Google+ Custom URL
Claim your Branded, Google+ Custom URL
Last week, on October 29th, Google announced the availability of Google+ Custom URLs for Google+ Profiles and Business Pages.
A Google+ custom URL for your business page provides users a short, easy-to-remember web address that links directly to your Google+ business profile or page making it easier to promote in almost any context.
Here is a post announcing Google+ Custom URLs on the Official Google+ Page:
When I logged into the Google+ eBiz ROI business page, the following notice was displayed at the top of the page.
If you don’t currently see a similar notice on your Google+ business page, it may be that your page/account does not yet meet the current eligibility requirements, including having:
- A profile photo,
- At least 10 followers and
- An account that’s at least 30 days old.
If your business page does meet the minimum eligibility requirements and you still don’t see the notice, then it is possible that Google has not yet rolled out Google+ Custom URLs to your account/business page, but should be soon according to the Google+ post above.
Get a custom URL for your Google+ Business page
The directions along with additional details can be found on the Getting Started with Google+ Custom URLs. For the purposes of a real example, below is our experience documented to illustrate the process.
1. Click on the Get a custom URL button in the notice from Google+ to get started. Alternatively, from the “About” tab on your Profile, click the “Get” link located under your Google+ URL. The following dialog box (with your page information) will be presented.
Here is the text for those unable to see the above image:
Your Google+ page’s public URL is: plus.google.com/109873080991223388331
You can change it to:
I agree to the Terms of Service.
2. You’ll see the URL(s) you’ve been approved for. For eBiz ROI, we were approved for the following: google.com/+Ebizroi. If you see more than one option, select the one that best aligns with your branding and other social media profiles. You may also be asked to add a few numbers or letters to make the custom URL unique to you.
3. Check the box to agree to the Terms of Service, after you have read them of course. Google does a good job of providing the cliff notes version which is just one page.
4. Click Change URL button
Google may ask the user/page admin to verify the account using a mobile phone number. If you need to do this, you’ll see a box pop up asking you to do so.
a. Enter your mobile phone number.
b. Check the box to make it easier for people who have your phone number to find you on Google services.
c. Check your phone for the code that was sent to you.
d. Enter that code in the box.
e. Click Verify.
After clicking the Change URL dialog box and verying your account/page (if required) the user is presented with the following dialog box:
Here is the text for those unable to see the above image:
Are you sure you want to change your page’s URL to:
If you change your page to a custom URL, you can’t change it again or transfer the URL to someone else.
5. Once approved, this URL will be linked to your Google+ page or Profile, so be sure everything is exactly the way you want it. Note: Once your URL has been approved, you can’t request to change it. The only exceptions are capitalization or accents/diacritics. When you’re certain (and that drum roll in your head pauses), click the Confirm Choice button. After clicking the Confirm Choice button, the following confirmation will be provided.
Here is the text for those unable to see the above image:
Congratulations, eBiz ROI, Inc.!
You’ve claimed the following Google+ URL for your page:google.com/+Ebizroi
Now everything is peachy, with just one exception. The eBiz ROI branding is lower case e, upper case B lower case iz, followed by uppercase ROI which stands for Return On Investment and everyone knows how us marketers are when it comes to protecting our brands. The good news is that case of the custom URL is very easy to change.
Change your Google+ Custom URL
To change the capitalization or accents/diacritics of a Google+ custom URL, follow these steps:
1. Go to the “Links” section of your Google+ profile and click the edit link as highlighted below.
That will bring up the following dialog box to change the custom URL that was just claimed. At this point, only changing the capitalization or accents/diacritics is allowed.
Click into the box with the custom URL and make the desired changes. In our case, it was simply to change Ebizroi to eBizROI to align with the eBiz ROI branding and style guidelines while maintain consistency across social profiles.
After clicking the Save button, the custom URL is now changed in the google.com/+eBizROI page.
Summary
A Google+ custom URL for your business page provides users a short, easy-to-remember web address that links directly to your Google+ business profile or page has many benefits for bolstering your brand.
We strongly recommend claiming your Google+ custom URL(s) as soon as your are eligible for them, if for no other reason than avoiding someone else claiming your brands URL and having to go through the hassle of trying to recover it from Google+.
Be sure before you click the confirm change button as only small changes to capitalization or accents/diacritics is allowed once a custom URL is confirmed.
As always, feel free to contact us with any questions you may or leave them in the comments below.
Rick Noel is an experienced digital marketer enabling businesses and organizations to grow through the Internet, while maximizing marketing ROI (Return On Investment). Rick is the CEO and Co-Founder of eBiz ROI, Inc., a full-service digital marketing agency located in Ballston Lake, NY.
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