Here’s the short answer: Keep it on your radar and don’t ignore it.

Time will tell what Google+ becomes. Nobody outside of Google really seems to be convinced that it is going to be a Facebook killer, but there are a lot of signs that say this is going to be a strong force in the internet.

That being said… (I’m not going to make this into a Google+ vs. Facebook post)

As a business owner, you will want to have a presence on Google+. How big? Just like any other marketing: Test, Test, Test.

Note: Google has asked businesses to wait to build profiles until they launch their business environments.

In the coming months, Facebook and Google+ are going to make big plays to earn our business. I will never tell someone not to put their business profile on Google+. I would rather use this time getting used to both environments and seeing what there is to see. Try to see how your target clients are acting in both environments, and choose your tactics carefully.

Remember: Strategy is the overall marketing plan. Tactics is the “boots on the ground” specific actions that you take in specific areas. There will be more posting about this as Google+ and its users develop.

One of the great things about blogging is that it gives folks a look at the inside of you… things outside of regular business… so that they see you are a human being.

Funny things that are outside your field offer all sorts of opportunities to blog about something different. Here’s the thing, though… it has to be relevant to your readers and it has to be something consonant with you… in other words, readers could see what you have put up and actually believe that you enjoy it. In other words, it can’t just be something off the wall.

Example?

I am a web designer. It’s what I do. Now what would a web designer be into? You’d be surprised at some of the non-geeky things, and you would expect a lot of nerd-culture. But if I start posting a whole bunch of things from those, it probably doesn’t resonate with you…

However, I’m also a marketing junkie… and if you are reading my blog, then you have some interest in marketing your business. So that would be fertile ground for me to play.

So if I post a link to this article about 20 business cards you would probably never, ever forget (not safe for work or around kids), then even though it is not about web design, it is about marketing… and you might even be likely to pass it on to others who find making fun of marketing to be funny.

Blogs offer visitors a window to see inside your company and to learn about you: the person (if you build the blog that way).

So your blog doesn’t always have to be about business, as long as what you do talk about is relevant to your visitors… and it’s probably best not to throw them a curveball until you know for sure that they are very familiar with you.

Interesting things could be something related to your business… say for example you sell things that cater to left-handed people. A blog post on the origin of the word “Southpaw” would be relevant… then you could for other word origins having to do with the left hand (ever wonder where the word “sinister” came from?).

This could be a series of blog posts that would entertain your readers.

You could even have 101 Interesting Facts about Left-Handed People and have a blog post for each one of them. There are 102 Blog Champions Rules… each of them will have their own post eventually. Right now, I’m getting to about one every month or so in and among my other blog posts, so if this is number eight, I have about 94 more months (almost eight years!) of Blog Champions posts.

So the information about Google+ has been coming out slowly but steadily, and although this may not be the Facebook-killer it is supposed to be, yet, it’s got some neat features built into it and more coming.

The biggest obstacle they will have to overcome is getting people to change their habits, but time has shown that it’s easier to get people to do so on the internet.

Google+ is using a lot of graphical interfaces. Instead of groups of contacts, it’s done via circles (social circles, etc…) and instead of grouping everyone together automatically, it practically forces you to assign people to circles as you add them.

It also allows you to hide your contacts from others, so that in Google’s own words, you can “hide that weird aunt you’re embarrassed about, and show off the coolest people you know.”

They have put a lot of effort into groups.. er… circles, which to me is the most fundamental difference between Facebook and Google+, and represents the biggest required changed behavior…

…managing all the circles!

We’ll see how it goes. Google has had its share of hits and misses as it tries to expand from just being “the search engine.” With as many people who have signed on board, so far, though… it will get a fair amount of use to see what people do and don’t like.

Do it.

I’m not a fan of mandating charity.

However, if you are taking advantage of the opportunity to run your own business, then you should be supporting a charity,  a cause, or something.

Why? Because we small businesses are quite often either the loudest voices for a cause or among the largest contributors to charities, and we kinda owe that to society in a “pay it forward” kind of way.

It’s as simple as posting once in a while about a cause you believe in. It doesn’t have to involve money. The only rule in play is that when you talk about a charity or a cause, it is all about the charity or the cause. The point is to help the charity and to raise awareness… it is not about “hey look at me!”

Once it becomes “hey look at me,” then you lose all credibility, or worse, become offensive… and being offensive is a real hard label to shake off once someone has applied it to you.

We are businesspeople. There are things we can do for charities that people who do not own businesses simply cannot do… or do as well.

What can you do?

Become a drop-off location.
Lots of charities are looking for collection points for items like canned foods, blankets, diapers and other necessities.

Be a mouthpiece for them.
Raise awareness through your blog. Don’t make it a beg-a-thon, but if you have information to share, the blog can be a great place to share it. The same “don’t sell through the blog” rules apply, but there’s a little leniency if you are telling your readers to go to a certain event or something along hose lines. It’s great to raise funds, just don’t make them feel all bad to do so.

Put an icon on your blog that leads to their website, if they have one.

It’s not about “here let me give them money” or about “look at me.” It’s about getting these groups the help and/or awareness that they need.

Buying is an emotional decision, no matter how logical a purchase may be. And if you have a few stories that will pull on people’s heart strings, they need to be one of your main marketing tools, because people empathize with those types of stories.

Wait! That’s not fair! You’re toying with people’s emotions!

Well… “toying” isn’t the word I would have chosen, but… I can see your point…

Welcome to the world of advertising and marketing.

If you plan on being in business, you’d better be able to make people want your product. Want is an emotion.

Do you think for a second that McDonald’s would sell nearly as many hamburgers as they sell if they displayed them the way we get them?

Do your burgers show up with bright, freshly cut vegetables and meat right off of the grill, steaming with that distinctive char-broiled aroma that makes your taste buds sing the hallelujah chorus?

When you take your kids to McDonald’s is it to get food that you know they will eat and to let them blow off some steam in the playground?

Or when you take your son to McDonald’s after the big little league game… the one where he struck out in the last inning with the game on the line… he’s hurt, been crying, feeling like he let down the team… and you order him that Quarter Pounder….. no… that DOUBLE Quarter Pounder for your big man… does it bring that smile as a sunbeam lights up his face?

People are emotional buyers, and if you want that purchase, you’d better pull that string… and yes… that includes your blog, because your blog is a natural part of your marketing strategy.

Kittens.

It’s hard for most people not to smile when they think of kittens… especially with all the pictures of them doing silly things on the internet.

Kittens press what I call “the Awww button” which causes people to send the picture on to someone else… and so on, and so on, and so on…

A true Blog Champion either has a few “cute” things about their industry in their back pocket or they are looking for them, because they know that these items are likely to get passed on to others through people who may not ordinarily pass their information along.

The trick is: it has to be related to your industry… otherwise, it isn’t congruent. A website about football that suddenly features a picture of a ballerina without some connection to football (like the ballerina is really a football player).

Stereotypes.

People say that stereotypes aren’t very nice… But they can be funny. They can also be huge differentiators for your business if you let them.

If you use stereotypes in your blog, you need to be deliberate and confident about it. There is a fine line between talking about stereotypical traits and being offensive.

One of the best I have seen at bucking stereotype is Dan Cohn of Cohn Consulting Services. Dan would never say this about himself, but I’m pretty sure that he gives I.T. guys nightmares. Most I.T. guys (for this discussion) are someone who works at a company and is “good with computers.” In reality, it is more accurate to say that they are good at following help screens and piecing things together.

When Dan talks about the stereotype, he notes that “when most people think about computer guys, they think of people running around with propeller beanie hats and pocket protectors.”

Doing the exact opposite, when Dan goes to an appointment, he is sharply, sharply, sharply dressed in a suit. He uses technical jargon only with a plain English explanation of what that word means.

In using the stereotype to describe his industry, he allows customers to relax, taking comfort in knowing that Dan will knowing that they are coming to the right person to get the job done!

Blog Champions Rule #3: look for funny things within their field to blog about.

People on the Internet are more likely pass along something that is funny than they are to pass along something useful. The internet is a social media, as evidenced by sites like Facebook and twitter. Old and new friends getting together, sharing stories and of course, laughing.

Blog Champions look for things that their target viewers will find funny that they can post. The key here is their target viewers. Two twin babies having a conversation is a pretty universal laugh, so it appeals to everyone and gets passed along by everyone.

Once you determine your target market, make sure that what your posting is funny to people in that group. Things that poke fun at ‘senior moments’ are probably funnier to one group tha another. Parodies of one’s company with Star Wars characters will be funny to some whilenothers won’t be amused at all by it.

So definitely know your crowd, and put out things that will amuse them. If they really like it, they’ll pass them along to their friends (who probably include some people in your target market).

Blog Champions Rule #2: Blog Champions look for interesting things within their field to blog about.

It doesn’t necessarily need to be funny pictures of cats, but entertaining and useful information is the kind of thing that people want to pass along to their friends.

So the question becomes, “what can I find in my industry that people would want their friends to see?”

Now this will be more difficult for some industries than others. For example, a fire dancer will always have cool pictures to share, but finding unique pictures after the first couple times can be a challenge. What if they were to post a quick series of posts about particular parts of fire dancing, like certain tricks that they like to do, one for each trick?

Real Estate agents all over are talking about the recent buying trend. What about simple things that someone can do to increase the value of their home?

Each industry has something valuable to pass along, as long as their messages make it to the right people. Housewives may not pass along the latest football stats, but they might pass along the cleaning tips that guys don’t normally pay attention to.

Who are you reaching? What can you send to them that they are likely to pass along to their friends?