There’s been a lot of talk about Google+ recently, and with the stark decline in Facebook shares and recent leveling-off of Pinterest, many are looking back at Google+ with interest. But how can medical practices and healthcare professionals use Google+ for their own marketing benefit? Is it the next big thing in social media, or just another Google fad that will come and go just as Google Health and Google Wave?
What is Google Plus?
Google+ is Google’s version of social media. It integrates every aspect of your Google accounts, including Picasa (photos), Gmail, Google Docs, Blogger, and any other Google services that you and your business uses. Instead of Friend Lists (Facebook), Google uses Circles to help you categorize your Google+ connections. By simply clicking and dragging (very easy) you can instantly categorize every single person and business that you are connected with into these circles.
Google+ is also closely integrated with Google Search, so that you can conduct a search within Google+, see what others in your local area are up to and/or interested in, see what’s trending for business purposes, monitor your brand on a local level, even rate web pages so that your Google+ connections will have a better search experience.
And don’t forget, it’s social, so you can share photos, websites, links, news stories, or status updates.
Why You Need a Google+ Page
You need to be in full control of your brand online, and that means in every market. This is just one of the reasons why you need a presence on Google+. The second reason; great search results value. Simply speaking, having a Google+ presence increases your odds of ranking better in a Google search, especially if the Google user has already connected with you in some way on Google+.
Search Plus Your World is Google’s newest invention that integrates seamlessly with Google+. In this search environment, let’s say that a user searches Google for Maricopa OBGYN. This user is automatically logged into Google when they go to their Google+ page, and they’ve already connected with you in some way through Google+, whether it’s viewing your images or sharing a link. Simply because that person has connected with you in some way on Google+, there is a much higher chance that you will show up in a relatively high position in the search results.
In other words, anyone logged into their Google account will see the content that they’ve either shared, or that’s been shared with them, before any other results. If this isn’t enough incentive for you to get your business on Google+, how about the fact that Google+ has over 200 million users and is steadily rising. It is projected to reach over 400 million by the end of 2012.
Need help setting up a Google+ page and maintaining your brand on Google+? At Quaintise, we have professionals skilled in all forms of social media, including Google+. Give us a call today for more information.