Setting Up Google Tools and Applications

In order to track the impact you’re making with your SEO efforts, you’re going to need to have a few critical Google Tools in place. In this lesson, we’ll show you step-by-step how to set up Google Analytics, Google Search Console, and Google Tag Manager.

7 minutes

Key points you can
learn in this lesson.

Monitoring Site Data With Google Analytics

Create your Google Analytics account to monitor website traffic and user engagement.

Google Search Console Set Up

Set up Google Search Console to assist in the maintenance of your website’s presence in Google Search results.

Process of Tracking

Simplify the process of tracking with Google Tag Manager

Our key metrics increased. More importantly, we implemented a lot of new tactics and test scenarios, which will boost our company’s future prospects.
Dave McCue
Digital Marketing Manager at Allstate

Lesson Preview

In this lesson, we’ll be walking through how to set up for your Google Analytics, Search Console, and Tag Manager accounts. Feel free to skip this lesson if you already have these 3 applications set up.

Why is this important?

Google Analytics allows you to track many important metrics, covering all aspects. You can monitor the effectiveness of your online marketing strategies, onsite content, user experience, and device functionality.

Google Search Console is a free service offered by Google that helps you monitor, maintain, and troubleshoot your site’s presence in Google Search results.

Google Tag Manager is a tool with a user-friendly, web-based interface that simplifies the process of working with tags. You’re able to add, edit, and disable tags without having to touch the source code on your website.

These 3 Google tools are going to be essential for analyzing the performance of your SEO campaigns. The earlier you get them set up, the better. Data in Google Analytics will only begin recording once you have a tracking code correctly installed.

What you’ll need:

  • Google Account (Sign up here

The Process:

Step 1: Sign Up for Google Analytics

  • Enter https://analytics.google.com into your web browser.
  • Click “Create Account” or “Sign in” to your Google Account
  • Enter the email you want to use to sign in to your new Google Analytics account. If you already have a Google Account, use your Google email address. 
    • If you do not have a Google Account, click “Create Account” and complete the Google Account Sign Up process. After creating your account, return to https://analytics.google.com in your web browser.
  • After signing into your account, read Google’s terms and conditions and click Agree.

Step 2: Understanding Tags 

In order for Google Analytics to work, you must implement the Google Site Tag into your website. This is the Global Site Tag (gtag.js) tracking code for this property. 

Copy and paste this code as the first item into the <head> of every webpage you want to track. If you already have a Global Site Tag on your page, simply add the config line from the snippet below to your existing Global Site Tag.

Keep in my that the Tracking ID will be utilized when setting up other Google Accounts as well. Please store this Tracking ID somewhere easily accessible.

You’re all done signing up for Google Analytics. Click HOME if you’d like to explore Google Analytics and begin becoming familiar with the dashboard. 

Step 3: Sign Up for Google Search Console

1. Enter https://search.google.com/search-console/welcome into your web browser.

2. Sign in to your Google account. 

3. After signing in to your account, click on the drop-down menu on the top left of the screen and click add property. 

4.  Add your website domain and click continue. 

5. Complete the verify domain ownership steps.

    • Sign in to your domain name provider (e.g. godaddy.com or namecheap.com)
    • Copy the TXT record into the DNS configuration for your website.
    • Press verify If you can’t complete the verification right now, you can press verify later and return here by selecting directiveconsulting.com from the property menu.

You’re all done signing up for Google Search Console. Once you verify your account, you can explore the dashboard and begin analyzing your website’s search data.

Step 4: Sign Up for Google Tag Manager

1. Enter https://tagmanager.google.com/ into your web browser.

2. Sign in to your Google account. 

3. After signing in to your account, click on “Create Account”.

4. Add a new account by completing the following steps:

    • Enter Account Name
    • Enter Country Location
    • [Optional] Check the share data anonymously with Google
      • Enable benchmarking by sharing your data in an anonymous form. Google will remove all identifiable information about your website, combine the data with hundreds of other anonymous sites and report aggregate trends in the benchmarking service.
    • Enter container name
      • Example: www.mysite.com
    • Choose the target platform 
      • For the purpose of setting up website tracking, click “Web” 

5. Complete Google Tag Manager Terms of Service Agreement

    • Read through the Terms of Service
    • Check the box at the bottom left corner and click “Yes” in the top right corner. 

6. Install the Google Tag Manager code on your website.

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