Is a Google+ Presence Important for Your Company?

In recent years, experts in social media have often debated the role of Google+ among other predominant platforms. Some are of the opinion that it’s a platform that’s doing well with a steady growth; others feel that it’s not in the league of other popular social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Tumblr.

With the little data available, we are unable to paint a clear picture. One study touted Google+ as the second most-deployed social network in the world. Many recent studies related to social media usage do not even mention Google+. A marketing research center reporting on social media adoption of Fortune 500 companies showed that a mere 35% of large companies had a Google+ account, as compared to 70% with Facebook accounts and 77% being on Twitter.

If you’re mulling about whether or not your company should consider Google+, remember an important thing: Google+ is one of Google’s products. So when you’re deciding whether to have a Google+ presence for your enterprise, there are some implications you need to take into account.

SEO

Google applies indexes to Google+ content just like it does for all web pages. So Google+ content contributes towards your SEO ranking in totality. Also with Google+ posts, your content becomes more searchable and it features higher up in search results. In addition, it will be seen in the search results for longer periods than posts on other social platforms.

Google+ Hashtags

According to a recent announcement from Google, Google+ hashtags are now available through a Google search. For example, if you’re looking for some social media tips, Googling for “#socialmediatips,” will show you the regular search results and something more. At the right of the page, you’ll now be able to view posts on Google+ which include the hashtag #socialmediatips.

Now this is significant because of two reasons. Firstly, the right corner of every Google search web page is an area which is quite seriously sought-after. Secondly, it’s not necessary that all users looking for specific hashtags have Google+ accounts themselves. Even if they do, they might not necessarily be members of your Google+ group.

When you’re posting content on Google+, you’re able to reach your own Google+ followers as well as reach out to people outside the network in a systematic and impactful manner. An important thing you need to ensure is that your posts are tagged with popular SEO terms which are relevant to you.

YouTube Comments

Recently, Google announced that Google+ would soon power YouTube comments. If your business has a weighted presence on the YouTube platform, you will not be able to continue in full strength for very much longer if you don’t get on to Google+.

Once you’ve ascertained the proportions of your audience on Google+, with the resources you possess for support of the platform, and the other factors mentioned above, you may decide that the launch of a Google+ page for your company is not worthwhile. This is fine. But don’t make the mistake of writing it off completely. If eventually Google decides to make Google+ integrated with all its products, it’s in your own interest to keep a watch on the repercussions.