Google Plus Turned Upside Down

Google Plus Turned Upside Down

Well I started today at work by actually getting on Google Plus and doing some posts for clients. I did one post on a page then switched back to my own profile with no problem, but then I went to another page and the whole layout changed! I did a couple more posts then noticed that there was a new side bar alongside the new, narrower news feed (or what ever Google calls it...I use Facebook terms), that had suggested people and pages to follow as well as trending topics. Unaware of any upcoming changes to Google Plus, I went over to my Twitter, where most of my SEO and Social Media news comes from and I didn't see anything about G+ changes. At that point I just assumed 2 things: A: no one knew of the changes or B: no one really cared about Google Plus (I think it was mostly A and a little B).

I happened to be right in the middle of the change...the change that was announced by Google at 8:16 this morning (not sure what time zone that was). I was ahead of social media experts that usually break news days, weeks and sometimes months before things happen on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest!

In addition to the changes over at G+ I noticed a small change in my gmail, most probably won't notice it but I did. There was also a layout change here in the back end of Blogger, which at the moment is voluntarily, but was actually made known before the change date.

Back to Google Plus, because it's going to be the hot topic today (sorry Instagram). When I started writing this blog, I went over to my profile and now I have a Facebook like cover photo on my profile (just what I need something else to find content for). All in all the changes on G+ seem to be for the better, even my mom after freaking out when I mentioned the changes said "this is called an improvement...I like improvements".

What are the changes, you ask? Well the first and most noticeable to me is the new navigation on the left side with text below the formerly ambiguous icons. There are also the new cover photos, contacts on the right and others that you can see for yourself and are explained in this post by Google: Toward a simpler, more beautiful Google.

Website tonight won't get you found tomorrow . . .

There are a lot of companies out there that offer their "quick" website programs.  Companies that don't have anything to do with providing web services are even getting in the mix like Vista Print and Intuit.  Then there are the large web companies like GoDaddy.


The problem is, these free and almost free services don't really get the job done when it comes to marketing your business online. I get quite a few phone calls and inquiries from people who want to market their business online but have started with one of these quick website companies.  


These website providers lead well meaning business owners to believe that their offer will get them online attention. The problem is, as enticing as the offer may sound, the elements that are necessary to be found, engage visitors and get customers are still missing.  


Worse yet, they promote features like "search engine submissions" or "search engine optimization." Sounds great on the wrapper but what you really need to know is that you don't have to actually submit your sites to search engines because they are now so advanced they are crawling the web constantly picking up new information.  And as far as optimization . . . well I have yet to see one of the quick and easy website providers actually provide staff, reports or anything resembling actual optimization efforts, not to mention the now crucial social media integration.


So just a word to the wise.  If you've put up a "quickie" website  don't expect results to follow.  The return on your investment is proportional to what you put into the project.  When you're ready to get serious with your online marketing campaign, ask a professional to help -you'll be happy you did!