Social interactions like +1s on Google+, Facebook likes, comments, and shares, etc. are called social signals.
Google has been tracking social signals as part of its ranking algorithm for several years now.
Note: Google encourages businesses to build their brand on social media as a long-term investment to drive qualified traffic, rather than aiming for short-term benefits like search ranking placement. Matt Cutts, the head of Google’s web spam team has stated that Google takes a cautious approach when it comes to social media, as so many things change quickly on social media. Without a reliable ‘map,’ Google is understandably reticent to assign more importance to social signals over other aspects of their search algorithm. In summary, Google’s strategy is to “wait and see” how things develop over time, as websites that provide real value develop longevity, trust and authority, and these are the websites that Google naturally wants to ascribe higher search rankings to.
Social Signals – Which Social Sites Matter?
Social sites that search engines like Google and Bing look to when measuring social signals include:
With almost 2 billion monthly active users, Facebook is the most dominant social network in the world. It has been estimated that one great post on Facebook can reach over 100,000 users, so even if no one is buying your products or services on Facebook, you should not be quick to dismiss the importance of Facebook in your online business strategy, as Google uses data and information from Facebook when determining your search rankings. In fact, Facebook seems influence search rankings more than other social media sites, like Twitter orGoogle+.
(Number of monthly active Facebook users. Source: Statista.com)
After Facebook, Twitter is the next largest social media site in the world, with over 600 million tweets sent out each day. Twitter plays a significant role as a global influencer online and places great importance on the authority of tweets posted to readers over the number of tweets sent …
(Over half a billion tweets are sent each day. Source: InternetLiveStats.com)
Google Plus
As Google’s own social networking site, GooglePlus naturally carries a significant degree of authority online, even if it is still a fledgling online community compared to sites like Facebook and Twitter.
(More people are starting to interact socially on GooglePlus every month. Source: Internet Live Stats)
In addition to the big 3 listed above, there are a number of other social sites that provide important social metrics, such as Pinterest, LinkedIn, StumbleUpon,Reddit, and Digg.
(A number of social media sites provide important signals that can affect your search rankings)
Social Signals – Which Ones Should You Pay Attention To?
Search engines like Google and Bing track various social signals, including:
- Facebook – e.g. how many Facebook shares, comments, and likes a person has, growth rate of shares and likes, etc.
- Twitter – e.g. tweets and retweets, the authority of the person sending a tweet, trending topics, etc.
- GooglePlus – e.g. who is following you (influential users), how many people are following you, number of adds and shares, etc.
- Other sites – e.g. number of Pins and re-Pins on Pinterest, comments on Reddit, etc.
- Other signals – In addition to the above, there are other not so obvious social media-related signals that can influence search engine traffic and rankings. These include desirable and undesirable factors, such as links from authority sites (backlinks) (not as influential as they once were, but still a factor) [positive], and whether your site is deemed to be of low quality by visitors [negative].
As a website owner, it’s important to not only find ways to grow your social media presence, but also to be able to track and analyze social media marketing performance in order to improve your business results.
(Use social media to improve your results online)
Monitoring social media activity allows you to find insights into what people are saying about your products, brand, or company on social media, measure the impact of campaigns, take preventative measures against the spread of negative comments or feedback by embittered customers, spot potential opportunities for engagement, and assess competitor activity and market dominance. Additionally, social media monitoring can also provide vital information about emerging trends and what consumers and clients think about specific topics, brands, businesses, or products.
As a tool for business intelligence, social signal monitoring is invaluable. Using social media monitoring as a form of business intelligence, however, is a complex undertaking, typically carried out by various people including PR companies, market research, marketing teams, social engagement and community staff, social marketing agencies, and professional sales reps. Typically, small businesses don’t have the budget to pay social media monitoring professionals to track their coverage in the media.
Fortunately many technology providers have developed tools and solutions that facilitate the active monitoring of a broad range of social media channels, enabling companies to identify consumer behavior around their brands so they can react to conversations and engage with online users in a timely manner.
We have created a comprehensive article where we explore many social media monitoring tools and technologies that are worth knowing about. To learn more, go here:
(Can you track social signals effectively?)
In this article, we discuss a simple social media monitoring tool for WordPress and improving your social media exposure.
Presenting …
Social Metrics Pro – Social Media Analytics For WordPress
Description Of Plugin
SocialMetricsPro is an easy-to-use social analytics WordPress plugin that is designed to make growing your social media influence uncomplicated. It is built on a simple concept – Social Metrics Pro tracks and measures how each signal is performing and displays either a red or green indicator. The site owner’s goal is to change reds into greens.
(A standard operating procedure that any website owner can follow … turn reds into greens!)
Colors indicate relative popularity. Posts that receive the most shares display green. Posts with low social media activity display amber or red.
The plugin developers tested Social Metrics Pro on a network of over two thousand sites over a period of 3 months. During this period, all they focused on was turning the “reds” to “greens” and then keeping everything “green”. According to the plugin developers, they were able to notice a 360% improvement in traffic for their top 10 performing sites, 410% more keywords ranked in the first page of Google and they also experienced a 310% increase in revenues.
(According to Social Metrics Pro developers, improving your social media marketing campaigns can dramatically can have a positive impact on your search rankings, traffic and revenue!)
More info:
Benefits
Below are just a few of the benefits of using Social Metrics Pro to track Tweets, Likes, Pins, +1s and more from your WP Dashboard on your site:
Ready To Start Using In Minutes
Social Metrics Pro is very easy to install. Just upload the plugin file to your Plugin folder via your WordPress dashboard and activate.
Simple To Use
As mentioned earlier, your task is to convert all the red squares into greens. Social Metrics Pro tracks and measures social media signals so you know which social campaigns require more effort and where to optimize.
Track Only Signals From Social Networks You Care About
SocialMetricsPro lets you track and monitor social media activity across leading networks like GooglePlus, Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Pinterest, StumbleUpon, and LinkedIn directly from your WordPress dashboard.
Social Metrics Pro helps you get answers to questions like:
- Which social media networks work best for my site?
- Which social campaigns are performing the best on these social networks?
- Which are my most popular posts?
- And more …
With Social Metrics Pro, all this information can be accessed with a single click.
(Social Metrics Pro actively tracks the social media sites that you care most about!)
Features
Social Metrics Pro provides website owners with a number of features. Here are just a few of these:
- Fast and easy to install and implement. Ready to use in minutes.
- Widgets & Extensions Ready. You can extend its functionality using external and built-in widgets. Access updated information right on your WordPress dashboard, display socially popular content on your blog sidebar or anywhere on your site using point-and-click widgets.
- 1-click upgrading. Update Social Metrics Pro in a single click via the WordPress Updates page, or update the manually manually. You can also choose to receive an email notification when new versions are released.
- Plugin works even on the smallest hosting configuration. Reporting is fast, using little server resources. Report generation also displays the amount of time it took to retrieve information and the server resources used to gather and compile the data.
Additional features include:
- Sort, Search And Filter Features: SocialMetricsPro allows you to sort, search and filter your data however you like. You can perform keyword searches to study posts related to certain topics, and even filter the results by post authors, category, post type, or by publishing date.
- Export Data To Excel: You can export and plot data in Excel for further analysis. Data can be exported in tab-delimited and comma-separated file formats, and imported to the spreadsheet application of your choice.
(SocialMetricsPro is really simple to use … just convert more red squares into greens!)
Testimonials
Below are a few of the testimonials plugin customers have published about the Social Metrics Pro plugin:
”As with any cool plugin, it solves a very simple problem – how to view how well your WordPress posts are being promoted.” Adam Small, Marketing Tech Blog
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”I give Social Metrics a big thumbs up and I recommend it to anyone who’s serious about tracking their social sharing analytics.” James Johnson, Senior Editor at The Inquisitr
Useful Tips
SocialMetricsPro includes a step-by-step, practical guide containing useful advice on how to optimize your campaigns and improve your social media strategy (i.e. turn reds into greens).
Product Support
The plugin is well-supported, and users get lifetime upgrades and new releases for free with their purchase, backed by a no-risk, 60-day, complete refund guarantee.
Software Pricing
SocialMetricsPro plugin is available in two editions:
- Single Site Licensing – This option allows you to set up Social Metrics Pro on a single site. Includes free lifetime upgrades and free support. Price = $27.00 (one-time).
- Unlimited Sites License – This license option lets you run SocialMetricsPro on multiple websites that you own. Includes free lifetime updates and support. Cost = $47.00 (one-time).
Please Note: Price details for the Social Metrics Pro software depends on whether there are any promotions or limited-time special offers. The price shown above was current when this review was written. This may not be the actual price set by the product author when you visit the product website and there may be additional upsells or one-time offers after purchasing.
Check the plugin’s website for the current pricing details:
Additional Information
SocialMetricsPro requires a self-hosted installation of WordPress and can be instantly downloaded after purchase.
We Highly Recommend This
As mentioned earlier, with the rise of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, search engines like Google and Bing are now taking into account social signals when determining a website’s ranking.
No website owner can afford to ignore how important social media is to their online success. Social Metrics Pro solves the problem of how to find a simple, time-saving solution that gives users instant feedback on the success of their social media marketing strategy and shows them how to improve their results.
Social Metrics Pro is ideal for beginners and advanced users alike. It tracks Tweets, Likes, Pins, +1s and more right from your WordPress admin area.
We recommend getting Social Metrics Pro if you own or manage WordPress sites and want to measure your social media marketing results professionally.
For more details, visit the plugin website here: SocialMetricsPro – Social Media Analytics Plugin For WordPress
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