16 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
16 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

Offline Marketers: Google Plus Brand Pages Are Here!

by JR Consulting
12 replies
Google+ Brand Pages are finally here!


Google+ Pages Now Open For Businesses, Brands, Places & More

Finally, Google is now allowing businesses, brands and any non-human entity to participate in its Google+ social network, through new Google+ Pages that are launching today, promised to be available to everyone within the next two days.
If you’re creating a page for a local business, you have special options including the ability to enter a phone number. From Google’s help page on the topic:

Local Google+ pages are unique from other categories of pages because they have features that allow customers to easily connect with that business’s physical location. For example, local pages include a map of the business’s location and feature its address, phone number, and hours of operation.

Of course, many local businesses have already claimed their pages in the completely separate Google Places. Much of the information that Google+ Pages for local businesses wants — and more — are on those pages. But they remain unconnected. Google tells me:

Currently, Place pages and Google+ Pages must be managed separately. A Place page provides information about a business and makes it easy for customers to find local businesses on Google Maps and local search; while a Google+ page provides business owners with additional ways to engage, build relationships and interact directly with customers.
Google+ Launches Branded Pages

Google has finally unveiled brand pages for Google+, allowing businesses and brands to join Google’s social network.

“So far Google+ has focused on connecting people with other people,” Google SVP of Social Vic Gundotra said in a blog post. “But we want to make sure you can build relationships with all the things you care about—from local businesses to global brands—so today we’re rolling out Google+ Pages worldwide.”
Google Direct Connect Hooks Search and Google+ Pages Together

Direct Connect gives Google+ Brand pages a leg up on Facebook Pages, Twitter profiles and even brand websites. The link appears just under the search box, so it essentially acts like a search result above the search engine page. It’s also the only operator that takes users directly out of Google Search and to another website.
#brand #google #marketers #offline #pages
  • Profile picture of the author iAmNameLess
    This is interesting but I have to admit, I think Google + is a huge failure. Of course nothing google does is really a failure but it is just my opinion. It will definitely be interesting to see how this pans out.
    Signature
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5009398].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author JR Consulting
      Originally Posted by iAmNameLess View Post

      This is interesting but I have to admit, I think Google + is a huge failure. Of course nothing google does is really a failure but it is just my opinion. It will definitely be interesting to see how this pans out.
      Almost 100 million members in a few months, and it's a huge failure? I'll take a huge failure like that any day of the week, and twice on Sundays.

      Now that brands are allowed to have pages on there, it's only going to ramp things up for them, in my opinion.

      The relative success or failure of G+ aside, this is a must for your local clients. It's one more tool in the brand/reputation management toolbox, and one more place for a business to engage with their customers and prospects... especially the ones that are searching on Google.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5009445].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author iAmNameLess
        Originally Posted by Jeffrey Reidy View Post

        Almost 100 million members in a few months, and it's a huge failure? I'll take a huge failure like that any day of the week, and twice on Sundays.

        Now that brands are allowed to have pages on there, it's only going to ramp things up for them, in my opinion.

        The relative success or failure of G+ aside, this is a must for your local clients. It's one more tool in the brand/reputation management toolbox, and one more place for a business to engage with their customers and prospects... especially the ones that are searching on Google.
        I don't know where you got that info from. It had 10 million in July, 40 million right now according to a press release from 1 hour ago in the new york times blog. I think Google expected faster growth too, although they are growing rapidly, I just don't think it will ever compete with facebook. Imagine if facebook releases a search engine... that would shake things up quite a bit!

        I mean, I agree with you, its another tool to use. 40 Million users is nothing to shrug at. I'm just interested in seeing how it REALLY pans out. In theory it should be huge, in practice, we don't know yet.
        Signature
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5009524].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author JR Consulting
          Originally Posted by iAmNameLess View Post

          I don't know where you got that info from. It had 10 million in July, 40 million right now according to a press release from 1 hour ago in the new york times blog. I think Google expected faster growth too, although they are growing rapidly, I just don't think it will ever compete with facebook. Imagine if facebook releases a search engine... that would shake things up quite a bit!

          I mean, I agree with you, its another tool to use. 40 Million users is nothing to shrug at. I'm just interested in seeing how it REALLY pans out. In theory it should be huge, in practice, we don't know yet.
          My bad, that 100 million figure was a projection, based on the 43.4 million that it hit back in September, according to Paul Allen, who is the official unofficial guru of G+ numbers.
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5009646].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author TWalker
    Of course it is important. Do you think this will not extend to Google Places? Places already looks at whether you have a website, whether you have a mobile site, whether you have a Youtube video....and you think this is not a part of the bigger scheme?

    It is another piece of the G-Puzzle.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5010176].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author JR Consulting
      Originally Posted by TWalker View Post

      Of course it is important. Do you think this will not extend to Google Places? Places already looks at whether you have a website, whether you have a mobile site, whether you have a Youtube video....and you think this is not a part of the bigger scheme?

      It is another piece of the G-Puzzle.
      I'm actually hoping that they merge them with the Places listings, or at least offer that option. From what I hear, it's in the pipeline.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5010809].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author wilder1047
    Wow.

    I was a little skeptical at first aswell, but when you see how they're showing up in the top of search results.

    You know how amazingly fantastic that is for us to sell these pages to Biz owners?!?!

    While some people may struggle to understand the benefits of social media - it's hard for them to deny the importance of being in Google!

    This is the ultimate in branding.

    Thanks for the share.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5010211].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author JR Consulting
      Originally Posted by wilder1047 View Post

      Wow.

      I was a little skeptical at first aswell, but when you see how they're showing up in the top of search results.

      You know how amazingly fantastic that is for us to sell these pages to Biz owners?!?!

      While some people may struggle to understand the benefits of social media - it's hard for them to deny the importance of being in Google!

      This is the ultimate in branding.

      Thanks for the share.
      You're welcome. I think it would be wise for people to jump all over this opportunity.

      I created mine earlier, and the functionality is pretty limited (it's nothing like Facebook pages in terms of that you can do with it right now), but I can see a hybrid Places/Brand Page replacing websites for a lot of small businesses. Call me crazy, and say what you want about letting a 3rd party control your content, but that's where I see things going.

      The buzz for G+ died down a bit since July, but it's far from a failure. It's still the fastest growing social network ever, and Google is still integrating it with ALL of their other services (Reader just integrated with it recently).
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5010838].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Touch993
    This is an exciting development. For the search engine FindFiles.net we have created our corporate G+ page:
    plus.google.com/105572640439945356224/posts
    It will be interesting to see how these brand pages will work out.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5012551].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author localbusinessguy
    Sounds very interesting.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5012713].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author fmnelly
    i dont really understand these google plus it seems cloudy
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5012741].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author JR Consulting
      And then there is this...

      Google+ Pages For Businesses: The AdWords Impact

      Google's introduction yesterday of Google+ Pages for businesses will likely have a dramatic impact on +1s in AdWords.

      When businesses create a Page on Google+, they can link the page to their web site URLs and also to their AdWords account. When that's done, +1s for any of the linked URLs -- on web sites or landing pages for AdWords ads -- will all accrue to the brand, making the numbers much larger.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[5014443].message }}

Trending Topics