The end of April brought rough seas to the world of Google+ (aka Google Plus). Vic Gundotra, who has been with Google for the past eight years, has stepped down from his position with the search engine giant. Why is this such big news you may ask? Vic Gundotra was an integral part of the creation of Google Plus as a social media channel.
What does this mean for the future of Google+?
If you ask Google about this, nothing. A representative from Google has responded with “The news has no impact on our Google+ strategy—we have an incredibly talented team that will continue to build great user experiences across Google+, Hangouts and Photos.”
On the other hand, according to Techcrunch, many speculations are floating around the digital world in relation to Google Plus’ future in the social media market. One proposed idea is to evolve Google+ into a platform from its current position as a product. This move could end its competition with other social networks rivals, Twitter and Facebook. Upon its launching in 2011, Google hoped that the creation of Google+ as a social media marketing tool, would bump Facebook out of the top as the most widely used platform for users. In reality, the main benefit of Google Plus is not social media, but to help your business’ search rankings.
Since Gundotra’s departure, it doesn’t seem that Google Plus will be going away any time in the near future; considering that over 1,200 Google employees are backing the service.
Keep (or make) Google+ part of your overall social media marketing and search engine optimization strategy
Google+ should still play an important role in your overall social media marketing and 
SEO strategy as it is an important asset to your digital marketing game plan that can help support your overall organic search strategy.
Boulder SEO Marketing founder and search engine optimization training expert Chris Raulf recently co-presented a webinar entitled “Got Social Media Marketing Strategy?” and we invite you to view the recording of this webinar at your convenience.
We frequently host complimentary online events, SEO trainings and digital marketing workshops, so make sure to join our mailing list if you’d like to learn about upcoming events.