Google+ continues to grow larger and larger on a daily basis due to all the benefits that come with using it. Most people know it just as a social networking site, but it can also be a major marketing tool that will help any business or content marketer increase their revenue.
Better Rankings with Google+
As all marketers that have a decent online presence know, search engine optimization is one of the biggest aspects to think about when trying to get quality traffic to their sites. Having an optimized Google+ account will prove to have multiple different ways to help you increase your rankings within the search engine. The first example would be that they allow lots of different social circles for different audiences, and anyone that is within those social circles will automatically have you rank higher on their search results. Blogs and websites will have the same principal work for them as well, and if you link them directly to your G+ account, they will rank even higher due to the quality link and your optimized Google page.
After some time of placing quality content and proving to Google that you can attract a good volume of traffic, they will then provide you an author ranking. The reason this new program, called Google Authorship, has been created is to help provide searchers receive the best content they possibly can. The higher the authorship ranking is, the higher they will rank in the search engine. Content marketers should keep this in mind because it has the potential to be a very large part in making them successful. Although this does help with SEO, it also will provide proof that you are an authority within your niche, which will then attract even more people.
People with their websites and blogs directly linked to their Google+ account will have access to using an option called direct connect. What this does is allows people that see you on their search results to directly add you to their circles without needing to go to your G+ page. This makes it a much easier process for people to add you, and also gives you more of a chance to have more exposure.
Optimizing your G+ page isn’t too hard and can be pretty straight forward. One thing to make sure is completed as soon as possible is adding the recommended links. Google allows pages to have a limited number of links, which will automatically be ranked higher due to the high-quality link. Make sure that the links you provide are your highest quality and main links to attract as many visitors as you possibly can. You will also be able to have pictures within your page, which can make your page much more entertaining. These pictures are referenced by Google, which will help increase your branding and overall visibility.
Other Content Marketing Bonuses with G+
Although search engine optimization is one of the biggest parts of content marketing, it is certainly not the only option to pursue. Google+ has many other options to help with content marketing and will continue to provide new and innovative ways in the future.
We will cover a few examples, first being, dashboard features. Using the ripple feature will allow you to be able to identify who the biggest users are that will be able to help give your content to the biggest audience. You will also be able to monitor your brand, competition, and the people that promote your content. This will be a massive help by reducing the amount of research needed to be completed and allowing you to do other important things.
Different from the social circle part of G+, you will also have the option to visit hangouts. One of the best features is the video chat option, you will be able to find other people with the same interests and promote any content that you like. You will be able to share your screen, record conversations for later use, or even have a live on-air streaming option. Find a like-minded person that is within your niche and host a padded cast live! The podcast can attract listeners and then you will be able to promote it on other sites to attract even more people.
Although a lot of content marketers are a strictly online business only, G+ can really help if you have a local presence. Including your hours of operation and a map with directions is just a start. Customers will be able to write reviews as well as score you on the experience they had, which can really boost your brand and customer base if the reviews are very good. You will also be ranked higher in the search engines when a local search is done for your services or products.
There are so many other benefits that come with using G+ but these are just a few of the main ones. If you haven’t already created a G+ account, then you are missing out. Once you have created the page and notice its powerful effects, you will soon realize what you have been missing this entire time.
Promote your G+ Page
Once you have established and optimized your G+ page, you can then promote the page directly and not just the content within it. Even without promoting the page, you will still receive many benefits, but a page with a higher amount of traffic will give you the opportunity to attract new followers and increase your search engine rankings even more.
If you already have a decent size following within other social media sites, then use them to your advantage! Post something of very high quality, then pass the link on to the other sites and you will see your number skyrocket. Asking people to join you in G+ without any incentive will usually not work since people don’t really care enough, so you have to give them a good reason. Once they decide to click the link to your G+ account, they will soon love the content and follow you.
Promoting your page within your field of work is always a great idea as well. Since the people within your field already know about the niche you’re in, making friends and contacts is easy and fun. With new partnerships, you have different options to help each other promote each of your different contents.