First Google+ feature launches Google for big name brands

Businesses will be able to set up their own Google+ accounts with the feature, which is the social network's first big venture into an area currently dominated by Facebook.
Google has launched its first Google+ feature for big-name brands and businesses to interact with customers
Burberry, Pepsi and Chelsea FC are among the big names to launch a Google+ Page, with marketing messages that will feature in Google's dominant search results.

The move is Google's first large-scale attempt to endear its fledgling social network to marketers and advertisers, after it attracted more than 40 million users worldwide since launching in September.Facebook, which connects brands to its hundreds of millions of users through the "Like" button, is estimated to have generated $1.6bn in revenue in the first half of this year, most of which was through advertising.Google+ users can follow their favourite brands and companies by adding them to so-called "circles" alongside existing friends on the website. Using a new "Direct Connect" feature, users will be able to search for a brand at Google.com using the "+" prefix and be taken to the relevant Google+ page, if it exists. For example, a Google search for "+Pepsi" should take users to the Pepsi Google+ page.

Announcing the changes on Google's official blog, Vic Gundotra, senior vice-president of engineering, said: "So far Google+ has focused on connecting people with other people. But we want to make sure you can build relationships with all the things you care about – from local businesses to global brands – so today we're rolling out Google+ Pages worldwide.