Google_ for Business_ How Google's Social Network Changes Everything - Chris Brogan [11]
• Discovery: Google+ has become the #1 traffic driver to my website, www.chrisbrogan.com. Your results may vary, but I’m pointing this out because it means that people are suddenly discovering my site via this social network, and that means it’s a lead generator for you to consider.
• Community Building: Comic writer Greg Pak uses Google+ to share updates about his projects and event information so that people can connect with him at events, and get sneak previews of projects he’s working on. I’ve seen people use this successfully many times as a way to grow their influence and awareness well beyond what traditional media outlets typically permit. It allows you a kind of blend between a publishing platform and a powerful new kind of telephone. You can do the same community building as a business if you take the time to actively participate in communities and engage customers and prospects in two-way interactions.
• Contests and Promotions: Yes, it’s old school marketing, but that doesn’t mean it’s not effective. iPad2 giveaways, photo caption contests, and all kinds of other engaging experiences take place, and early reports from those who’ve conducted these contests are quite positive.
• Customer Service: As I mentioned in Chapter 1 (“How Did I Get Here?”) Michael Dell from Dell Corporation has started to test Google+ as a customer service channel. This doesn’t replace your company’s call center, but there have already been many companies that use Twitter as another customer service channel. The potential return on investment (ROI) and customer approval/satisfaction improvements are huge.
• Engagement: Your main website is built for a specific purpose, plus it’s your “real estate.” You might not be as free to talk “off-topic” there, and you might have specific goals that preclude you from engaging in two-way conversations on that site. For instance, if you’re running a website that sells plumbing supplies, it might not be a good idea to post your appreciation of the Family Guy TV show. However, sharing something personal in a place like Google+ helps round out a prospective customer’s perception of you and enables you to talk about something not directly related to selling from time to time. Because your main site is your “home base,” Google+ makes a great “outpost” that enables you to engage with people, talk off-topic, learn more about your prospective buyers and community, and build relationships outside of the sales funnel. This level of engagement gets touted a lot in all books about social media, but it’s worth repeating—it is a huge opportunity.
• Listening: For years, I’ve been saying that listening is “the new black.” The ability to search the web to find what people are saying about you, your products, your competitors, and more, is the best part of what social media and social networks deliver. Because Google thoroughly indexes the information in Google+, you have the built-in opportunity to pay attention to what people say, and then you can reach out and make contact with some of these people, should that prove useful to your business goals.
• Referrals: One way to get great value from Google+ is to seek and offer referrals. Imagine you sell custom sneakers, such as Heyday Footwear does, and you run a web-based business instead of a brick-and-mortar one. For instance, if you’re Heyday Footwear, you can post pictures and maybe videos showing the designs you’re currently working on. You can invite the audience to interact and comment on the process. Getting involvement definitely helps. Now, imagine asking previous buyers of such custom footwear to post photos and maybe videos talking about how much they love their new shoes. Now, you’ve got the opportunity to see referrals and testimonials come in from your audience, which is even more powerful than anything you’ll ever say about your own products.