understanding google+Today, every website is integrated with Facebook, Twitter and the +1 button. The idea behind such buttons is simple. It helps visitors share you content easily on the social media sties like Facebook, Twitter and Google +. With search engines giving more importance to content popularity, it makes perfect sense to create relevant, fresh and shareable content.

But, as a business you can do better than that. You need to take proactive steps to improve the chances of your content to be shared. Just waiting and hoping isn’t going to be enough. This is where the use of a social networking services like Google+ step in. Google, like Facebook and Twitter, has quickly recognized the potential of social platforms for business promotion and now offers a business ‘Google+ for business. It allows businesses to create their own identity on this social platform and starting a conversation by posting their content, or directly joining an existing conversation. This leaves no room for doubt that the content is going to reach your target audience.

Google+ helps you directly engage with people who visit your Google+ page. But this is not the end of it, rather it’s the beginning. Engagement helps build relationships, which in turn leads to improving your brand’s credibility and reputation. What’s more, your profile on Google+ will help you target specific customers groups that have been categorized according to certain parameters set by you. This ensures that your message reaches the people you want.

Face to Face Conversation with Hangouts

Say you are a restaurant specializing in oriental cuisine, and are hosting a Korean food week. With the use of ‘Hangouts’ on Google+, you can talk to a group of 9 people directly through high-quality video chats about the kind of food that is going to be a part of this event. This is just one way you can use ‘Hangouts’ for your promotional endeavors. Think of it is as your own personal space where you can hang out with people who you want to get to know better, and who want to know more about your business.

Target smaller audiences with Circles

Rather than targeting a huge audience, wouldn’t you rather divide the audience into smaller groups and tackle each group individually. This is possible by using the ‘circles’ feature. This allows you to customize a message specific to the particular group that you want to target. Persuasion has more chances of succeeding if the message is pertinent to a particular group of people, because you are able to construct a message that is aligned with the interests and preferences of your target group.

The use of ‘Circles’ also helps you offer products deals and discounts to specific groups. At the end of the day, by grouping your followers, you are improving the marketability of your business.

Google Search and Google+

Obviously, the fact that you are using Google+ is going to have an effect on your search engine rankings on Google. It’s the best way that Google can get more and more people to use Google+. So, let’s take a look at how a combination of the Google+ and +1 button will lead to higher SERPs for your website. Start off by making sure that you have a +1 button integrated on your site, after that ensure that your site is linked to your Google+ page. What this does is that all the +1s that you get from your Page and your website will be tallied into one single total. This total will have a positive impact on your search engine rankings.

Think of all the +1s that your website or page gets, as your recommendations and viewers will be able to see these when they come across your website search result, your website or even your Google+ page. It’s the kind of visibility that you simply don’t want to miss.

To put it in a nutshell, you can use Google+ to not just reach a wider audience, but reach the kind of audience that is really interested in doing business with you. At the same time, it helps you improve your search rankings. It’s like an all in one social marketing package that is configured for business success.