Google’s social media and sharing platform, Google+, has been around for over two years now. My previous experience with the platform involved joining back in 2011, adding some circles and sitting back only to hear crickets. Since then, I’ve been guilty of putting Google+ on the back burner and going on about my business. Maybe this sounds like you, or maybe you’ve never even considered Google+ since Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter have you busy enough as it is. Either way, it’s time to give Google+ its props.

Personas, or customer profiles based on real data, have been around for a while. Although they may seem daunting to compile at first, once you have the information, you have a roadmap to the hearts and minds of your most valuable prospects. Depending on whom you ask, creating customer personas can be a fun exercise or drag on for days, with every answer only leading to more questions. HubSpot recommends this worksheet for painting the perfect customer picture. If you feel overwhelmed by the list of questions you need to answer, try focusing on the essentials: