Time and time again I keep getting asked, is Google Plus (Google+) really important to my site?
My testing shows that it is, and also that all social networking – Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, Linked and Google+ are really important.
If you know me, we have talked about the power of backlinks and why backlinks are important. However, if you have thousands of backlinks and not one person has mentioned you on one of those social networks then Google's algorithm must have an in built filter that says:
10,000 Backlinks * No Social Mentions = SEO Manipulation and Unnatural Linking
So, coupled with this, you need to ensure you and your site are classed as industry leaders and experts – SEE BELOW
1) Google+ has an immediate impact on SEO results
When it comes to Google Search, You are becoming more important than your domain name. When I say You, I mean the way that Google views You. If you have established yourself as a valued contributor to Google+, the content that you share on Google+ has a better chance of ranking highly in Google Search results, immediately.
While other factors of SEO still remain important to achieving a #1 ranking for competitive keywords, Google+ can’t be ignored as a part of a well balanced plan of attack. Prepare for battle by adding people to your circles on Google+, sharing relevant articles, and interacting with the community.
Tip: I really enjoy the Google+ iPad app for viewing content. It’s works very smoothly and is very easy to use.
2) Google Authorship creates a win-win situation for both parties involved
By writing often and verifying with Google that you wrote a particular piece of content, you are also sending a signal that the content you write can be trusted to provide value to their customers.
You make Google better and they better help you build and serve your audience. That’s a win-win!
3) Authorship Has Contributor Limits
While conducting this case study, I verified myself as a contributor to 12 sites in Google+. On the last two sites I added, those that are specific to this case study, I was not able to see my author profile on the articles when initially published.
After clearing out some sites I don’t contribute to as often, I saw authorship on my site the next day.
At least in my case there appeared to be a limit of 10 sites that I could contribute to as an author before Google Authorship went away. I think an excellent follow up would be for a more authoritative and diverse blogger to conduct a test to see if that works for them as well. Maybe a task for Rand Fishkin?
4) Google Authorship Alone Does Not Appear to be a Ranking Factor
I was under the impression that Google Authorship alone would make my site rank, but I was unable to prove so in this experiment.
5) Yahoo Scrapes Public Google+ Data
Yahoo is apparently scraping Google+ data, because that is the only way they could have known about my site! While this may seem surprising or unscrupulous, I believe that it is actually fair game for them to utilize publicly available Google+ information.
6) SEO Analysis Tools Will Need to Adjust
It will become more difficult to trust an SEO analysis tool that does not incorporate Google +1′s into their data front and center. I hope that the smart tool makers are already tapping into the Social Data Hub to pull more of this information into their analysis tools.
7) Use Google Author Stats
For those of you who have been granted Google Authorship, make sure that you quantify the value and impact of your writing in search results using Google Author Stats.
You can access this report from right within Google Webmaster Tools, and the report covers all sites that you have verified as an author. Ever think you aren’t reaching anyone with your articles? Author stats provides a fantastic reality check.
8) New Sites Can Rank Quickly with Google+ and Retain Rankings
A new site can see meaningful rankings within a day of the domain name being registered. Not only that, but the rankings may hold steady or even improve, even without any further promotion. Over the course of 3 weeks, all four sites of the study maintained steady or increased rankings….More at 8 Reasons Why You Need to Establish Authority on Google+
It is great when you find a great peice like this and your own research points to the same.
I am not saying that you need to write a high quality piece of content everyday, however, go online and write in forums, places where people need help on YOUR industry and help them – each time you write put in your Google Plus URL link and in your Google+ Profile (about section) say you are a contributor to said forum.
Also, at least monthly (more than your competition is) write something either on your sites blog, or other blog. A tip to start you off is try writing 500 to 1000 words around each one of your FAQ's (frequesntly asked questions). Obviously then add in your Google Plus author link – It always looks like this
<a href=plus.google.com/yourcodenumber?rel=author”>Google+</a>
Ensure you have the site that you put the above code in also is in the contributo to section, of the about section in your google + profile.
Brian
