If you want to take advantage of the full SEO benefits of Google+ for your small business, you’ll need to setup a personal Google Plus Profile that is different from your Business Page.

Here’s a screenshot of how our clients have used Google+ to improve their website’s traffic and search engine rankings (by increasing the Click through rate to their websites).

This strategy is a part of our Google plus Authorship Guide. You can immediately improve your website’s SEO by simply implementing authorship to your websites.

In order to complete Google+ Authorship, you’ll need to complete your Google+ profile first.

Follow these steps to have your Google Plus Profile completed in less than 10 minutes.

1. Sign up for a Google account or use your existing one to login to http://plus.google.com/

2. Follow interesting people and pages. (Optional)

3. Upload a picture and add more details about you (not your business)

This needs to be a real person. Social Media is about connecting and providing great value to other people. If you are not ready to upload your personal image in Google+, then you can’t use Google+ because they require “real” people.

TIP: Be careful what you put in your Google+ profiles publicly.

You don’t want to put personal details like personal address, personal phone numbers. As a rule of thumb, add only details that are related to your business like:

Place of Work
Job Title
Work Phone
Work Address
Social Media Profiles like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn (only if you have them)

Now that you’ve joined Google+, it’s time to complete your profile by filing up the details in your About us page and uploading a cover photo in your Profile (a must!)

Here’s a Great Video that will teach you how to create your own cover photo if you have Photoshop.

If you don’t have photoshop, you can use online editing tools like

http://pixlr.com/

http://coverphotoeditor.com/

TIP: Choose images that reflect what you do and what your business is about. Avoid using Stock Photo images unless you don’t have any choice. Stock photo images are great for web designs and business pages. But for your personal profile, it’s best to showcase your past projects than use a stock image.

4. What to include in your about Page

Tagline: Add a famous quote that you like, your personal mantra or even your business tagline. The key is to be able to share something that you want to resonate to others.

Introduction: I’d like to welcome and thank the visitors who’ve landed in my Google+ profile. I would never scare them away by pitching my business or “asking” them to add me in their “Google+ Circle”.

I would just tell a little bit about myself and what I do. Add credibility by linking and mentioning what your business can do for them. If you’re a licensed contractor and that you do a great job doing house renovations, make sure you link to work portfolios and credentials on your about page.

Also, remember the acronym, WIIFM or what’s in it for me. Your readers would most likely follow and interact with you if they know that there is a benefit for them.

You don’t need to fill up all the details in this about page, but you’ll need to add your website and other social profiles in your about page.

Other Profiles: Add your social media profiles, like Youtube, Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin

Contributor to: Add your blog, website, guest blog posts, and where you’ve written and posted articles (if you have any).

Links: Links to trade shows, memberships, association, sponsorship,etc. that are part of your business.

Here’s my Google+ profile and about page if you need further reference.

Now that you’ve completed setting up your Google+ profile page, it’s time that you setup Google Authorship for your website.

This article on How to setup your Google Plus profile was originally posted on our internet marketing blog.

What’s Next?

Read more:

• Google Plus: Will “Add Me on Google+” Be the New “Facebook Me”