The social networking world is constantly evolving. It’s a non-stop with a hectic pace. Those who are dedicated to them have to be constantly vigilant; updating their knowledge and learning about the latest functionalities in different platforms.
Although I’m sure by the time this post is published, there will have been other updates introduced; the latest changes referring to Google+ and Twitter are worth mentioning here.
I was wondering who the real beneficiaries are from these constant updates and why do they occur so often? Well, once again it seems that the answer is the same: companies seem to be the ones benefitting and cashing in from these updates, so they get more return on their social networking presence. Another group taking advantage of these new changes in social networks are the very own platforms in question in order to have more income, as are most pressed by money-hungry investors.
1. Google + Updates
1.1. Google+ custom URLs started to give ordinary users
Over a year ago Google+ began delivering custom URLs with the direct links to the profiles of brands and celebrities, but now Google has announced that it has started offering this personalisation to all users if they met three minimum requirements. These conditions to claim your custom URL on Google+ are quite straight forward, you need to have more than 10 followers, have a profile picture set up, and your Google+ account has to be more than 30 days old.
If you meet these three requirements, Google+ will offer a custom URL for your profile. Mind you, having said that, depending on how popular your name is, the vanity URL offered might not be the one you want. Unlike Facebook where you could write what you wanted in your URL, Google+ will only deliver a limited list of options for custom URLs at the moment, even though to counteract this you can send feedback and have a different vanity URL considered for your page or profile.
To claim your URL in Google+ page, a message is brought to you when you enter the social network, you can also enter by going to the tab “About Me” (or ‘About’ ) at the top bar on the left of your profile, and then pressing on the ” Claim ” button under your Google+ URL. You can get more information about how to get started with custom URLs here.
1.2. Google+ has introduced important changes in the management of their social network pages.
Similarly, Google has changed some things in the way they manage the pages in their social network Google+. Administrators have received an email a few days ago with news, highlighting calls to action and “shared recommendations”, and highlighting how your photo, name and recent activity may appear in some ads.
As we know, Google is enhancing the look of local searches with a healthier look that has the intention of being more relevant and to provide a better user experience. Thus, for example, a restaurant within your social network profile appears in searches prominently, with the reviews that have received a map of the area, etc.
2. Twitter Updates
As you know, Twitter is in the process of implementing a new functionality that will allow you to receive direct messages from any user, irrelative of them following you or not. To do this, you have to check a box in the settings of your account, which seems to be a clear attempt to prevent the arrival of spam.
Does this benefit a normal user into anything? I don’t think it does to be honest, though it may be in some cases. After all, companies will be the major beneficiaries, as they will receive direct messages with advice, suggestions, complaints or any other issues privately, away from the sight of all the followers.
Jose Capelo is an SEO consultant working for Tandem digital marketing in Edinburgh. He enjoys blogging about SEO and digital marketing news. You can ask him question about custom URLs on his Google+.
