Desirable People to Follow on Google+

If you are like me, getting started on Google + has been a little slow. I have people adding me to their circles all the time but don't know who I should add to my circles. I have found that hand picking your Google + stream can create a wonderful flow of content, creativity and inspiration. Unlike my “all following” stream on Twitter which flows quite quickly (yes I have made lots of smaller lists to track different groups), this is a curated list of celebrities and real people, following a wide variety of topics and interests that I hope will bring something new to your Google + experience.

Here are some recommendations for interesting, engaging folks on Google +:

1. Guy Kawasaki

“Guy Kawasaki is the author of Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions. He is also the co-founder of Alltop.com, an “online magazine rack” of popular topics on the web, and a founding partner at Garage Technology Ventures. Previously, he was the chief evangelist of Apple. Kawasaki is the author of nine other books including Reality Check, The Art of the Start, Rules for Revolutionaries, How to Drive Your Competition Crazy, Selling the Dream, and The Macintosh Way. Kawasaki has a BA from Stanford University and an MBA from UCLA as well as an honorary doctorate from Babson College.”

Listed on the Google + Web Celebrities List – Guy LOVES Google + and is engaging with people there all day long with a wide variety of topics and posts. I find him thoroughly Enchanting and you will too!

2. Natalie Villalobos

Natalie Villalobos “Community Manager for the Google+ project (+mention me to posts!)”

Who better to circle than the Community Manager? Always a good person to get to know, right? Natalie has a great list of Google+ people to follow on her about page as well.

3. Wil Wheaton

Wil Wheaton “Tagline: Don't be a dick!

“I'm Wil Wheaton. I'm an author (that's why I'm wilwheatonbooks), an actor, and a lifelong geek.  I wrote Just A Geek, The Happiest Days of Our Lives, and Memories of the Future. I played Wesley on Star Trek, Gordie in Stand By Me, and Fawkes in The Guild. I occasionally play Dr. Parrish on Eureka, Evil Wil Wheaton on Big Bang Theory, and Cha0s on Leverage.”

I less than three him on Twitter and Google +.

4. Ree Drummond

Ree Drummond “The Pioneer Woman – Desperate ranch wife. Mother of four. Lover of butter. Amen”

Adore her blog and she has a new show starting on The Food Network. She was lucky enough to have Bobby Flay come to her house for a Throwdown last year and did a live Twitterstreaming for the show when it aired. She gets Social Media and is hysterical.

5. Mitch Neff

Mitch Neff “Father of three wicked cool kids | SoMe Architect at BallywhoMedia | Instigator | StartUpBus Miami Alumni”

Engaging and intelligent, this Social Strategist is kicking butt and taking names. Just started working on WebTrendsTv – fabulous!

6. Mari Smith

Mari Smith “Greetings!! I'm a Social Media Keynote Speaker and Trainer. I call myself “a bubbly Scottish-Canadian loving living in San Diego.” (My accent is “Scandifornian!” Lol!)

FastCompany.com refer to me as a “veritable engine of personal branding and a relationship marketing whiz” and dubbed me “thePied Piper of Facebook.” Dun & Bradstreet Credibility named me one of the top ten Most Influential Small Business People on Twitter. ClickZ.com named me as one of the Top 25 Social Media Allstars. I have been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Inc., Success Magazine and on American Express OPEN Forum.”

Mari (pronounced like Ferrari) is a joy and I love her blue theme.

7. Chris Pirillo

Chris Pirillo Tagline: Geek for Hire

What can I say, I love a self proclaimed geek. Smart and funny, Chris is currently one of the most followed people on Google +.

8. JD Andrews

JD Andrews “Travel is my passion; creating inspiring and evocative videos and photographs is my profession. Social Media is the way I connect with the world and share both of these things. I have a passport that's ready to get inked up and a camera itching to capture the worlds beauty, let's GO!”

Travel the world vicariously though JD and his amazing photography. I love following him on Twitter but Google + really makes his photos spectacular. And he is really nice as well. (always a bonus in my book)

9. Angel Oakley

Angel Oakley “CEO Unicatis. Mktg Strategist/Trainer/Speaker/Photographer/Social Media Junkie likes HealthWellness/Greening/Politics”

Chicago beauty inside and out. Smart, savvy and super fun.

10. Mack Collier

Mack Collier “Online extrovert, offline introvert. It's complicated…”

The Daddy of #BlogChat where the seed for my first blog post was planted. Very well respected and well deserved. Smart, fun and funny!

11.  Gini Dietrich

“Gini Dietrich is the founder and chief executive officer of Arment Dietrich, Inc., a firm that uses non-traditional marketing in a digital world. The author of Spin Sucks, Gini has delivered numerous keynotes, panel discussions, coaching sessions, and workshops across North America on the subject of using online technology in communication, marketing, sales, and HR. One of the top rated communication professionals on the social networks, Gini was recently named the number one PR person, according to Klout and TechCrunch, on the channels, and number one on Twitter, according to TweetLevel.”

I am on watch and learn mode with this Social Media chica. Her blog is amazing and people flock to it daily to read and comment. Can't wait to meet her in person someday!

12. Sam Fiorella

Sam Fiorella “Chief Strategy Sensei | Sensei Marketing | Toronto – NYC”

Very smart, one of the absolute best Twitter chat hosts out there! Generous, helpful and a really great person to boot.

Who are you enjoying the most on Google+? Who is adding value to your stream? Please share with me so I can circle them too!

13. Lynda Giddens

I found Lynda's picture while writing this post and now she is a Google + friend. Interesting, fun and a great photographer!

 

Who do you like to follow on Google +? Please share….

This post originally posted on 12 Most. 

Featured image  Some rights reserved by Magnet 4 Marketing dot Net via Creative Commons.
Article by Peg Fitzpatrick