If you are a business trying to make the most of your Google Plus page and increase the number of people in your Google Plus circles, you are not alone. Google requires that others add your business to their circles beforeyou can interact with any other person or business.
So you need them to join your circle first. But how do you do this? Short of knowing an individual or business page owner personally or contacting them through their website or blog, it does not seem like their is much else you can do to get admittance into that coveted Google Plus circle. You may understand that it is essential to get people and other business page owners to admit you into their circles, but most businesses do not know where to even start.
Luckily, there are many things you can do to get a lot more people begging to join your own Google Plus circles. Here are ten tips to help you increase your circles quickly on Google Plus:
1. Give them a reason to want to be in your circle.
This means filling your page with posts before you start approaching anyone to join your circles. They have to go to your page and see things that make them want to be in that circle. If you have a blank page, you aren’t ready to populate your circles. It is just like starting a new website. You don’t market until there is something of value to look at.
2. Put Google Plus badges or buttons on your websites and blogs to take advantage of your website and blog audience.
When you market that website or blog, you are indirectly marketing your Google Plus page. This is just like putting the Facebook follow icon on your websites and blogs. Many people will check you out on Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus before making a purchase or following your website.
3. Encourage others already in your circles to invite others to join your Google Plus circle. This is like word of mouth marketing, which is valuable for all businesses in all aspects. You don’t have to be clever about this. Simply send out a message every now and then asking others to spread the word about your page. You may even try giving away something simple and inexpensive related to your business if you reach a certain number of people in a given circle. You will be surprised how many people will start to spread the word and encourage their own circles to follow you as well.
4. Make your Google Plus page unique.
If you have a creative idea to use your Google Plus page in a new way, jump in and try it out. If you are different than everyone else you will grab some attention and others will want to follow and see what you do next. Just make sure to keep it professional and in line with your business. There are going to be some very creative thinkers who get ahead with Google Plus in the near future. This is a newer platform and the door is wide open to invention.
5. Get familiar with all of the hangouts and think of creative ways to use them to your advantage.
Do not dismiss those that are not yet open to everyone. Watch how those who do have access to them put them to use, and then get ready to do it better when the feature opens up to everyone.
6. Work diligently at populating your page with new and interesting posts every single day.
It is much like blogging when you really want to encourage others to join your circles. If you are inactive for a period of time, you will actually start losing followers. They will forget about you, so keep yourself in their eye.
7. Show a generous spirit to others when they want you to enter their circles.
If you are an active Google Plus member and respond when others need followers, they are likely to do the same for you. This is true of all social networking platforms! It is a give and take with a community spirit. That’s why it is called “social” marketing.
8. Use the blog platform to spread the word about your Google Plus page.
If you have your own blog, start announcing and linking to your Google Plus page. If you do guest blogging, link some of your posts to your Google Plus page.
9. Link your Google Plus page to your own website.
There is a piece of code, called the Direct Connect code, that can be inserted into the code on your webpage. This could get you eligible to be listed in Google search results, where searchers can actually follow you right from the search page.
10. Link your Google Plus page to all of your other social media accounts.
Chances are you have an established presence and healthy list of friends and followers in other forums and business social media networks…so take advantage of that. Those already familiar with you may already be on Google Plus or may follow you there. They are not a new audience, but it populates your circles so you don’t look brand new and desperate.When trying to get other businesses to add you into their Google Plus circles, remember that they want people in their circles just as much as you do.
