Google+ (or Google Plus) is many different things, depending on who you ask. It’s the tool Google will use to beat Facebook. It’s Google’s latest attempt at social media, and they finally got it right. It’s “the linchpin of Google’s plan to own the entire internet” (see below for the source of that quote). So what do organizations need to know about Google’s latest foray into social media? What are Google’s future plans for the platform? Google Plus Tips, Tactics and How-To Guides. MORE >>

Google and Google+. Google’s search engine is used by 85% of global Internet users every month. Google+ is expected to reach 400 million users by the end of 2012. Google+ is the tool that most marketers (70%) say they want to learn more about in 2012, following by blogging (cited by 59%). Note: a slightly shorter version of this compilation was recently published as a guest post on Jeff Bullas’ blog. Social media and inbound marketing techniques have been a boon for marketers. And social media isn’t just about lead generation of course. Which U.S. MORE >>

With its progression of benignly named yet ferocious algorithm updates (Farmer, Panda, Penguin), Google continues, in its efforts to battle webspam, to confound and make life more difficult for legitimate SEO professionals and their clients as well. Fortunately, there are a large and growing number of tools available to help SEO practitioners adapt and carry on their valiant efforts to help Google bring the most relevant (usually anyway) results to the top. What are the best tools for finding and eliminating broken links? Which tools work best outside the U.S.? 5 STARS. 5 STARS. MORE >>

Post on Google Buzz. Social media and PR would seem to be natural allies. Both are primarily focused on brand awareness, credibility building and image enhancement. Both are critical tools for dealing with bad news or crisis situations. Both require relationships with influential people in one’s industry to be effective. And both rely on the ability to tell an interesting story. So why do corporate PR and social media efforts so often appear disconnected and out of sync? To be sure, some agencies and companies get it, and do an effective job integrating social media and PR efforts. MORE >>

realtime social search engine that pulls current and recent results for any term from Twitter, Facebook, Google Buzz, Digg and Delicious. Blekko’s Tools Give Search Marketers Google Alternative by MediaPost Online Media Daily. Granted, the web is littered with “Google killer&# alternative search engines, but Blekko , created by Rich Skrenta and Mike Markson, is really cool. social media monitoring tool that tracks your brand and keyword searches across Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Youtube, Google Buzz, Blogs, and News, and reports results hourly. Flowtown. MORE >>