This post was inspired by Jenny Stradling’s tweet to Starbucks and so many others that are reminding companies to remove their Google+ icons and links from their websites.
Dear @Starbucks pssstt… tell your webmaster to remove the link to Google+. It’s a 404 now. You’re welcome. https://t.co/9muDAGRGys pic.twitter.com/C6IqWs3yNa
— Jenny Stradling (@dayofjen) June 30, 2019
Have no fear Starbucks, you are not alone!
Starbuck’s lonely Google Plus icon
404 page Jenny mentioned in tweet
For those of you who didn’t even know Google Plus went away, Google made an announcement in October 2018 and again in December of 2018 and sent many reminders to account holders after those dates. The announcement stated that Google Plus was going away and will now only be available for G Suite accounts.
App install page in Google Play Store
Google+ is only available for G Suite accounts through work or school. Consumer accounts (typically ending in @gmail.com) were shut down on April 2nd, 2019.
I won’t get into the whys and hencewiths of the shutdown, but if you really want to know, you can read about it in the links above or in the sources referenced at the end of this post.
When I found out Google Plus was going away, I was a little sad and didn’t want to remove the icon from my website. I just wasn’t ready to move on. This is real talk. LOL!
Due to my reluctance to remove my Google+ icon from my site, I actually came up with the idea to repurpose it.
Here’s how that came into play …
I was looking for a way to add the Google My Business Listing icon to my website, but the WordPress template that I use doesn’t have Google My Business as an option in the social links section, so I replaced my Google+ link with my Google My Business Listing link. If you’re not familiar with what Google My Business is, I will write more about it in the next post.
Based on conversations in some of my classes, a lot of people don’t even know Google+ is gone. Apparently, not even Starbucks — and sadly, some don’t even know it existed.
The more features Google adds to the Google My Business Listing, the more I’ve been feeling like it’s a replacement for Google+ anyway, so I thought why not give my lonely Google+ icon a new destination.
If you have questions about Google Plus or your Google My Business Listing, be sure to schedule a free-15 minute consultation with me. I’ll be happy to answer your questions.
Source(s):
- Google+ is no longer available for consumer (personal) and brand accounts
- Project Strobe: Protecting your data, improving our third-party APIs, and sunsetting consumer Google+
- Expediting changes to Google+
- Google+ for G Suite
- Frequently asked questions about the Google+ shutdown
- Great News from Me & Google!
Author: Romona Foster
Romona Foster is the Social Media Trainer and Consultant at Social Media How To’s with Romona. Romona teaches small businesses and nonprofits how to use Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Google My Business — and the best practices of Email Marketing, Online Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, and Personal Branding. She is a featured contributor with Business2Community and is a Constant Contact Community blogger.