Google+ has grown to over 300 million active users, so if your winery doesn’t have a presence on the Google-owned social media network yet, it’s time to take a look and consider whether it is a good fit for you. For those of you who are already building a following, here are three things you can do to market your winery more effectively on Google Plus:

1. Host Google+ Hangouts—and Broadcast Them!

Hangouts are probably the coolest feature Google+ has to offer, so if you’re not using them to engage your customers, you really ought to give it a try.

If you’re not familiar with Hangouts, think of them as video chats on steroids. Instead of chatting with one person, you can chat with many people at once. The name “hangout” makes it sound casual, but it doesn’t have to be. You can host anything from online seminars to video conference calls to informal talks with your most dedicated fans.

The downside is that participation is limited. You can only have ten participants in a single hangout unless you have a paid Google Apps account (then it’s 15). That means you have to be really selective about who is invited to the actual event. However, there is an option (called Google Hangouts on Air) that allows you to broadcast the event live on YouTube so that the rest of your fans can watch and interact with the presentation through the comment section. By monitoring the comments, you can engage with your entire audience and build fan loyalty during the event.

For more information about broadcasting a Google+ hangout, check out How to Host a Google+ Hangout on Air on Mashable.

2. Participate in Google+ Communities

Google+ has communities for enthusiasts of all types—including wine lovers. As with any online community, be sure to read the rules first before promoting your products. It may or may not be allowed.

However, if you are focused only on finding a place to push your own wines, you’re missing the point. The object of joining a community should be to engage with fellow wine lovers, not to sell to them. If they like you and the content you post strikes their fancy, they’ll check out your profile on their own—and maybe your wine too.

Need a good starting point? Check out this community of wine bloggers. If you can make friends with a few influential bloggers, maybe—just maybe—they’ll help spread the word about your best wines for you.

For more information about Google+ communities, including how to set up your own community, read Google+ Communities: What Marketers Need to Know on Social Media Examiner.

3. Use +Post Ads

Google’s +Post Ads take the interactivity of a Google+ post and transport it across the web. You can pay to push your posts through the Google AdSense program as as interactive ads that appear on other websites all over the Internet. Users can follow your account or comment on the promoted Google+ post without even leaving the host site. They can also +1 or share the content.

You need to have at least 1,000 followers to use +Post Ads, so if you’re not quite there yet, you’ll need to work on building up your fan base first.

For more information on Google+ +Post ads, click over to Why Google’s +Post ads Program May Be Important for You on Forbes.com.

Remember, whether you are promoting your business on Facebook, Google Plus, or any other social media network, your goal should be to interact with and engage your audience, not to hard-sell them. You are building fans first. When they are ready, they will buy.