What Is All the Fuss About Google Plus?

Google+ (pronounced and sometimes written as Google Plus) is a social networking and identity service.  Google has described Google+ as a "social layer" that enhances many of its online services, and that it is not simply a social networking website, but also an authorship tool that associates web-content directly with its owner/author.

It is the second-largest social networking site in the world after Facebook. 540 million monthly active users are part of the Identity service site, by interacting socially with Google+'s enhanced properties, like Gmail, +1 button, and YouTube comments.  Google counted 540 million active users who used at least one Google+ service.

In a 2013 survey, 30% of surveyed smartphone users used the Google Plus app at least once a month.

Why is Google+ Important if You Are In Business?

Google+ is linked with a number of other Google services such as Google Maps and You Tube.  Therefore if you have a local business and you want to be found online it is important that your business has a coherent representation across not only Google’s natural search results but also within Map listings and Google+. 

For example – A simple search for “Italian Restaurants Manchester” gives the following results:

Content from Google+ appears throughout the search results.  This content is partly generated by the local business and partly by customers of that business (eg Reviews & Comments).  However it is important that the business owns and manages its Google+ pages effectively to ensure the listing is accurate and appears within the search results.

Many potential customers will access information via their mobile device.  A recent study in the UK showed 70% of people between 16 and 64 in the UK own a Smartphone,  and that between 57%-70% of those used the device to search for information of products & services. 

The search results on a mobile device show a similar trend of Google+ driven results.  The most prominent listings can often be derived directly from the content contained within the Google+ Local (Map) listing.

Therefore as a business owner it is essential to ensure that not only your website, but also you Google+ content are coherent, properly formatted and linked with all your online assets.

A simplified representation of a coherent layout is shown below.  In this case, a Google+ profile owns the Google+ Local Business Listing and also the business’s YouTube Channel.  This is all linked to the business website.