By now we've all been exposed to the +1 buttons now visible on Google search results pages (SERPs) and most blogs. The +1 button recommends content to your circle(s) of friends in Google+. You can view your +1's in your Google profile by logging into your Google account and clicking the +1's tab. How can you add a +1 button to your web pages so that visitors can recommend them in addition to your blogs and Google search results?
The first step is being able to edit/update your web pages. Hopefully you have the ability to access the HTML code either via a content management system (CMS) or directly editing the page in an HTML editor and uploading your page to your Web server via FTP. If you're site is on Wordpress, you can install a plugin to do the job.
The next step is to add the +1 button code. Go to http://www.google.com/webmasters/+1/button and complete the wizard. If you have a url you want to promote other than the current page, click the Advanced Options and add your url to the "URL to +1" box. You might want to do this if you are adding your button to a template that works with multiple pages. Now copy the code in the code box, find the position in the HTML of your web page where you want to add the button, and paste the code where you want to place your button. Simple.
Now preview and test your button. The button turns blue when you have clicked it and recommended the page. You can click the button again to un-recommend it. Your +1's are stored in your Google+ profile (once you are logged into your Google account). Just go to your profile and click the +1's tab.
Here's what Google has to say: "Content recommended by friends and acquaintances is often more relevant than content from strangers. For example, a movie review from an expert is useful, but a movie review from a friend who shares your tastes can be even better. Because of this, +1’s from friends and contacts can be a useful signal to Google when determining the relevance of your page to a user’s query. This is just one of many signals Google may use to determine a page’s relevance and ranking, and we’re constantly tweaking and improving our algorithm to improve overall search quality. For +1's, as with any new ranking signal, we'll be starting carefully and learning how those signals affect search quality."
You can never have enough easy ways for visitors to share your content with their friends and network connections. As Google+ continues to grow, it makes sense to update your website now.
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