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This is Episode 8 of This Old New Business weekly business podcast with Jeff Korhan.
Earlier this year Social Media Examiner released an extensive social media marketing industry report that revealed learning Google+ was a top priority for businesses.
One of the reasons for this is they intuitively understand Google+ impacts Google search results. However, there is a lot of confusion as to how that works and what steps should be taken to leverage that possibility.
During our conversation, Martin Shervington shared an interesting perspective on this. He said, “Google+ isn’t just another Facebook or Twitter. This thing is different.”
It is different! This is why some people have a hard time wrapping their minds around Google+. You’ll want to listen to this episode more than once as Martin breaks it all down for us.
Our Featured Guest: Martin Shervington
Martin Shervington is an executive coach, business consultant, and marketing psychologist whose work centers on communication, people, and technology in modern life. He splits his time between the UK and the United States working on a number of web marketing projects, with a great majority of them involving Google and Google+.
Google+ is Google
There are two aspects to Google+. One is that Google+ is a destination or identity service. This first quality is the evolution of Google+ from what was originally Google Profiles.
Make no mistake, this quality of Google+ is invaluable for amplifying your personal identity in search results. Everyone should be diligent about ensuring their personal profile includes up-to-date feeds of all of the content published on the web that they author in full or part.
However, when Martin states that Google+ is Google, he is referring to much more than its ownership. The larger picture is the social layer of Google+ that runs through all the Google services, including Gmail, YouTube, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Now, and many, many more.
Thus, given that the various Google services affect your presence online, and therefore within search, that Google+ layer that integrates all of them is indeed Google. They are one and the same.
Google+ Influences Google
Google is an interactive community ecosystem that is more than the sum of its individual sites. For example, comments on your YouTube channel extend to your Google+ profile and that of the commenter, as well as with everyone you are both connected to on Google+.
Looking at the reverse, if you share a post on Google+ and someone with greater authority then shares it again, Google will most likely rank their Google+ share higher than yours – the original source.
The collective authority of Google+ communities is effectively shared by all. Tweet this
If there is one clear takeaway from this episode, it is that Google+ communities are searchable, micro-engines that can amplify your content within search.
This Thing is Different
Since Google killed Google Authorship, there has been some speculation that Google may kill Google+ too. Martin disagrees with that speculation for the simple reason that Google+ is the next generation of Google.
Unlike Google+, Facebook and Twitter stand alone, whereas Google+ integrates with the entire Google ecosystem. Therefore, killing off Google+ would be like killing the body to eradicate a cancer. It doesn’t make any sense.
If you are new to Google+ it will take some time to get accustomed to it. However, keep in mind that with other networks, you are the user and advertisers are the true customers. Whereas, at least for now, Google+ is designed exclusively for people like you that want to build community and amplify their content in search.
Is your business ready to learn and adapt?
Lighting Round Tips and Advice
Martins’s Top Sales or Marketing Advice – Build relationships that allow your 100 brand evangelists to tell the world that you are amazing.
His Favorite Productivity Tip – Use Google Drive – especially if you work with an assistant and teams.
Two Quotes that Inspired Martins’s Success – “Fortune favors the bold” and “A man chasing two rabbits catches neither.”
Key Take-Aways
- There are two aspects to Google+: 1. A social destination. 2. A contextual social layer that integrates with other sites within the Google ecosystem.
- Here’s the Official Google+ Help Center that Martin mentioned.
- Go to Get Your Business on Google to ensure it is part of the extensive Google ecosystem.
- Here’s the link to What is Google+? A Complete User Guide by Martin Shervington that includes video tutorials, a blog, and more.
- You can learn more about Martin at the PlusYourBusiness.com community, where you can get the Google+ Quickstarter Guide.
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About the Author: Jeff Korhan, MBA, is the author of Built-In Social: Essential Social Marketing Practices for Every Small Business and host of This Old New Business podcast.
He helps mainstream businesses adapt their traditional growth practices to a digital world. Connect with Jeff on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Google+
Mike Gingerich is best known as the co-founder of Tabsite, a leading Facebook Page app platform for contests and lead capture. He is also a Facebook marketing speaker, strategist, and writer for notable business publications.
