Google+ Local Unlocks the Power of Zagat

Google+ rolled out on Wednesday a new ‘Local’ tool that allows users to share and find information about nearby places — from museums and spas to restaurants and hotels. In addition to tapping a user’s network or “Circles,” the new service also incorporates information from Zagat, which Google bought last year.
The new “Local” tab, located on the right-hand side of Google+, encourages users to learn more about the places around them. For example, by searching for a restaurant or store through the tab, a Google+ page will appear with photos, as well as Zagat scores and summaries, reviews from people you know and other information such as addresses and hours of business.

Google is leveraging its acquisition of Zagat in September 2011 to bring more than 35,000 reviews and scores across 100 countries to the Google+ community. The latest “Local” effort is a year in the making, according to Google.
“This takes any place that your friends have touched and provides you with interesting and relevant search results,” Avni Shah, director of product management at Google, told Mashable. “You can also filter based on aspects that might be important, such as ‘People Like You’ and really give you the information you need from the people you trust.”


When logged in to Google+, this information will appear in Google searches and via Google Maps and mobile. The capability is only available for Android phones now, but Google said it will roll out to iOS devices soon.
Those not signed in to Google+ will still see Zagat reviews and recommendations pop up while doing a search, but only users who are signed in will gain a deeper look at where their friends like to dine or restaurants that might be a best match for your taste.
“Since your friends haven’t always been to the places you want to go, if you are going to London or Bangkok, Google+ Local will look at places you have rated highly before and make similar recommendations,” Shah said.
Want to make a reservation after oogling your friends’ favorite spots? You can do that too, thanks to Google+ Local’s integration with Open Table.
“We want to build a community based on a sense of trust, and we will continue to roll out new features and tools that reinforce that that concept,” Shan said.

10:33 by Robert dawne · 1

Would You Watch An Angry Birds Web Series?

Angry Birds is one of the world’s favorite mobile games with their most recent release, Angry Birds Space, garnering a whopping 10 million downloads in less than three days.  People wear Angry Birds costumes, dream of Angry Birds theme parks, eat Angry Birds pizzas, and even shop in Angry Birds stores.  Soon, fans will be able to watch an Angry Birds web series as well.

Rovio has announced that they will be launching a 52-episode, weekly Angry Birds web series this fall.  Nick Dorra, head of animation at Rovio, said at the MIPTV conference in Cannes, “Angry Birds is not just about the gameplay, and will be in the future less and less about the slingshot, actually, and more and more about the characters.”  Dorra says, “We’re going to roll it out on all possible devices.  We’re looking at building a video app for that, and we’re also looking at partnerships and so on… We want to be on all screens.”
Though still primarily known for their mobile game, Angry Birds is far from new to the online video scene.  The Rovio Entertainment YouTube channel has over 452 million views thanks to popular Angry Birds videos.  Some of the most popular Angry Birds videos include a sweet cinematic trailer, a short about Mighty Eagle, and a holiday video called ‘Season’s Greedings!’
The tens of millions of views on these videos indicate that the Angry Birds series, when it launches this fall, will be a huge success.  Will you watch?  Or will you be too busy with slingshots on your mobile?

10:43 by Robert dawne · 0

Today: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon Hosts a Google+ Hangout

At 3:30pm EST on Tuesday, six people will participate in a Google+ Hangout with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.  Google has been actively recruiting celebrities and Presidents to use Google Hangouts to connect with people, and they are definitely a great way of getting the word out about Google+.

The event will be moderated by Google’s David Drummond, and like previous Hangouts will likely consist of the moderator and the other selected participants having their turns to ask the guest pre-screened questions.
You can connect with the UN on Google+ here and ask a question, although it seems like the people who will be in the Hangout have already been chosen.
The Hangout will be streamed at youtube.com/unitednations.  Check out a video highlighting the event below.

10:35 by Robert dawne · 0

Google+ Launches “What’s Hot” Volume Slider[+VIDEO]

Scott Zuccarino from Google has just posted about a new feature on Google+ that lets you “control how many ‘What’s hot’ posts appear in your main stream on Google+”,The What’s hot post is a post that shows you what’s being shared like crazy around the world — which is why some people may not want to see it too often in their news feed.  It’s a smart way of blending news at large with personal news, which seems to be Google’s positioning of Google+ in general.

The feature will look like a volume slider and will be rolling out in the next few days.  It will be very similar to the existing volume sliders that let you control the blend of feed information from your various circles.  It was just a hop step to use this feature to also blend in the amount of “What’s Hot” information streaming in, too, Check out Scott’s post over on Google+.
Take a look at more information about “What’s Hot” in the video below :

08:36 by Robert dawne · 0

Google+ vs. Facebook: Which Is Best for Business?

Social media is an ideal way for a small business with a tiny advertising budget to get its name out there and interact with its customers. Integrating the parts of your online strategy is key, but sometimes, it's just not worth the effort to create a page on every social network out there.
Right now, Facebook brand pages are the go-to place for brands that want to be social, but Google+ recently entered the game, trying to present an alternative—or, at the least, a supplement.
Should your small business be on both Facebook and Google+? If not, which one's the way to go? Here's a breakdown of the factors to consider.
Userbase
Mark Zuckerberg's social behemoth has one glaring advantage: Its gargantuan user base is unparalleled. For a small business, it's nearly guaranteed that whoever your customers are, they're already on Facebook and know how to navigate it.
Google's network has nowhere near the amount of users as Facebook, but its audience is a bit more focused. However, the regular folks that go on Google+ don't check it as often as Facebook, so they are harder to engage. Facebook's users come back to check the site frequently, multiple times a day.
Engagement
There are a lot of similarities between the engagement features of Facebook and Google+'s brand pages. Facebook has the "like," and Google+ has the +1. Facebook has friend lists, and Google+ has Circles.
Unfortunately for Google+, Facebook completely dominates it on features. It's not even close. Whereas Google+ really only allows you to post pictures, Facebook offers a variety of ways for fans to interact with your brand. It has polls, apps, events, notes (mini blog posts) and even "friend activity," which shows when your friends are talking about your company.
Branding and customization
Pages on Google+ look very similar to the current iteration of Facebook. It has the same design with pictures at the top and a river of posts beneath it. Google+ pages are more minimalistic, with a lot of white space, whereas Facebook piles all of its features on its left-hand navigation bar.
But when Facebook releases its new Timeline for brands, things will be very different. For instance, the change in visual impact is huge. Businesses will be able to instantly grab eyes with a big branded banner at the top of the page. Meanwhile, Google+ will still have those five dinky pictures at the top.
Facebook's customization features go beyond anything Google+ has. It also allows you to embed e-commerce stores, make a page of trivia questions, set up a calendar and much more.
The bottom line
Google+ has its benefits, but it just doesn't match up to Facebook so far. Unless you have the time to spare to run a Google+ page, it's likely not worth the effort because the ability to engage consumers is so limited, and the breadth of audience is too. And when the Timeline comes to brand pages, Facebook will take another big step ahead of Google+.
For a small business, the biggest justification to use Google+ would be to supplement the brand's existing online presence. It's certainly worth it if you have the capability to run a Google+ page without slowing down everything else you're doing online.
But it's obvious that Facebook's brand pages are way ahead and should be the priority for a small business looking to engage its consumers online.
Do you have both a Facebook and Google+ profile? Which do you prefer and why?

11:06 by Robert dawne · 1

How Are the Airlines Using Google+? [Infographic]

At a recent Socialize event in Toronto, a few panelists pointed out that people may be looking at Google+ the wrong way.  While most are trying to categorize it as a social network, the speaker felt that Google+ couldn’t miss because it was just a way of strengthening social SEO, and as the years pass, it will become more and more vital for companies to use it to improve their SEO anyway, and eventually this will draw people to Google+ through Google search.
I feel that this idea is spreading through businesses pretty fast, and seeing as how starting a basic Google+ business profile has almost zero risk and a very low cost, we’re seeing companies get into the space quick.  The latest?  Airlines.
In this infographic fromt eh folks over at simpliflying, we see that there are now 70 airlines with brand pages on G+ and most pages are making brand related posts on the network.  A good 34% have blank news feeds.  This means that while the airlines are engaging the network, they still don’t know how to use it.  The most popular airlines using the service are volaris, jetBlue (love these guys) and CEBU Pacific (the makers of that rockin’ viral video).
Check the infographic below for more information.

12:51 by Robert dawne · 0