With average business owners and even many SEOs finding it difficult to navigate through an unfriendly page navigation interface provided by Google Plus, it actually makes more sense to move towards Google Places which has a far more friendlier and functional interface.
Mentioned below are some issues with the Google+ interface that can confuse and waylay even moderately experienced SEOs.
The Google+ interface opens up with several modules that are not even sorted as per their importance. For instance, users may be attracted to click at the center of the screen that sports an eye-catching green module encouraging them to Start a video call with your followers. However, this tactic will not provide noticeable value to most businesses while requiring a lot of time and effort.
On the other hand, important functions for any business such as information on location, hours, and categories seem almost camouflaged behind a white button as are other activities such as Insights and Top Searches.
Small and medium business owners that may try to use Google Plus are bound to get confused when they pass the first page since they will be bombarded to install buttons, plugins, and get connected to Google API. Unfortunately, Google should have realized that around ninety percent of this target audience may not possess a mobile site and around fifty percent may not even have their own business website.
The Places dashboard too is quite confusing in terms of presentation. The Views and Actions graphs are displayed in a manner where they are accorded equal importance, which in turn can end up with businesses losing out on some crucial metrics. In addition, there is hardly any real-time help offered for Google Plus users other than at their Learn More section in Settings.
On the other hand, the interface of Google Places is clear and precise with on-screen modules that do not end up confusing business owners or SEOs. You can quickly and easily view and enter the Complete your business information module displayed with a green background or the Edit information displayed with a blue background.
Small and medium business owners will also find it easy to navigate around the dashboard as well as find helpful tips merely by clicking on the displayed Question Mark. Questions posed by users are also answered in a simple manner.
The Insights graph also provides data in a precise and transparent manner. Business owners will be able to understand their business standing without any apprehension or frustration. The interface is simple and requires only 3 actions before providing the desired reports.
Balloon tooltips in Google Places can help stuck business owners and SEOs to proceed ahead on a step-by-step basis. In addition, Google also offers phone support along with a FAQ section that should solve most common issues. Businesses and SEOs can also send feedback through the provided link.
Google Plus certainly pales in comparison with Google Places in terms of offering a user-friendly experience to novice and moderately experienced users. Google needs to either improve its Google Plus interface and features or should directly guide business owners and SEOs to Google Places to convert more users into long-term fans.