As previously discussed, what effect does Google +1 have on your site? How does it affect your Search Engine Results Page position?
Google most recently confirmed again to Wired that
“Google will study the clicks on +1 buttons as a signal that influences the ranking and appearance of websites in search results. The purpose of any ranking signal is to improve overall search quality. For +1’s and other social ranking signals, as with any new ranking signal, we’ll be starting carefully and learning how those signals are related to quality.”
More about these signals are in our previous post.
There’s plenty of websites offering to give you extra ‘+1s’, but these farms are almost certainly going to be caught by Google, since it’s easy for them to see not only who has clicked +1, but also who hasn’t – and what each of those users have clicked before.
If 1,000 people all click one link; it may be natural – but if 1,000 people click the same twenty links; its likely to be spotted – so don’t fall for it.
But how could this be gamed? There are plenty of ways – but most of them would involve lots of time and investment of lots of people – or nasty tricks involving redirects (Some people are already aware that links move with a 301 – but +1’s don’t; but it isn’t likely to work go unnoticed). There’s certainly ways to black-hat searches, but it rarely pays off in the long run.
So how can you use it to your advantage?
- Make the +1 button more useful – feature it as a part of the social and sharing parts of your site, and not something that needed to be added.
- Ask friends, family and even other businesses – you might find a good arrangement
- Research – make sure you are targeting the right circles
- Use Google Plus in its entirely, post and share it with other well-connected people and circles
If you’ve any other tips or advice, please let us know. There’s sure to be more effects on Google search through Plus soon.