Have lots more fun - With Google +1!

What is Google Plus One?


You've probably seen it lurking around... You're probably guessing what it is... You're probably wishing someone would tell you...


Today I'm going to try and help people understand what the new Google Plus One button is. It's been out for just a little while now and it's growing rapidly. Now it's getting bigger and making its way to blogs, and other such personal websites. It's a really handy feature but like anything else, it's only useful if you know how to use it.



I'll start with what +1 is all about.

+1 is a slang term that originally came from places like forums. It was a way of saying you agreed with what someone else said. A way of saying, "yea, I like that too". The same thing applies for Google +1. It's way for people online to say "this is good information" or "I like this, you should read it too". Google +1 was intended to help other readers find useful information even quicker than before. Essentially Google +1 is much like the Facebook "like" button that we always see. It's just another way to publicly show off to your friends and other viewers that you like something.

Why would I want to +1 something?

There are actually quite a few good reasons to +1 something. I'll start with just the basic ones right now.

• Giving something a +1 helps others. When someone comes onto a web-page and they see that it has a whole bunch of +1's they know it's a legitimate site. They can see that everybody else liked it and therefore, it's most-likely good, useful, and interesting information.
• Google +1 improves your searches online. Google +1 is actually incorporated into Google Search! When you browse through the searches each result has the +1 button right next to the title of the website. In a few months when this +1 thing starts picking up, you're going to see many sites with few, or lots of +1's by them. This will help you pick out which site looks the most useful and therefore quicken your online searches.
• Google +1 is a way to express yourself. When you +1 something you're saying something about you. You're letting other know what you do and don't like. Google +1 is a great way to show others what you're interested in!

Alright, now how do I go about giving something a +1?

Lucky for you, Googles made it very easy to do. Giving something a +1 is just like giving something a facebook "like". It requires just a few clicks and an account with Google. To make it even more easy I've got a little pictorial" for you! Enjoy:

Alright, so say you come across a page you really like. For example, my free giveaway that's going on right now. Everybody likes a free give-away, right?

Now you want to share with others how much you like this page. You want to let them know that they should come and see it too. So, you scroll down to the bottom of the post. Highlighted in red (for your convenience) is the Google +1 button.

Just hover over it and you'll be presented with a message saying

"Click here to publicly +1 this as [insert Google username here]

[insert email address here]"

All you do is click this button and you'll be taken to the confirmation screen.

Now, you have a few options. The easiest one is to simply hit "confirm and +1". From here you can also customize you Google profile, learn more about +1, or view Google's privacy policy. Most likely you'll just want to hit the confirm button. :)

That's it, you're all done! You'll now notice that the button is highlighted in blue. This means that you have publicly +1'd the webpage. It will not appear blue to anyone else until they have also +1'd it.

The counter however that appears to the left of the button now shows a 1 instead of a 0. Every time someone +1's the page the counter will go up.

I hope this article has been useful and informative to you. If it has, hey, why not give it a +1 and let others know about it! ;) You can also leave me a comment and tell me what you think of it.

Regards,

777-  Tyler Dahl