Free Google Account Must-Haves for Site Owners

As an owner of several sites, I use eight features of my Google Account daily. These free tools are an invaluable part of my online success. Are you using your Google Account to the max? Or, perish the thought, you don’t have one yet? See how you can make the most of what Google offers. Did I mention it’s all free?

The first time I signed up for a Google Account was shortly after the publication of my first book, The Sage Age – Blending Science with Intuitive Wisdom. I received Google Alerts, which are email notifications for any time my name or the book’s title appeared online.

The next feature I began using was Feedburner, which was eventually purchased by Google. It is a free RSS feed distributor and now formats the feed based on the viewer’s device, which is particularly important now that so many folks are reading posts on their phones.

See What’s Working

When Google Analytics became available, I put code on my site to track visits. Now there are easy-to-install plugins for WordPress that give me a wealth of info about my online marketing efforts.

As I learned about the importance of SEO, Google’s Keyword Search Tool and the new Wonder Wheel have become my best friends. It helped me learn to think like a search engine and develop content creation habits that are candy for both search engines and readers.

Get Seen in More Places

Every time I leave a comment on a blog, I either sign in with my Google Account or Gravatar. I’ve optimized my profile on both and they leave my photo and links to me and my sites on the blog posts.

I’m on the road daily and my iPad has become my favorite traveling companion. Google Reader is a great way for me to quickly scan posts from a variety of blogs. I copy the URL into Google Docs of any that I want to highlight in the BlogAid Newsletter or Tips Tuesday series.

Now that they own it, I use my Google Account to login to YouTube. Uploading WordPress and other how-to video tutorials to YouTube has generated a lot of traffic back to my site.

Grow Your Business

Google is providing me with invaluable resources that boost site visibility, help me make effective choices for content, and track how my sites are becoming more successful every day.

For more info on all that you can do with a free Google Account, read the full article Why Every Website Owner Needs a Google Account. You’ll find descriptions of each feature as well as links directly to that service. For more helpful articles, visit the Resources page.