• by Laurie Sullivan  @lauriesullivan, February 11, 2013

Tracking Google+, along with YouTube, gives marketers access to a varied audience segment not typically found on Facebook. The top 100 brands with pages on Google+ boast 20.9 million fans -- up 9,400% from 2011. In fact, the top 10 brands hold 78% of the total advocacy base in Google+.

The Social Share report from BrightEdge charts the growth of brands on Google+ and YouTube. The findings, which analyze social media adoption trends for the BrandZ top 100 global brands, suggest new audiences for brand marketers.

Of the 16.3 million followers, the clothing store H&M leads with about 2.49 million fans, according to the report. Aside from clothing, automotive takes four of the top 10 spots in Google+, up from zero in 2011. BMW leads with more than 2.2 million, followed by Mercedes-Benz with 2 million, and Nissan with 1.9 million. Porsche took the sixth spot with 1.7 million, just behind Google with 1.8 million.

Brands also continue to learn how to optimize profiles. About 25% added a profile link in 2012. Three of the top 10 brands promote their Google+ presence through links to their profile pages on company Web sites. These brands are Mercedes-Benz, Nissan and Samsung.

Some have begun to tie Google+ with YouTube, which many don't associate with being a social network.

Collectively, the top 100 brands on YouTube can count 3.1 billion views. The top 10 brands on the network support business to consumer relationships. Google and Red Bull hold the most views, with 718 million and 535 million, respectively. Samsung follows with 160 million, Nokia at 139 million, Coca-Cola with 135 million and Apple with 103 million.