Google announced Monday that it is launching brand pages for its Google Plus platform, an exciting development for social media followers who have been waiting on the announcement for the past few months. Google launched its Google Plus social network to much fanfare in June, and at the time, it was considered to be a potential rival to Facebook.
But so far, the interest in Google Plus hasn’t been as hot as hoped. After an initial surge, usage of the service has plummeted in recent weeks, leading some analysts to believe that the service may never overtake Facebook.
Should that completely dismiss a senior care company from implementing a brand page on Google Plus? The answer isn’t that simple. As I wrote about previously, Google Plus, while not making major penetration now, can still be a big player in the future. More and more people are using Google’s Chrome browser – which could yet integrate Google Plus into its toolbar – and Google Plus already has more than 40 million users signed up.
A few businesses have already taken the plunge. Pepsi, the Muppets and Macy’s have already created Google Plus pages at launch, giving other businesses a blueprint on ways to set up their page. But with Google Plus still in its infancy, the impact of those pages is minimal at the moment. And, to be fair, Google has tried to compete against Facebook before, but pulled the plug on its Google Buzz platform less than two years after its launch.
All of that creates understandable skepticism. Yet, senior care companies should at least get a good understanding of brand pages on the network. Understand what you need to create a great page by monitoring early adopters to see how they succeed. Those brand pages may make a big splash in the next six months, and senior care companies need to know how to capitalize quickly.
Certainly, building a brand page on Google Plus now is risky – it is akin to reserving a big ballroom for a birthday celebration before knowing how to contact the guests. But even if senior care companies don’t do that, they should at least look around and see if they might want to join the party.
No comments yet
