Social media is a country and Google Plus is it’s capital. We have millions of people migrating to this great state every month from various social media platforms, which proves that Google Plus is still a force to be reckoned with in 2014. Google Plus has been the crowning achievement for the ever popular search engine for the simple reason that it’s people are what make it strong. The strength of the Plus is growing stronger and stronger every day. In this first post of the year I want to take some time to go over every little detail from the past year and show you why you should be living in the Google Plus kingdom if you aren’t already, and to those of you that are, concrete your enthusiasm even more for this platform!
This is the State of the Google Plus Address:
My fellow Plussers, we are on the brink of overtaking one of the most powerful social media platforms ever! Engagements are everywhere, relationships are being made every second of every day, people are abandoning the way social media used to be, and all because we made this happen.
You see, trends require people. What the majority does, the minority will, in turn, follow. As you already know, the majority of Plussers on this network are cracking down on where they really want their business to be in 2014. They are beginning to understand that it’s the real people of Google Plus that will help them achieve their goals in this coming year. That said, it is forming a trend of engagement and interaction so much so that there has never been a social media platform to see anything like this at all!
Marketing in 2014
I would like to lead off with David Amerland and his update today on Jan 1, 2014 about conversations. Take a look:
Marketing on Google Plus started with your basic stuff. It wasn’t until someone figured out that relationship marketing on Google Plus was a strong strategy to embark upon. This year will be the year for relationships. With Google’s new updates coming out, it is safe to say that building connections will be the smarter way to go this year. It’s only smart to assume that relationships doesn’t start by spamming your content to every community and stream that you can find.
If you’re going to market successfully on Google Plus you must first lay down the idea of self-promotion. Understanding why conversation is the key to a beautiful relationship can really help you to figure out how to succeed in your marketing strategy this year.
Dialogue is how we communicate. When you skip the dialogue with a person you alienate yourself from becoming personal. In 2014, it’s going to be about personal stuff. You’ve heard the saying, It’s not personal, it’s just business…? Well, in 2014 on Google Plus, your business is your personality. Everything is personal now. Your brand is lying on the shoulders of your personal account. One of the best video’s that I’ve seen all year about this fact is a friend of mine by the name of Michael Bennett who is probably one of the best representatives of this idea. He has a personal account, yet people know the business he works for, which is a metal supplier, and he is the prime candidate for showing you how personal Google Plus is making everything.
Self Promotion in 2014
Since dialogue and conversation has prompted us to build relationships on this network, and in turn, this causes us to build relationships with the people that we’re constantly in contact with on G+, it goes to show you that self promotion on this platform isn’t going to be a huge factor. Not that your content won’t get to the public, however, for the simple time that you share that new article, these friends and connections that you’ve made over time will create an abundance of streams for your article’s to be shared to.
We have said that sharing 80% of everyone else’s content and only 20% of our own is good practice. I disagree. I believe that this number should be more of 90% of other content and 10% of your own. Self promotion should be discouraged because when you focus on building connections, you’re looking at all of these relationships coming to your rescue by including your article in their 90%.
You have the option of doing content marketing the way you have always done it. Sure your content will be seen by a few people, but when you take the time to create connections through conversations then that article that you are so frantically trying to get out to the public to only be seen by a few hundred people is going to change because since you’ve taken the time to build these lasting connections, they’re going to promote you to their circles. That in itself drives your traffic count through the roof. Because it’s always better when an army of people is sharing rather than one lone wolf. Make this change this year and see what happens. These people are NOT your competition. If there is one thing that Google Plus has taught me, it’s that. These are colleagues and friends. Treat them as such and help them get their content out there, and, in return, you’re going to see more shares on your own content as well.
Video Production in 2014
With the connection of YouTube and Google, 2014 will be the year of imagery and video. Google Hangouts are going to be a booming source for fans and traffic for your site this year. However, it’s going to be hard to push through to make your decision to do a HOA successful.
There are some key elements you need to remember when making your hangout a reality this year:
- Make the decision for a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly show
- Can you provide helpful content?
- Can you drive people to your HOA to make it worthwhile?
- What strategies can be done to make these successful?
I still think that, even on this spectrum of Google Plus, personal and business still goes hand in hand. Just as if you were commenting on someone’s update, you have to create engagement on these HOA’s that peak your interest. Want to make your hangout popular? Go to someone else’s. Promote someone else’s show, watch the live event, make comments, ask questions, and make yourself known to these people.
If you don’t make any attempts to have conversations with people, then you’re basically hiding yourself from them. How can they know who you are unless you speak? When you do, you are creating an opportunity for these people to click on your name and make your hovercard pop up for them to see. You are creating situations that spark different responses on your individual account, plus they’ll remember you the next time you speak.
2014 will be the year for video’s. Marketing content, whether it’s written, or through the form of video you still have to create that responsive following that will bring your content to the forefront of Google Plus. Remember it’s not the influencer’s that make Google Plus the place to be, it’s the regular people that are here to get help and share your intuitive content to their friends! Influencer’s are an important part of this network, but what would an influencer be without a following? You make up an influencer because you are responsive to their content, you come to their hangouts, and you comment on their updates. You are the most important part of Google Plus so keep doing what you’re doing!
G+ Strategies
What you should be expecting in 2014 on Google Plus is the vast array of visualization that people will be responsive to. Whether you’re a graphic designer by trade, or some novice like me, you’re going to need to put some energy into creating images that reach out and speak to people. In the latter part of 2013, we saw a huge change in the way updating was made on Google Plus. Larger images were used and the “photo” option was realized to be the better way to get people to respond to their updates.
Even more so this year. Visualization marketing will take a huge turn with getting reaction to your posts. Make sure you understand what tools you need to use to deliver this type of marketing to your audience. One tool I use is PicMonkey since I’m not the graphic designer guru. Perhaps this will help you as well.
Taking imagery one step further
One of the best things you can do for yourself on Google Plus that pertains to images is by making sure your hovercard is set up correctly. Two men (as I’ve listed above) can help you with the set up of your hovercard on G+. Robert Ryan has a great tutorial called You Had Me At Hovercard and Stephan Hovnanian writes about Google Plus Hovercard: The Ultimate Branding Tool. Keeping your personal profile up to speed counts as having responsive images.
Controlling Your Marketing
There will be a new fluctuation of the way content marketing is spread in the upcoming months of 2014. The art of storytelling will come to the forefront of how marketing is done. Coupled with the art of imagery (visualization marketing) the way you tell the story in the update on Google Plus will also have an effect on your followers. Understanding that the days of Check This Out! and Click Here! are over. You’ve got to do a little more than just hoping readers will come, you have to direct them to your site.
One of the ways that strategies will change is the fact that people are being more engaging. The one’s that take the time to have a conversation in the communities or in the comments of someone’s update will be the one’s that learn what the people want to hear about, what they want to learn or understand better.
Someone once said to me that I shouldn’t give away all my secrets. Why not? These people are eventually going to find out, and it’s better that they find out from you than from someone else! Also, they’ll remember you for telling them whatever it is you told them and become more of a responsive follower in the future.
Once you have learned this, and written the article, it’s time to give them what they want in the form of showing them in a story in the G+ update:
How To Build A Responsive Following
I keep going back to that Seth Godin quote I heard in November: People are always watching the “social scoreboard” it doesn’t matter how many people you have following you, but how many of those people are actually paying attention!
That’s so true.
What is a responsive following? Especially on Google Plus, this idea makes a brand new chapter in the word marketing. How you bring responsiveness to the Plus this year will go to show everyone that you have completely understood branding through marketing.
Circle Sharing Taboo?
One of the many ways that people built their following on G+ in 2013 was through circle shares. To an extent, these are ok, however, it goes without saying that through the months of 2013, people were using influential people to get the ball rolling on their circle shares. Mark Traphagen shared a post written by John Skeats about why you should think twice before getting involved.
The fact of the matter is you’re not going to build a responsive following through circle sharing. Perhaps you may get lucky and have several people follow you, but to what extent? Some of the most popular circle shares that I have seen on Google Plus name drop to get people interested in joining the circle. In 2014, I believe it best to stay away from this type of marketing to build your following. Sure it’s ok to create a circle of people that do “social marketing” or whatever it is you like and share it with your followers, but that’s a whole different animal than what these huge circle sharers are doing.
It’s bad etiquette to start a circle share this way on Google Plus. I know really influential people that have made their career doing this and it still doesn’t change the way I feel. They’ve found a shortcut that isn’t necessarily the best option.
Building a responsive following takes months of work, if not years. If you’re going to do this, then do it the right way. It all comes back to communicating and engaging with them to learn more about them. When you can share something from yourself that relates to people on a personal level, then that creates a responsive follower. Not only are you building a relationship with them, but the word “connection” is also there for a reason. When two people connect, then they are linked to each other on a personal level. Remember, on G+, business is personal.
My Marketing Ideas For G+ in 2014
Marketing is simply compelling people to take part in what you’re already doing. Whether your curating content or having a conversation in a private message, you’ve got to think of the marketing aspects and where your ideas will end up at the end of every day. Your actions have consequences.
My main marketing strategy for 2014 will start right here on this blog. Creating the best content that I can in order to help people perform a task, or inform them about something important for Google Plus or other marketing ideas. Marketing always starts with that first idea. Listening is a part of marketing. People see the finished result when they see hundreds or even thousands of other people have shared your articles and ideas, but what they don’t see is the fact that marketing isn’t the point in time where you write the Google Plus update to promote your post, it starts with you hearing people and understanding what it is that they’re wanting. A few hundred steps later, it comes to fruition.
Another aspect of Google Plus that I will be getting into more of this year is the fact of serving others. Stephan Hovnanian touched on this in an update today actually that went right with my notes of research for this post, so it’s good to see other influencer’s taking this same idea and bringing it into light.
The art of serving is not about how many followers you have. It’s about what you’re giving them every time you post to your G+ stream. Planning your posts so you can adhere to the needs of those that think of you as an influencer will not only help you succeed, but also help them confirm what they already know about you. Serving others, that’s a new perspective in social media. When I first started 22 months ago, it was all about the person throwing the update up. Not anymore. People want to see you helping, they want to see how you can serve them. That’s what builds a responsive following and that is what your marketing foundation should be built on. If you forget all of this, try to remember these four things for G+:
The Final Thought
This year on Googl Plus, the important thing to remember is that it’s not about one person. It’s not about the big names that everyone knows. Just because you have been on G+ for 2 months with only 300 followers doesn’t mean you’re not important. Everyone is an influencer to someone in some way. What’s going to matter is how you create your marketing strategy to do all of these things without losing integrity and influence in other people’s eyes. Honesty, respect, conversation, etiquette, all of these things should be in your arsenal this year, not just how many posts you can promote from your blog. It’s time to be a real person now. Show us how it’s done.
Wade Harman
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