Michael Waddington - Google+ for Business Owners

Lawyer Marketing Series

Google+ for Business Owners

A Step-by-Step Users Guide to Growing Your Small Business with Google+

By MICHAEL WADDINGTON, ESQ

&

ALEXANDRA GONZALEZ-WADDINGTON, ESQ

Google+ for Business Owners: A Step-by-Step Users Guide to Growing Your Small Business with Google+

Published by

Legal Niche Pros, LLC

601 North Belair Square, Suite 16

Evans, GA 30809

www.legalnichepros.com

Copyright 2013 Legal Niche Pros, LLC. All rights reserved.

Google, Google+, and the Google logo are registered trademarks of Google Inc.

Nothing contained in this book is to be considered as the rendering of legal advice for specific cases, and readers are responsible for obtaining such advice from their own legal counsel. This book and any forms, screenshots, diagrams, illustrations, and agreements are intended for educational, illustrative, and informational purposes only.

The products and services mentioned in this publication are under or may be under trademark or service mark protection. Product and service names and terms are used throughout only in an editorial fashion, to the benefit of the product manufacturer or service provider, with no intention of infringement. Use of a product or service name or term in this publication should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the authors. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.

Printed in the United States of America

First Printing: September 2013

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Overview

Google+ is the worlds second largest social networking site, with over 400 million registered users. Approximately half of the registered users are active users. As direct competition to Facebook, Google+ is linked to all other Google services, such as Gmail (Googles email system), YouTube, and Google Drive (previously Google Docs, their document sharing platform). This gives Google+ an advantage over its competition, which is currently limited to a one site, one platform design.

Google+ (pronounced Google Plus, abbreviated as G+ or GPlus) offers features such as Circles, a customizable way to group contacts, and Hangouts, a video chat system capable of linking up to ten contacts at once from your computer, tablet, or phone. Google+ also allows users to import contacts from Yahoo and Hotmail.

Google+ allows photo uploads of full-resolution photos as well as an automatic back-up feature for pictures you take with your phone. These images are stored online in a private album until you determine how you wish to share them. Video uploads are also supported. Like its competitors, Google+ also features customizable communities, where like-minded people can congregate to share ideas and information.

Originally designed as a personal social networking system, Google+, like Facebook, quickly became a platform for business marketing. Welcoming local businesses into the social world, Google launched Google+ Business Pages, a specifically designed network for marketing businesses. Google now mixes their search results with relevant local businesses, pulled from Google+ Business Pages.

Google+ is an indispensable tool for small businesses that want to generate new business through the Internet. When potential clients search for businesses in your market, not only will they see the usual search results, they might also see posts, customer reviews, photos, and videos from your Google+ Business Page. If you are a small business that wants to attract local clientele, then you should devote a significant portion of your marketing budget to Google+ Local marketing.

In todays economy, it is wise to take advantage of every available tool to reach potential clients. Small businesses pop up every day. Many, though not all, are tech savvy, and are using the Internet to generate business from day one. A battle to find clients is being waged on the Internet and the competition is fierce. Google+, combined with a comprehensive marketing plan, can give you an edge over other small businesses.

The goal of this book is to show you how to make that happen. This book was written with the intent to help small businesses generate more business through Google+ and the Internet.

Now, more than ever, small businesses must market their services or their business will fail. There is stiff competition, and anything you can do to make your business stand out will be well worth the effort.

While some people still use the phone book to find a business, the majority of U.S. consumers rely on the Internet to find and vet a business. Small businesses should invest their marketing budget in building a dominant Internet presence rather than spending money on old school advertising such as the phone book.

The purpose of building a dominant Internet presence is to:

When it comes to Internet marketing, you must be everywhere. Every time someone does a search related to your business niche and geographic area, you want to be on the first page, more than once if possible. You want your website, videos, social media (Google+), YouTube channel, business listings, and blogs to dominate the local search results.

If you are everywhere online, then you are more likely to get business from potential clients. You also start to establish yourself as an authority in your niche.

With Google+, you can establish yourself as a leader in your niche with other small businesses. Google+ allows you to create a Circle or group related to your niche. For example, you could create a Circle on Chicago, IL Herbalists and then invite your colleagues to join the group. In the group, you and your colleagues can post thoughts, ideas, and questions that only they can see.

Another significant feature of Google+ is called Hangout. Hangout is a free but powerful video conferencing tool. A Google+ Hangout allows you to invite up to 10 guests to participate in a live video conference. The video conference can be kept private or can be made public and be posted on your Google+ page and your YouTube channel. This is an excellent way to communicate with colleagues. In addition, Hangouts can be used to record and publish informative videos about your area of business expertise.

The ability to keep in touch is not limited to your professional network. You can also create a Circle for your clients. You could send out monthly newsletters to your clients for free. You can also do video webinars on relevant issues or news and share the videos with your current and future clients. If you are an accountant, you could use Google+ to create an informational video on the ever-changing tax laws and send it to your clients. In addition, you could also post the video on your website, YouTube channel, and social media sites such as Facebook. You can use these videos as infomercials to not only keep clients updated, but to convince them they need to schedule an appointment to assess their current needs.

In addition, it is worth noting that you can use Google+ to stay connected with family and friends. Google+ has many social networking features similar to Facebook.

Now that you know how Google+ can benefit you and your small business, it is time to learn how to put this tool to work for you.

Chapter 2: Getting Started with Google+

Setting up a Google Account

If you already have a Google account (such as Gmail or Google Drive), use that login information. If not, you need to create a Google account before creating your Google+ page. Your login information (ID and password) will be the same across all Google products.