Just when you thought you couldn’t possibly be more social, Google ups the ante. Now Google Analytics and Google Webmaster have made it possible for you to track the impact of tweets, likes and +1’s on your website’s traffic. Wondering what this all means for you and your website? Let’s take a closer look at two of Google’s newest tools:
Google +1 Button
What It Is: The newest sharing button on the web, Google’s +1 button is a way for those searching the web to say to others “this is pretty cool” or “you should check this out.” When the +1 button is clicked it is like giving a stamp of approval, noting that this site, article, etc. is worth viewing. Similar to Facebook’s “like” option, the +1 button will help friends, contacts or other individuals searching the web to find information that is relevant and helps you get your content in the right hands.
How You Use It
<!-- Place this tag in your head or just before your close body tag -->
<script type="text/javascript" src="https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js"></script>
<!-- Place this tag where you want the +1 button to render -->
<g:plusone></g:plusone>
Source: Add the Google +1 Button to Your Website
Social Plugin Tracking
What It Is: Social Plugin Tracking is a tool for Google Analytics that compares the impact of different social actions on your website, including +1s, Twitter tweets, Facebook likes, Facebook sends, etc. Through three different reports–Social Engagement, Social Actions and Social Pages–Google can track behavior changes and social actions the same way it tracks web visitors and page views.
How You Use It
Track Facebook Likes by inserting the following script after your Google Analytics tracking code:
FB.Event.subscribe('edge.create', function(targetUrl) {
_gaq.push(['_trackSocial', 'facebook', 'like', targetUrl]);
});
Track Twitter Tweets by inserting the following script after your Google Analytics tracking code:
twttr.events.bind('tweet', function(event) {
if (event) {
var targetUrl;
if (event.target && event.target.nodeName == 'IFRAME') {
targetUrl = extractParamFromUri(event.target.src, 'url');
}
_gaq.push(['_trackSocial', 'twitter', 'tweet', targetUrl]);
}
});
Source: Google Code: Setting Up Social Tracking
Have more questions about how to utilize this new technology on your current website? Let us know!.