The How-to and Why-to on Google+
I just received a working invitation for Google+ and wanted to make a good tutorial for folks just starting out. So, this post is long, but it gives you the how-to and why-to of getting your Google+ account started on the right foot.
People First, Business Later
Like Facebook, Google+ wants to establish itself as a personal social media site. So, the rules are that business accounts are not allowed – yet. They’re coming; however, several business entities have already created accounts. Since this is still in Beta, not sure that Google is policing their policy yet. I bet they’re far too interested in all the buzz these folks are helping to generate, but don’t count on that lasting. I want both a personal and business account, so I’m following the rules and starting with my personal first. And, with the Circles feature, one profile may be all you need.
Google Account
To use Google+ you need a Google Account. If you’re a site owner, you need one of these anyway to use Google Analytics, RSS feeds and more.
Read
- Why You Need a Google Account
- Free Google Account Must-Haves for Site Owners
- Life Imitates Art and Google Imitates Facebook with New Profile
When you have your Google Account, be sure to update your profile there too, because if anyone clicks your name in the Google+ stream, that is the profile they will see.
Invitation Only
Right now, Google+ is still in Beta test and you’ll need an invitation to get on it. So, this tutorial is written from that perspective. I’ll do an update when that changes.
Lots of folks who are signed on are referring to it as a G+ Account.
Profile on Google+
Once you log in to your invitation, the first thing you’re presented with is your profile. Upload your avatar picture. If you’re a business owner, be sure to list it as your employer. You’ll also have the option of adding the year you started, or simply choosing the Current checkbox. And, you can make all this info Visible in Search or not.
In the About section of your profile, you can include links, QR codes, and more photos. Continue reading
Are You Trading Convenience for Viewers on Facebook?
Tools to help you integrate your blog and social media sites were all the rage last year. But times have changed, and Facebook is penalizing you for not actually being present. And, don’t think for a minute that readers don’t know you’re not there either. Stop trading convenience for viewers and start engaging your audience.
Make it Easy for Me
Most folks who run a business say they just don’t have time for social media. That’s a legitimate complaint. I mean, you can’t forsake the needs and demands of current customers just to make time to get new ones. But, you can’t afford not to get new ones either.
So, many small business owners use tools like Hootsuite to pre-schedule and auto-populate their social media sites with posts, making their social media chores more efficient.
Just a Billboard
I’ve always said that Twitter is good for talking at folks and Facebook is better for talking with folks. Both platforms have their pros and cons, and both allow you to have a presence that counts favorably toward your SEO and online clout scores. Continue reading
Where You Host Facebook iFrame Content Matters
(This post was modified on 4/17/11 with another helpful tip. See the note between Fix 2 and 3 below.)
Some folks may consider the Facebook iFrame issue resolved, but it’s not quite. For one thing, some apps pop the viewer out of their secure login without warning. On the other hand, some apps are polite enough to ask if you want to switch to an unsecure login to view, while others leave you in a secure login and work just fine. Here’s what you need to know about iFrame apps and why it matters where you store your content files.
In my recent post Are Facebook Business Pages Too Complex for New Users? I lamented the chaos caused by the Facebook iFrames fiasco when a perfect storm converged between the deadline for creating FBML tabs on Facebook business (fan) pages, and the grassroots-generated issue of using a secure login (https) while surfing Facebook to keep hackers from tapping into your account.
The problem is that iFrame content that is stored on an unsecure host (non https) cannot be displayed properly when a Facebook user is logged in using a secure connection (https). Let me break that down for you. Continue reading
Are Facebook Business Pages Too Complex for New Users?
Over the past few months Facebook has rolled out multiple changes to business pages. The latest buzz surrounds the iFrames fiasco, but that’s not the only thing that has page owners near the breaking point with both their sanity and their piggy bank. Has Facebook gotten so fancy that they’ve forgotten why everyone enjoyed using it, which was easy, cheap, and fun? And, can folks just now jumping on the bandwagon ever catch up? In this comprehensive post, you’ll discover what happened and how, plus what you should wait out until the dust settles.
Biz Page Brief
For those not familiar with business pages on Facebook, they used to be called Fan Pages. Anyone with a personal profile could create another page on any topic and it included additional Tabs, or pages for more info on the subject. In effect, it served as a mini website on Facebook. Business owners flocked to it and began hiring programmers and graphic artists to create these mini pages. Soon, social media coaches were selling classes on how to make the most of it. In other words, Facebook suddenly became good for business and spawned an entire side industry. Continue reading
Get Your Site Ready to Share on Facebook
The sweeping changes to Facebook business pages have created a lot of buzz about iFrames, ranking, and use of third-party apps. Now that you have more ways to attract an audience to your Facebook page, you want to ensure that your main website is ready for them too. I’ll show you a couple of site elements to check plus ways to spiffy it up for company to pay a visit.
Thumbnails
Graphics are a great way to dress up your blog posts and give them interest. But, when you share a link to your post on Facebook, it may not pick up the correct image from your post. Continue reading
Google and Facebook Changed and So Must I
Like many of the business owners I help, performing marketing duties for my site is not my primary focus, which is working directly with clients. Finding ways to make efficient use of my online marketing time is very important to me. However, recent changes on Facebook and Google have forced me to give up convenience in favor of increased engagement and better SEO. Discover why I’ve stopped using third party apps to post on Facebook.
Two of my fave folks to follow on Facebook are Denise Wakeman and Mari Smith. Recently, both have made several posts on the negative impact of using third party apps to auto-populate your Facebook business page with blog posts from your main site. The app-populated posts weren’t showing up in the fan’s News Feed consistently, and the ranking was devalued by Facebook. Continue reading
BlogAid News
What Every Site Owner Should Know is yours free with BlogAid News. This one book could save you hundreds of dollars and months of frustration.
BlogAid News
What Every Site Owner Should Know is yours free with BlogAid News. This one book could save you hundreds of dollars and months of frustration.
Get blog posts your way
Chat with MaAnna Online
Free Report
This free report is a must-have
for every site owner.
Be sure you have the right
backup solution for your site.
Preferred Hosting
