The general answer to this question is yes. But if you dig a little deeper you will find that this is not entirely true. I am learning this the hard way as I have clients asking me to connect their Google+ Page with their Google Places Page and I am finding it cannot be done with 4 out of the 5 types of Google+ Pages you can create.
So if you have not yet created a Google+ Page for your business and you have an existing Google Places Page / Listing, then you must choose wisely. Be sure to choose option 1 and once your Google+ Page is published, then you will be able to verify it with your Google Places Page.
There are presently 5 different options to choose from when creating a Google+ Page:
- Local Business or Place
- Product or Brand
- Company, Institution or Organization
- Arts, Entertainment or Sports
- Other
Now here is the stinger, if you choose any of the options, 2, 3, 4 or 5 then you will not be able to connect that Google+ Page with your Google Places Page. The only option that you can currently connect is option 1. See instructions here.
This is turning out to be a frustrating situation, because it seems like a waste of effort and time if you have created either options 2, 3, 4 or 5 as your Google+ Page. If you desire to connect your Google Places Page with your Google+ Page-than you will need to create another Google+ Page as an option 1. So basically you lose all the effort you put into growing your Google+ Page and now need to turn all your efforts to the new option 1 Google+ Page you’ve created.
Yes, this means you will also need to change the links on your website or Blog that link to your current Google+ Page to the new one you’ve created. You will also need to add your website or Blog’s url to your new Google+ Page as the contributor.
I hope in the near future Google+ can give us an option to convert our Google+ Pages into an option 1 Google+ Local Business or Place Page, so that we don’t lose all of our connections, posts and everything we put into the existing Google+ Page.
If you would like to learn more from us or hire us to help you with your Google+ Pages, then pick up the phone and call 1-877-769-0885, or contact us online.