Can Google+ Catch Facebook?

Does Google+ have a chance to overcome Facebook as the leading social media tool?  Here are three reasons we think Google+ has more than a chance and why we decided to offer Google+ marketing training to help small business owners get started with Google+.

Companies pay a lot of money and spend a lot of time to rank high and get noticed in Google search results.  Take a look at the Google search results picture attached to this post.

Notice anything different? The result with a significant Google+ presence is ranked higher and has a picture – a huge advantage to getting the click! Now, the ranking may be related to many other variables, but the picture and credibility of being in 8,517 Google+ Circles give the first link a definite leg up in choosing which article to read first. It certainly helped me decide! This “Google+ Authorship” is just one of many ways that Google is giving pages and people with a Google+ presence priority over those with none. Another is the use of the "+1" functionality. Scot Small, founder of RevBuilders Marketing, a company specializing in search engine optimization says,"Google seems to be placing an increasing weight on the number of '+1's' that a page has when ranking for SEO", but quickly adds "Of course all other SEO factors must be up to par, as a '+1' alone will not get you a good ranking."

Google was successful before Google+ and they’ll be successful regardless of its level of success.  To support their business model Facebook needs to continue adding advertising, including inserting directly into your news feed, essentially increasing the commercials to your social media experience. Meanwhile, Google can just focus on building a better social media experience. As long as it is also improving the search experience, helping you find what you’re looking for, they will be adding to their revenue.

(It's why yellow pages were so successful for years)

People searching are more ready to buy!  Both Google and Facebook make money with advertising, but in different ways. Google advertising is based on key words and Facebook advertising is based on demographics. Search engine advertising is more effective because it touches people looking for your product much deeper in the sales cycle. Companies will continue emphasizing Google+ in their social media strategy because it will benefit their search engine optimization (SEO) and Google Adwords campaigns! These are still the king and queen of online marketing with no significant threats on the horizon.

I’m not suggesting that you quit Facebook tomorrow – it is still a very effective marketing tool when used properly. The point is that small business owners need to take a look at Google+ and start working on building a presence. Search is still the top way that people are finding products and services online. Google dominates online search and an aggressive Google+ strategy will have a significant impact on your search ranking. Take a look at our upcoming workshops, Google+ marketing training for small business. What do you think? Does Google+ have a shot at the title?