Internet Marketing 101: Google+ for Business

Have you been hearing any of the chatter about Google+? This version of the Google Search Engine for networking allows for increased functionality than a standard Google profile and takes into consideration the social focus of today’s web user. Keeping this in mind, it was only a matter of time before Google+ and its enhanced options was turned towards the business web user.

Recently, the buzz about Google+ for business has seen significant traffic increases, but according to a recent article on www.cio.com, Google+ for business, while in the works, is not ready for interested business owners to begin building their business profiles just yet.

“To the thousands upon thousands of businesses that applied to be a part: THANK YOU!” wrote Christian Oestlien, a developer on Google +, adding that Google plans to select a diverse group of businesses next week. “We won’t be able to accommodate everyone, but your interest has got us very focused on accelerating our development plans… . We will be communicating with these [new] partners next week, and will let the world know who they are soon thereafter.”

“Please note that we are still actively closing profiles that are being used by businesses today,” Oestlien wrote. “Stay engaged on Google+ with your personal account and continue to send us your excellent feedback. We’ll continue to be very proactive in communicating with everyone around our plans for businesses.”

So, Why the Buzz Anyway?

Since it isn’t recommended that Google+ business profiles be pursued right now, business owners should take the development time to understand the benefits of Google+ so when the time comes that they do have the option to build their Google+ business profile, they have a clear understanding of the benefits and tools available to their business. Here are a few to note:

• Create a Vanity URL for your Google+ Profile – Similar to facebook’s vanity url, Google+ allows for a custom url for your profile when it is created with gplus.to: before the chosen username for a url that will show as gplus.to/yourusername.
• Share to your Google+ Profile from your Gmail Account – A great tool to save time when you want to share content you have in your Gmail account to your Google+ profile. No need to log out to post.
• Build your Google+ network with Circles – Like other Social Media profiles, Google+ allows you to network with other site users and expand your content reach.

Although Google+ for business is still in the works, like developer Christian Oestlien suggested, companies that are considering Google+ for business should engage in the personal profiles available on Google+ to learn the options and tools the site offers so they’re ready to engage when Google+ for business is ready to go.