Google Launches Google+ Pages for Businesses

Insight from GroupM on why a +Pages strategy is critical to success, and immediate steps to take for your business
November 2011

Author: Chris Copeland, CEO, GroupM Search

Google has formally launched the business component to its social platform Google+. Called Google+ Pages, this new feature set enables brands to move onto the social platform. Google+ represents a different type of social platform. It has been placed at the center of all Google initiatives and, as such, the strategy necessary for success is unique but critical for brands.
The strategy for success on Google+ will span from owned media into all Google channels. It will also include paid and earned opportunities off of the platform, though across the Google network. In this regard alone, strategy development now warrants bigger efforts to consider how a brand can maximize everything they do, invest in Google and shift Google+ into the center of that strategy, just as Google has done on its side. To help brands understand the significant, potential impact this shift can have, this white paper explores: the basics of +Pages the products important features why brands cannot ignore Google and their focus on Google+ perspective on how brands should think and approach the space beyond this initial launch a list of important takeaways brands should consider to cultivate a strong Google+ community

Introducing Google+ Pages and what brands should know from the start
When the social network Google+ launched, it did so to rapid adoption (25 million users in less than one month) and much frustration from brands who were allowed to register, only to be immediately removed. Bradley Horowitz, vice president of product at Google, acknowledged the companys poor form with the recent invitation for brands to return via the launch of Google+ Pages. As quoted in an Adweek article about the launch, Horowitz said: We did something rather rude. We kicked these brands off 100 days ago. We noticed that they were taking up residence in the user space and, rather abruptly and rudely, said, We have something else in mind for you. We didnt anticipate this much interest this fast, please wait.

Google Launches Google+ Pages for Businesses November 2011

Now, brands have that something else from Google. There are limitations of a new product coming into market as quickly as this has. However, the product is set on a compelling course. Central to +Pages are several legacy features introduced previously with Google+, but new are a few tricks which should provide treats for users. +Pages look similar to the standard Google page but are governed by a different set of regulations than a private user page. Before starting, brands should understand some key limitations, including: Brands cannot follow until users follow their Google+ Pages The biggest difference for brands setting up +Pages is that they cannot add people to Circles until those users have added the brands +Page to a Circle of their own. This is going to require brands to have a very specific acquisition strategy to encourage further adoption. Additionally, when +Pages information is shared, it is only shared with people in the Circle, not with friends of friends. This is a significant contrast to what might be shown on a Facebook Wall. This rule in +Pages will limit the exposure a brand gets through friend association until its community grows to a level of significant impact. Number of users allowed in a Circle Limitations exist today around the size of Circles a brand can have, set at 5,000 per Circle, similar to the Google+ individual user limits. In a conversation we had with Christian Oestlien, Googles group project manager for Google+, he indicated that Circle size limits would be altered over time. Single administrator login At present, with the launch of +Pages, brands can only have a single administrator login for their account. This admin login must be tied to a Gmail account, thus making it important to properly select the initial person leading the effort to establish +Pages visibility, as well as agreeing from step one what account will be used. Contests, promotions, coupons and deals are NOT allowed The current terms of service brands agree to in establishing a +Page include language prohibiting the organization and/or execution of incentive-based programs. Commentary is not yet available on whether this will continue, but it is a departure from Facebook. Additionally, this has sizable implications as GroupM Search research has found that the No. 1 reason consumers follow brands on social media is for deal information. No vanity URLs Google has not established its verification and vanity URL policy. This will come in time, but for now multiple sources can have the same listing. Analytics In conversation, Google also indicated to us that the level of analytics for brands would not be great to start, but would also improve over time.
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Google Launches Google+ Pages for Businesses November 2011

It is worth noting that when Google+ launched and Google removed brands, they had more than 30,000 requests for inclusion in the beta project for +Pages. At that time, Google decided to step back and bring a more controlled, developed solution to the market versus following the typical Google engineering process of field trial, beta and formal launch. Google is working on a formal verification process from the outset so squatters do not overrun the system by claiming +Pages not associated with themselves. It is strongly encouraged that every brand at least claim their +Pages location and ensure that some content, if even a replication of brand site and/or Facebook page, is present.

Google+ Pages features

In looking at how brands should think about using Google+ Pages, there are functional options available which have proven meaningful to users thus far, and should be incorporated into a strategy.

Hangouts
The early darling of the feature set from Google+ is Hangouts. Hangouts are group video chats that enable brands to connect with consumers in a more personal manner. They can be one-way communication vehicles or interactive discussions that can range in size from two people to thousands. Michael Dell, chairman of the board and CEO of Dell Inc., has amassed more than 75,000 followers on Google+, in no small part due to his willingness to hold Hangouts with relevant groups. Brands have a unique opportunity to segment their audience based on any number of criteria, and Hangouts will prove to be a powerful opportunity to connect on topics ranging from customer service to exclusive content for status holders.

Circles
While Hangouts is likely the most appealing function for brands, the core of Google+ remains the Circles feature. Circles is the ability to take a large group and split it into smaller groups. Individuals may fit into several Circles but, for a brand, it means you are shifting from broadcasting (a la Facebook) to narrowcasting. In some cases, marrying Circles with Hangouts may, in fact, let brands get very close to one-to-one communication, if they so desire. Facebook has proven to be fantastic at mass support from users, but it is limiting in the way you can move people through your brand engagement funnel. With Circles it is not impossible to see a model where someone selfselects their desire to follow your brand for deals. And through engagement, you, as a brand, may reclassify those users into a loyalist Circle and give them unique content which then lets them become the evangelist for your brand.

Google Launches Google+ Pages for Businesses November 2011

The Stream
On Facebook, brands have become accustomed to the Wall and the ability for users to be able to post to the Wall in a similar fashion to the way the brand can post. On Google+, content is posted into the Stream, and users cannot post at that level. Instead, users post their commentary beneath each individual brand post into the Stream. This will amplify the amount of monitoring and interaction required on each piece of content but will also allow for more direct contact. Because users must first follow your brand, a brand can go to a given user and directly communicate with the individual, which should benefit in supporting customer experiences or question answering.

Photos and Google+ Creative Kits

Recently, Google launched Google+ Creative Kits. Google has shared with us that one of the most popular applications for the platform has been photo sharing. Due to that popularity, Creative Kits were created to enable easy, on-the-fly photo editing to enhance the sharing process. Brands are either curators or curated in todays social space and, as a result, should think about how to use the platform in unique, engaging ways that create earned media inside an owned media property. This presents a powerful proposition for brands. All of the above features exist on Google+, so by now most users and brand social media teams should be familiar with their potential.

Developing your +Pages strategy as well as a Google+ follower strategy

Investing time and thought into how your Google+ Pages strategy will create opportunity for you across the entire Google network, not just Google+, is critical. Short term, brands must get people to follow them before they can engage in any Circle creation or classification of users. The Google+ approach requires this step of a user following +Pages, so development of a complete Google+ follower strategy is imperative. We are developing a recommended Google+ follower strategy this will include securing traffic via a brand site or other social properties (especially Facebook and Twitter), as well as driving traffic through other digital opportunities, including key Google properties, such as their core search product. It is encouraged that brands add the +Pages button to their own sites. The icon will assist in securing users into the platform and, with better analytics, should help brands understand the locations by which people joined a Circle. Additionally, this will further shape the initial content and experience a brand provides to that customer or potential customer.
Google Launches Google+ Pages for Businesses November 2011

Why brands cannot ignore Google and their focus on Google+

What differentiates Google+ from Facebook or any other digital platform, social or not, is best represented in the image Google posted on its blog to show its philosophical shift to social as an organization. Google has put Google+ at the center of its entire approach to business. Google initially built its business on capturing user-expressed intent via search. Now, it is using user data expressed in the social sharing of relevant content to expand its own intelligence. This will have dramatic impacts on the way every other Google property operates, both from an end user experience to a brand advertising one. The easiest example of this in the new +Pages world is the introduction of Direct Connect. Starting now, if a user wants to find a brand on Google+, there is an easy way to do just that from the Google search box. By typing in +BRANDNAME, you are taken directly to a brands Google+ Pages listing. In the example below, starting to type in Coke actually brings up multiple other brands that have already established a +Pages presence. Brands will be eligible based on a Google algorithm that will determine relevancy and popularity to a given query. It cannot be understated how significant this could be with users never seeing options for a brand website but rather being driven directly to a brands +Pages listing. This may have a sizable impact on paid search where performance could be impacted dramatically as more and more users skip the brand site entirely. Brands may be faced with receiving fewer clicks, leading to less directly attributed performance measured from their paid search campaigns.

It is clear that brands must be on Google+, if for no other reason than the implications it will have on search. Google is using its previously introduced +1 buttons for social signals in its search results and is now allowing brands to short-circuit the results page for a direct link to a brands +Page.

Google Launches Google+ Pages for Businesses November 2011

The future potential of Google+ and connectivity across Google properties

As important as search is to Google and brands, the connectivity to every other Google property will likely, over time, define the brand marketer nirvana this may produce. Google views the link extensions to other products as a key differentiator and an important benefit to all parties. The ability to link up a brands website, YouTube channel, +Page and Local Places experience will be unique and comprehensive. User behavior and data will further shape the ability for brands to target users across the Google network. While Google has never allowed search retargeting, there is no such declaration against future Google+ retargeting via the Google display network. Brands should start to think about the various pockets of data and consumer targeting that exist (via Gmail, YouTube and other sharing services inside the network). Each of these sources may represent an opportunity to either acquire or connect relevant experiences with interested, preselected +Pages circle members. The long-term success of Google+ will likely reside in the mobile space. Google seems intent on moving Google+ onto the operating system of every Android device. This shift from a desktop platform to mobile will change the dynamics entirely. Brands can start thinking today about how they would alter the communication strategy for a world where Google Wallet, rapid product/price comparison and instant feedback are required. Hangouts via mobile to discuss specific situations or products may very well be the tipping point where Google+ moves from part of the social media mix to the social media utility for point of engagement for brands. It is also important to consider the measurement element of this social platform. At the end of October, Google introduced a new way to measure the influence people have in sharing content. Called Ripples, this product enables brands to select any post and measure the influencers that enable that content to go viral. As brands think about putting influencers into different segments, this tool will become a unique means by which to do that in a Google+ world. It is not difficult to speculate that this initial social influence tool may someday become the starting point for Google Analytics to go much deeper into social and compete with social monitoring companies frequently used today, such as Radian6 and Visible Technologies. However, it is early, and for now the tool is a nice means for brands to better understand the value their community sees in their content, and who found it to be most relevant.
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Google Launches Google+ Pages for Businesses November 2011

Key takeaways from Google+ Pages for businesses

1. Secure your +Pages listing today
Make sure for now the person who secures your +Page is either operating the Gmail account you wish to have it associated with or is able to share their account information with other brand stakeholders.

2. Users must put your brand in their Circle before you can add them
Short term, the most important strategy to have is a user acquisition strategy. Start by making it easy to connect via ALL of your Web properties.

3. People will come for the content, stay for the conversation
Plan Hangouts and use Photos/Creative Kits to tap into what is already working on Google+ to start dialogue. Quality content is essential.

4. The Stream flows one way

Unlike Facebook, posts trigger comments, not the Wall itself. Your content strategy must be fresh to enable and encourage this.

5. Direct Connect will change brand search

While the true impact on paid search performance is unknown, a brands +Page will replace the brand site as a destination for many Google users.

6. Google+ and +1 will be key influencers of your Google media buys moving forward
More data, better relevancy and hopefully more targeting opportunities.

7. Think beyond the social space for true potential

Display, video and mobile will all be impacted. Plan for how to connect your Circles with your presence in these areas. These are powerful opportunities for your brand.

8. Ripples can shape your influencer network

New visualization tools can help further segment key customers and form a new means of sharing relevant content with your target groups.

9. It is all about the Circles

Circle management will be your No. 1 priority on the platform and will dictate the size of your brands success opportunity.

10. Be ready for change; this is a shifting platform

Google has shared that the platform will look very different for brands as it evolves, as soon as 90 days from now. Stay nimble and be prepared. Google+ feels like a different type of social platform, more a valuable utility than a widespread communication vehicle, such as Facebook. This may be a good alternative for certain brands and a great variation for others. Google+ does not seem to be a Facebook-killer, but rather a different way for brands and consumers to connect. Going forward, brands must decide how content will manifest between the different social platforms. However, Google+ presents an opportunity for brands to work to establish with consumers a variety of experiences now available through the platform, and create selected relationships based on any number of user- or brand-determined attributes. 7

Google Launches Google+ Pages for Businesses November 2011

About GroupM
GroupM is the leading global media investment management operation. It serves as the parent company to WPP media agencies including Maxus, MEC, MediaCom, and Mindshare. Our primary purpose is to maximize the performance of WPPs media communications agencies on behalf of our clients, our stakeholders and our people by operating as a parent and collaborator in performance-enhancing activities such as trading, content creation, sports, digital, finance, proprietary tool development and other business-critical capabilities. The agencies that comprise GroupM are all global operations in their own right with leading market positions. The focus of GroupM is the intelligent application of physical and intellectual scale to benefit trading, innovation, and new communication services, to bring competitive advantage to our clients and our companies. For further information about this report, please contact cindy.spellman@groupmsearch.com

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