What are Google+ Communities?
According to Google: Google+ Communities are:
“With Google+ Communities there’s now a gathering place for your passions, including:
- Public or private membership to support all kinds of groups—from topics and interests to local neighborhoods to regular poker nights
- Discussion categories to find the conversations you care about most
- The option to start hangouts and plan events with community members
- The ability to share with your community from any +1 button across the web”
Google+ Communities are the place to connect with people that have your same interest, like your favorite sports team or hobbies.
How do Google+ Communities compare to Facebook Groups or LinkedIn Groups?
Google+ Communities are similar, yet different, than Facebook or LinkedIn Groups for a few reasons. Google+ Communities can make use of other great Google+ features, like Hangouts. Also, the threading of topics is definitely useful. While Facebook lets anyone create a group and add whomever they want to the group, Google+ Communities only facilitate inviting group members. For those with many connections, this is a huge relief. To disable notifications about invites, change your settings:
Google+ Communities can be either public or private, like Facebook and LinkedIn groups. Like both Facebook and LinkedIn, moderators can be assigned. And similar to LinkedIn, within a Google+ Communities are various topics or categories. This is how Google is merging the old Google Groups into Communities. I think again Google will lead the way on SEO of Communities compared to Facebook and LinkedIn Groups.
How to use Google+ Communities:
How to network with others via Google+ Communities:
Tools are just a means to help you reach the goal. Whether you want to build a business to business referral communities, or if you want to simply connect with others that have interests and tastes like your own, Google+ Communities can be powerful. Like any other social networking, please remember not to be overtly self-promotional, but to share tips and give ideas freely to the community without expectations. Build the relationships around your interests and let that carry over into other areas like learning who works where and what they do.
