By now, you’ve probably heard about Google Plus. You’ve probably at least noticed the black bar atop Google’s website.
The social networking service was launched in summer 2011. In many ways, it’s Google’s answer to Facebook. But Google Plus integrates all of Google’s many services, giving it the potential for far greater reach than Facebook.
If you already have an account with Google – like a gmail account – you can upgrade it to a Google Plus account (also known as “G+”) with the click of a button. Or just sign up for a new account by choosing a Google email address.
You can add as much or as little detail as you want to your profile. I’d recommend at least adding your photo, location, employment, and education. You can enhance you profile by writing an introduction, including links to relevant websites, and entering your contact information.
You can upload photos and videos to share. You can enter posts, which can be as short as a Twitter message or as long as a blog entry. And you can decide exactly who gets to see what.
While on Facebook you have “Friends,” Google Plus lets you arrange your contacts into “Circles,” which let you share information with groups of people.
Here’s Jim Du Molin’s profile. I just click the “Add to Circles” button, then I choose which circle (or circles) I’d like to put Jim in.
You can add Jim to your circles too. Just enter “Jim Du Molin” in the Google Plus search bar to find his profile. You might see “Julie Frey” listed in Jim’s circles – just click the little picture to get to Julie Frey’s profile and add me to your circles, too.
You’ll see a little IDA logo that will take you to the Internet Dental Alliance’s profile. You can add IDA to your circles as well.
Google Plus Pages let businesses have profiles that are similar to the profiles people have. You can set up a page for your office or organization that includes contact information, location, photos, updates and more. You can even invite your office manager or other team members to manage these pages. People can then add your business to their circles.
The Google +1 Button is a way you can indicate that you “Like” something. You’ll see this +1 button on people’s posts and photos. If you like someone’s post, click the +1 button.
You’ll also see this button all over the web – on websites, articles and videos.
Anytime you see something you like, just click the +1 button next to it. This might be an interesting article from The Wealthy Dentist blog.
The “Share on Google Plus” button lets you share content with your contacts.
There’s so much going on inside Google Plus, but that’s no reason to be intimidated. Google has worked hard to make it intuitive and user-friendly, and they’re banking on this being The Next Big Thing.
So climb aboard the Google Plus train! We’ve provided some helpful links below for you to get started.
First, set up a Google Plus account if you don’t already have one.
Click the “+1” button on the top left of this page to publicly recommend this page on Google Plus.
Click the red Google Plus icon on the top left of this page to see what our profile looks like and add us to your circles.
Now that you’re in the know, you’ll start noticing these buttons all over the place. Anytime you like something, just click that “+1” button!
Click here to get your own G+ account
Check out our Google Plus Profiles!
