A leading social media agency claimed this week that businesses should not ignore Google+ even if the websites value was unproven. David Bryan, founder and MD of Opace – an internet marketing agency based in Birmingham said this week “A websites SEO strategy is centred around Google, and Google+ activity is another factor we need to consider. As a minimum websites should allow users to share pages on Google+ as well as other social networks.

Indeed we would suggest websites make it much easier for their pages to be shared. Adding bookmarking widgets should not be a difficult or costly process – and it will allow pages to shared via StumbleUpon, Digg, Delicious, Facebook, Twitter – and Google+ of course. Sharing of pages is playing an increasingly important role in SEO. Website owners might believe that a Bookmarking widget is all that is required for sharing to take place. However, in reality organisations and business needs actively to encourage their website visitors to share the page content. There are a number of ways to do this, but most don’t even use the page to actually ask people to share.” “The links created by sharing compliment back links from highly rated websites, with some of the best back links coming from the likes of news organisations such as the BBC, The Guardian etc. Google’s so-called ‘Panda’ changes to its algorithm were specifically designed to reduce SEO activities it regards as spam. Preventing automated link building was at the front of these changes. ‘Sharing’ of pages is regarded as a more organic activity, and is likely to be given greater prominence by Google in the future.” “Therefore as a minimum make your content shareable on Google+. In the same way that you add “like” and “tweet this” buttons, include “+1” as an option.” When asked about the value of the platform, the head of the social media agency added “Depending on your point of view the jury is still out. There have been many negative headlines and it seems undoubtedly true that usage is limited in the ‘real’ world. It seems the site is currently used by techies, marketers and businesses – in that order – whereas activity on Twitter and Facebook still seem far more prominent with businesses and small business owners.” “There are perhaps some points to consider. Supporters of Google+ will tell you a little longer than G+ has been around to catch up with Myspace. We’re all talking about Pinterest and Instagram but they have far fewer numbers and are limited in that they’re predominantly image based interactions.” “And the problems of Facebook also need to be considered. Whilst the company this week welcomed is 1 trillionth ‘like’ it also started its first advertising campaign and saw its share price continue to slide. The problem is Facebook is struggling to make the platform work as an advertising model, and the more it tries to please its shareholders, the more it risks alienating its users. This may see a move to alternative platforms.” “The final consideration is that Google+ is backed by ….Google. They have the time, the money to make Google+ work. And, as the #1 search engine, they have the means also!” “As a social media agency we would advise organisations not to forget Google+ but not to over estimate its value either at this stage.” Any organisation wishing to find out about the services of the social media agency can visit Opace’s website at www.opace.co.uk. video or photography; use different types of content to support and re-enforce each other. Remember to watch this space as we will be releasing a range of online marketing blogs over the coming months. Our readers can also find our Opace Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/OpaceWebDesign. For all the latest goings on, you can keep up-to-date with Opace on Twitter https://twitter.com/OpaceWeb. And we also now have an Opace YouTube page live at https://www.youtube.com/user/opacewebdesign.