Google+ Pages For Businesses: The AdWords Impact

Google’s introduction yesterday of Google+ Pages for businesses will likely have a dramatic impact on +1s in AdWords.

When businesses create a Page on Google+, they can link the page to their web site URLs and also to their AdWords account. When that’s done, +1s for any of the linked URLs — on web sites or landing pages for AdWords ads — will all accrue to the brand, making the numbers much larger.

Image provided by Google

Previously, +1s were specific to individual URLs and only accumulated when people +1ed the URL in organic results or an AdWords ad that used that URL as a landing page. Google is now displaying +1s with ads both on Google.com and on the display network and has said ads with +1s perform better than ads without, presumably because they’ve been socially recommended.

Google says the new +1 aggregation will not affect the auction on the display network. Google uses +1 data to better target ads on its display network, serving advertisers’ ads more often to friends of those who +1ed the ad or the landing page URL. This new way of aggregating +1s for the brand as a whole will not affect the auction or ad targeting any more than previously, however. [Note: Before I heard back from Google, in a previous version of this story, I had speculated that the additional +1s might have a stronger affect on the auction. It won’t.]

To enable these social extensions, advertisers need to enable Social Extensions in the Ad Extensions section and enter their Google+ Page URL. AdWords Express users can choose their Google+ Page as a landing page for their ads by selecting that option and entering in their Page URL. The option may not be available to all advertisers immediately.

About The Author

Pamela Parker

Pamela Parker is Research Director at Third Door Media's Content Studio, where she produces MarTech Intelligence Reports and other in-depth content for digital marketers in conjunction with Search Engine Land and MarTech. Prior to taking on this role at TDM, she served as Content Manager, Senior Editor and Executive Features Editor. Parker is a well-respected authority on digital marketing, having reported and written on the subject since its beginning. She's a former managing editor of ClickZ and has also worked on the business side helping independent publishers monetize their sites at Federated Media Publishing. Parker earned a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University.