While Google pursues better and fresher content with it’s recent Wildfire acquisition, its Google+ platform must also innovate to match user engagement levels comparable to Facebook and Twitter. A SocialShare Report from BrightEdge shows that Google+ is gaining momentum with big brands like Visa, H&M and Red Bull creating Google+ pages and bringing their followings with them. These brands, however, are not necessarily fostering consumer interaction.

Gold label brands that recently created Google+ pages include Wells Fargo, H&M, BMW and Toyota, which exceeded 1 million followers, putting the page ahead of Google’s own Google+ page. The automotive industry is well represented on Google+ as Nissan, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche and other auto leaders are among the top 10 brands on Google+, accounting for half of the followers. As three-quarters of the top 100 brands now have Google+ pages, Google+ is nearing brand participation on Facebook, at 90%, and Twitter, at 80%. Growth is good, but Robert Hof of Forbes notes: “The problem with slower growth, though, is that there are still way fewer followers of most of the top brands on Google+ vs. Facebook and Twitter. H&M, for instance, leads Google+ brand with 1.3 million followers, but that’s tiny compared with its 11.6 million fans on Facebook.”

Google+’s integration with its own organic search results have been productive. While, the report indicates that 30 percent of brands with Google+ pages have their pages show up in search results six times higher than reported in February, this benefit does not necessarily translate into enhanced engagement. Despite the many new brands on Google+, less than 30 percent of Top 100 brands are promoting links to Google+ pages on their website as the report indicates “less than 30 percent of Top 100 brands are promoting links to Google+ pages on their website.”

In June and July, the top 100 brand following increased 54 percent, from 7.9M to 12.2M. Still, this amount is relatively low compared to the 1,400 percent growth between December 2011 and February 2012, and the 150 percent growth between February and May 2012.

According to Jim Yu, CEO of BrightEdge: “The exponential increase in Google+ pages showing up in search results means consumers are starting to engage with brands more regularly on the platform and vice versa. However there is still much higher adoption on Facebook and Twitter, whose offerings some feel include deeper engagement models which they have built and matured over time, thanks to their earlier start and sustained investment. Brands need to continue to assess and adjust how they leverage all of the social signals to capture the digital engagement and sales they’re looking for.”

View and download the full report here.