Google+ Brings Change To Search Engine Optimization

Google+ stormed into the social networking arena two weeks ago, as of the time of this post.  Even with its limited rollout, invitation only currently, there are more than 10 million members already. 

While it may or may not be a Facebook killer, (not!), it’s a game changer and Facebook is raising its game as well.  Going forward, everyone wins as social networking venues change and improve.  Our need to be social probably hasn’t changed much in a few thousand years.  But the venues and platforms available to us have…in the last couple of weeks.

Google+ Venues Change The Landscape

But Google+ changes the landscape for search engine optimization as well as social media optimization.  Google+ arrived with a lot of new features or social venues that differentiate it from FaceBook.  These include Circles, Sparks, +1, Huddles and Hangouts, in addition to posts.  Other than the social media impact of these venues, let’s look at what they mean for search engine optimization.

Circles Of Influence

Google+ Circles are a way to organize your contacts.  You put people into one or more circles that talk about your relationship level with them and your common interests.  If your niche is dog training, you’d be interested in circles of dog lovers.  Circles are also a popularity vote for a person.  Membership by the same person in  a lot of different circles for different people infers a lot.  It conveys that the person may be  influential, respected, popular, maybe authoritative.  Google may be able to assign “authority” to people as well as web sites based on circle membership.

Here’s a quick video on understanding and using CirclesYou need to a flashplayer enabled browser to view this YouTube video

Posts

Posts in Google+ can be public, meaning they are available for the search engine robots.  As of the first of July, 2011, Google no longer offers Twitter feeds as part of the search results.  It makes sense that Google would add muscle to both Google+ and its search results by combining the two.  Expect to see Google+ feeds as part of the Google search results sooner than later.

Also, different from FaceBook, you can share posts with specific circles, so not everyone who sees your profiles sees every post.  Different audiences include:

  • Your Circles
  • Extended Circles – Everyone in your circles and everyone in theirs
  • Public – The web.  You now have a public Google page.  Everything you post to the public goes  on that page.

One last cool thing about posts.  I added a couple of the Google+ team members to one of my circles.  So I get some great content in my Google+ stream as they post!

Google+ Sparks

Google+ Sparks may be the best thing to come along for the niche marketer yet.  Sparks delivers the content to you! 

Instead of you searching for content on what interests you, the content finds you.  You identify your interests to Sparks, like fishing, football, video games, and Sparks brings the content to you.  It’s like having the newspaper (remember the newspaper?), delivered to your doorstep, but it only includes the sections you’re interested in.

If you’re successful in SEO, or want to be, you want to get your content picked up by Sparks.  It’s not there yet, but Sparks represents a whole new way to reach your niche in the social network community.

Check out more on Google Sparks in this video.You need to a flashplayer enabled browser to view this YouTube video

Google+ is A Game Changer

You may want to remember that you were there when Google+ started.  It’s a game changer day one.  It offers exciting new venues like those mentioned above. 

And it’s still under construction.  At the time this is being written, it’s still considered a beta product and is available by invitation only.  Yet it already has over 10 million members, even with this limited roll out.

 

What’s Next?
At some point, you’ll have business and brand pages, probably even a Google+ URL to put on your web site and business card.  Google+ is new and it’s still being developed and expanded.  The social venues (Circles, Sparks, Huddles, and Hangouts), are only the beginning.

You need to a flashplayer enabled browser to view this YouTube video

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