Google’s launch of the awkwardly named “Search, plus Your World” has the web buzzing with commentary. Blogger John Jantsch believes Google is “shaking things up a bit” by making search a more personal experience. Twitter says Google Search Plus (as “Search, plus Your World” is quickly becoming known) is “bad for people” — an uptight reaction that actually legitimizes what Google is doing. And in a newly published blog post, my iCrossing colleague Nick Roshon offers tips for how brands can benefit from Google Search Plus. In his post, Nick asserts that Google Search Plus is a major overhaul that makes search more personal and social.

“For brands, it is now more critical than ever to pay attention to the intersection of search and social and cultivate an active social following, particularly on Google+,” he writes. “Your social prominence can make or break your visibility in the new Google Search Plus results.”

So what’s a marketer to do about Google Search Plus? Nick articulates seven steps you should take now, ranging from getting active on Google+ to cultivating share-worthy content.

For example, he writes, “Being active on Google+ will provide increased visibility for your brand, both on Google+ as well as the content on your website that you share on your Google+ page.”

We should not be surprised that Google continues to find ways to synthesize search and social — with Google at the center of the experience. Thought leaders such as David Armano and my colleague Alisa Leonard have contended that Google is creating a social data layer across paid, earned, and owned media, giving brands new ways to connect with consumers via rich content on platforms ranging from YouTube to Google+.

Are you on Google+? Is your brand? If not, why not? If so, how has your experience been so far?