Over the past decade, social media has become a huge part of our daily lives; it’s how we stay in touch with old friends, the way we invite people to parties and get-togethers, and where we turn for recommendations. Social media is also where we, as business owners and operators, advertise our goods and services. But the times are changing in the world of social media, and for one platform, the change might be permanent.

Since it came onto the social media scene in 2011, Google+ never quite grabbed hold of the popularity of Facebook and Twitter. Despite that, though, businesses were encouraged to have a presence on Google+ because, as the social media brain child of Google itself, the SEO benefits outweighed the low user profile. Recently, however, Google has decided to start cutting the deadweight and began informing business owners that their Google+ Business pages would be deleted for inactivity. And here at corecubed, we’re recommending that our home care agency clients let go of this deflating platform.

What Does This Mean for Your Google Presence?

For the most part, letting go of your business’s Google+ page won’t make much of a difference. Because Google+ participation remained low throughout its lifetime, business reviews and local data were slowly removed from Google+ Business pages and placed instead on your Google My Business account. That means that your Google My Business account, which now holds all those important reviews and location data, will be unaffected by this change. Additionally, if your page was already deleted by Google for inactivity, or if you chose to delete it yourself, you shouldn’t see much, if any, change in ranking for your business on Google or Maps.

The bottom line is that Google itself has realized that these business pages don’t hold much value for users, and they’re now cleaning house. So, don’t worry about letting go of Google+. Instead, focus your home care marketing efforts on other platforms, like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, and LinkedIn that can help you reach your target audience and recruit new caregivers. As always, corecubed’s social media and content marketing experts can help you market your home care agency the right way. Contact our home care consulting team today to learn more.