Over the last weekend I was lucky enough to be involved in a discussion that +David Amerland started. FOUND HERE. It made a quick turn before it took off regarding how the environment of Google Plus is similar to College (thank you +Marisa Goudy for the comment heard round the world) wherein people want to learn, share, collaborate and create new knowledge. For many of us Google Plus is still a new social media platform and for many others it's still yet undiscovered. One inherent flaw in this, is the rate of adoption. By people & businesses thinking that this is just another social network and maybe choosing to utilize their preferred networks they are missing out on a revolution. Google Plus is not just another social network, it's a place that can create synergies, enable better communication, allow for collective knowledge sharing and ultimately refine business practices.
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| Taken from http://SeattleSEOConsultant.com |
What's So Great About Google Anyway?
What Google has done here is quite astonishing. They have taken their suite of products, amassed them into a compilation of functions and given us Google+. There are still some refinements which will make this an even greater tool. These updates are rolling out quite frequently, like their plan to create one master communication tool. Talk/Hangouts/Chat will be consolidated into one master communications tool "Babel" is rumored to be it's name and from within this chat tool people can instant message, use video chat and create hangouts where multiple people can join the conversation through their web cams. No more knocking on doors to sell your wares. No more unnecessary sales trips where customers who don't want to be sold are shown power points that don't want to be seen and dismiss 100 sales people daily. There is an attitude on Google Plus where helping to move conversation along in a positive fashion is encouraged regardless of the amount of followers you have or the degrees you hold. People honestly want to help one another. Here, "you get what you give" plays a big part of your overall experience.
Customer Service in Real Time
Imagine a customer has an issue, they see you are signed in to your G+ account and ping you.Well you both have web cams so now you can speak in real time. No more body language is missed by a voice only telephone call, this is the real deal. Both parties sitting in their independent offices communicating face to face via a Hangout (video chat). Never before in history has the technology enabled such instantaneous and real communication. Yes, streaming video and video phones have been around for 20-25 years or so but have never been able to be used so reliably due to the lack of available bandwidth. That's all changed and Google is making it easier for all of us to interact in real time. The issue that the customer has, can now be discussed via a live video chat and they can even share their screen w/you so that you can see what they see and walk them through the problem they are having right on their own computer.
If they have any type of files that need sharing, such as a word document, spreadsheet or database they can be uploaded into Google Docs & Drive, shared and examined and through collaboration right there, and problems can be solved. The great thing about Google Plus is, that through this medium, the social element is added. All business is social, so this makes sense on a very intuitive level. Customers respond best to real people when real emotional connections have been made. The more they interact with the real you the better connection you have. There are so many ways to engage but once a customer meets you through a hangout, they will most likely feel much more confident about the relationship as a whole. Knowing now, the person in real life, not just over the phone. Another very positive feature behind the scenes here is that anything done through Google Plus in terms of posting or sharing is all indexed by none other than Google. No other social network, independent CRM software or Apps can tout that claim with as much direct added value as Google. The inherent value in search is that any time a customer needs information 65% - 70% of the time, they go to Google. If your business is active on G+ you will start to see your posts showing up in search and what happens when you show up in search? People find you! If people find you, you have the chance to gain more business...See where I am going here???
Google Plus Goes The Distance
There is an amazing culture developing over in Google Plus, people want to share, they want to teach, they want to collaborate, they want to learn, they want to be happy. People are emotional beings and they connect with others based on commonalities. Imagine if businesses could do the same thing? Business has always been a closed door type of thing. Secrets must be protected for the risk of someone finding out what is done, copying, taking market share and pushing others out. This way is antiquated. What Google is doing here is forcing people to be open, and share.
As Eric Schmidt says "The true cost of remaining anonymous, then, might be irrelevance."
Sharing is enabling intelligence to grow and discussion is cementing that new found knowledge. Learning is now happening at an exponential rate but why can't these amazing things be the same for businesses as they are for individuals? Well, I say, they can be. It's just going to take time for the rest of the world to catch on and understand that by integrating business processes and communication through G+ there is a whole realm of advantages that are known and many more than are unknown. How do you feel Google Plus will disrupt business? Do you think it's here to stay or just another social network? Please comment below as I would love to discuss.
Michlin Metals is a Woman Owned Small Business, Aerospace Metal and Stainless Steel Distributor. Follow Michlin on Twitter @MichlinMetals, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+ or on the Web at www.michlinmetals.com. More on the author on Google+.
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