Google+ is growing steadily and, whilst it may not yet have the same uptake of Twitter and Facebook, it’s getting to the point where it’s hard for some industries to ignore.
To start, you need to set up your profile, which is relatively similar to any other social network.Add your ‘about’ information, profile pictures and try understand the basic mechanics of circling, sharing, commenting.
Once you’ve done that, you’re ready to start building your business’s presence. Here are our top 7 tips for having a successful business account on Google+
1. Don’t hide the good stuff
With the ability to share content with specific groups of ‘circles’ we often find ourselves sharing directly with that circle and no one else. This is the wrong way of thinking. Gaining exposure and as much of it as possible you need to be casting your net far and wide, to do this share it with ‘public’ as well so new potential followers can find your content and connect with you.
2. Share Circles
A great way to get your content in front of new people and gain more followers is to share circles. Simply build a circle of great people to follow who are all a part of a particular niche and add yourself to it (just as long as you’re relevant to it!!) and share it. People will then follow this circle and share it with their followers – gaining you more and more new relevant followers!
Due to the viral effect this can have, it’s worth putting in some effort to make your circles as good as possible before sharing them.
3. Mention others
Find authorities within your niche and mention them, chances are they will get involved with the conversation, circle you and share your great content. Play on egos but don’t be a suck-up, no one likes that.
The same goes for giving credit, when sharing someone else’s content mention them, this will get their attention so they know you have shared their content and hopefully they will return the favour.
4. Help people
Its crazy the amount of questions that are asked on Google+ (and other social channels) that could be answered with a quick Google search. Fill in that gap and answer their questions. Google+ has a great search functionality that lets you find tons of people, all asking questions about your niche; you being the expert in your field can answer these questions and gain new advocates while you’re at it. (psst. If you don’t know the answer just Google it!)
5. Copy Competitors but be Original
Looking into what your competitors are doing can be a great insight, try figuring out what they are doing well and not so well and learn from this. At the same time don’t be a copy cat; you need to stand out from the crowd so experiment with your own ideas.
People use different social channels for different reasons and have different expectations so take your time to figure out what your audience responds to.
6. Don’t over promote
This golden rule should be used across all your social platforms. Don’t over promote. It’s simple. Share over people’s content in order to get your own content shared/liked/seen.
A general rule of thumb is to share 5-10 pieces of content owned by others before sharing your own, depending on how self promotional it is.
7. Don’t Expect Overnight Success
Social media takes tremendous effort. Effort that needs to be consistent on a daily basis! Don’t think just because you have a huge following on Facebook or Twitter that you will be an instant success on Google+, it’s a different beast and should be treated like one. Not only that G+ is fairly new to the game and like I said before it might not be the social platform for your audience.
Saying all that, make sure you make it as easy as possible for people to find you by adding it to your email signature, newsletter, business cards, website and anywhere else you find relevant.
Also consider adding exclusive G+ only content and promoting it across your other channels to encourage people to look at your profile and begin interacting with you on there.
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