twitter or Myspace (heaven forbid) – we aren’t trying to be friends with everybody. Make valuable connections with other professionals that can help you promote your business and your own personal brand. You can search by industry, keywords, company and title to name a few. Take a look at business descriptions and connections to determine who would be the best contacts for you and don’t connect with anyone you don’t actually know – LinkedIn is not a popularity contest.

• Get recommendations.
Recommendations are the most looked for feature on your profile and can enhance your professional credibility, which will help make connections. Most importantly, don’t ask everybody for recommendations – only people that you know well. Always be sure to return the favor when appropriate!

• Use LinkedIn Answers.
The most powerful tool LinkedIn has to offer is LinkedIn Answers, which allows professionals to ask and answer questions about every possible business topic. The more answers that are chosen as the “best answer” can earn you the title “expert” in a certain field. Now that you demonstrated your knowledge or “expertise,” you have the opportunity to connect with the question-asker and anyone else that read the question and your subsequent answer.

• Join groups – or start your own.
LinkedIn’s Groups feature is a great way to stay informed and make new connections with other professionals that share your interests. There are hundreds of thousands of groups on LinkedIn and chances are you will find a few that will work for promoting and discussing your business. The more you interact with your groups the more exposure you will receive. Select groups that are appropriate for a business professional of your kind, but also be sure to get involved in groups where your PROSPECTS are – this way you will be on hand to sniff our opportunities.

LinkedIn allows professionals to connect with people they already know and to search for people they want to know. Spending some quality time on LinkedIn and using its features will help grow your business and generate revenue, especially for those of us who are too busy to do the amount of face to face networking we should be doing. LinkedIn is proving to be a very credible substitute for such in any B2B focused social media strategy.

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