Your Small Business Needs a Google + Page Now

Google+ brand pages are finally here. If you’re a small business, you need to take notice. If you haven’t created your company’s Google+ page yet, what on Earth are you waiting for? You need to get started now, and here are five very important reasons why.

It Will Increase Your Search Rankings
More than 80 percent of people use Google Search as their primary search engine. Because Google is going to highlight its own pages in search results, it’s essential for you to create a Google+ brand page for your business to take advantage of this. For example, if someone searches for your company, your Google+ page will come up as one of the first results. In addition, there’s Search Plus Your World. This will highlight Google+ connections for the things people search for. Discussions and things you post on Google+ will be found through Search and suggested to the people who will be most interested in them.

Hangouts Will Enhance Your Interaction with Consumers
The main purpose of social networking is to connect with your customers, right? Google+ offers something that increases your ability to do so: Hangouts. With Hangouts, you can video chat with up to nine other people at one time. There are endless ways this can benefit your business. You can provide face-to-face customer service, give live product demonstrations, hold discussions for market research purposes, deliver press releases, demonstrate your expertise, and allow your customers to get to know you better on a personal level.

Hangouts are Great for Web Conferencing
If you do a lot of web conferencing or collaborating with distant business partners and employees, you also need Google+ because of Hangouts. Hangouts is a really awesome web conferencing tool that’s free to use. You can hold virtual meetings, and you have the ability to share your screen, use a shared whiteboard, and collectively edit documents with Google Docs. You can even get creative and use Hangouts for other purposes, such as interview job applicants or providing job training.

You Can Connect with Internet Professionals
So far, some of the most active people on Google+ are bloggers, journalists, SEO experts, social media moguls, and other connected and digitally-savvy people. One of the best parts about Google+ is the ability to “Circle” people and form connections in a way that’s better than Facebook. If you start a Google+ page for your business, it will help you network with those Internet people whose attention would be most beneficial to your company.

You’ll Be on the Cutting Edge
Google+ has millions of members, but it’s still in its very beginning stages. It’s going to take time for Google+ to boost its popularity. Don’t worry, though, Google+ will only continue to increase in scope and user engagement. As a business that’s on top of trends, you need to be on Google+ now. By getting in early, you’re showing that you’re tech-savvy and a social networking pro. When Google+ really takes off, you’ll have the benefit of a long since established presence on the site.