Social recommendations like Facebook likes, shares, and comments, Twitter mentions and retweets, etc. are called social signals.
Google has been tracking social signals as part of its ranking algorithm since late 2010.
Note: Google encourages website owners to build their social presence as a long-term investment to drive qualified traffic, rather than aiming for short-term benefits like search ranking placement. Google’s own head of its web spam team Matt Cutts has stated that Google takes a cautious approach when it comes to social signals, as so many things change quickly on social media. Without a full ‘map,’ Google is understandably reticent to assign too much 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 sites that provide real value develop longevity, trust and authority, and these are the sites that Google naturally wants to ascribe higher search rankings to.
Social Signals – Which Social Sites Matter?
Social media sites that search engines look to when measuring social signals include:
With over 1.5 billion active users, Facebook is the most influential social media network on the planet. It has been estimated that one great post can reach up to 150,000 users, so even if it seems like Facebook is not driving a massive amount of sales on your site, don’t be quick to dismiss the importance of Facebook in your business strategy, as Google processes data and information from Facebook to help determine your search rankings. In fact, Facebook seems to have the most influence on search rankings of all social media sites, like Twitter andGoogle+.
(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 every single day. Twitter plays a significant role as a global influencer online and places great emphasis on the authority of tweets posted to followers over the number of tweets sent …
(Over half a billion tweets are sent every single day. Source: InternetLiveStats.com)
Google Plus
Google’s own social media site naturally carries great authority online, even if it is still a fledgling social community compared to sites like Facebook and Twitter.
(More people are interacting on GooglePlus each day. Source: Internet Live Stats)
In addition to the big three social sites listed above, there are a number of other sites worth paying attention to, such as Pinterest, LinkedIn, Digg, StumbleUpon, and Reddit.
(Social media sites provide important signals to search engines that could affect your rankings)
Social Signals – Which Ones Should You Pay Attention To?
Search engines like Google and Bing track a number of social signals, including the following:
- Facebook – e.g. how many Facebook comments, likes, and shares you have, growth rate of shares and likes, etc.
- Twitter – e.g. how many tweets and retweets your site has, the authority of the person sharing your URL, trending topics, etc.
- GooglePlus – e.g. who is following you (high profile users), how many followers on Google+ a URL has amassed, number and growth rate of +1s, etc.
- Other sites – e.g. growth rate of Pins and re-Pins on Pinterest, comments on Reddit, etc.
- Not so obvious signals – In addition to the above, there are other not so obvious social media-related factors that can influence search engine traffic. These include desirable and undesirable factors, such as links from authority sites (backlinks) (not as relevant as they once were, but still a factor) [positive], and whether your site is deemed to be irrelevant by site reviewers [negative].
As a website owner, it’s not only important to develop your presence on major social networking websites, but also to be able to monitor, measure and analyze your social signals in order to improve your business results.
(Use social media marketing to improve your results online)
Social media monitoring allows you to find insights into your brand’s online visibility on social media, spy on your competitors, spot opportunities for engagement, avert disasters, and measure the impact of campaigns. Additionally, monitoring social media can also provide vital information about emerging trends and what clients and consumers are thinking about specific brands, topics, products, or businesses.
As a business intelligence tool, 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 staff, marketing professionals, market researchers, social engagement and community personnel, professional sales reps, and agencies. Typically, small businesses do not can’t afford to pay social media monitoring professionals to continually track their coverage in the and actively monitor their online reputation.
Fortunately different providers have made available affordable tools and solutions that facilitate the tracking of a variety of social media channels, allowing you to track consumer behavior around your brand or products so you can respond proactively to conversations and interact with online users in various social media platforms.
We have written a comprehensive article where we explore a number of social media monitoring tools and technologies that are worth checking out and knowing about. For more information, go here:
(Are you tracking your social signals effectively?)
In this article, you will learn about a simple, yet highly effective plugin for WordPress users for monitoring social media signals and increasing your social media exposure online.
Let’s Review …
Social Metrics Pro – Social Media Analytics For WordPress
Description Of Plugin
Social Metrics Pro is an easy-to-use social media analytics plugin for WordPress that is designed to help users increase their social media exposure in an uncomplicated way. It is built on a simple concept – the system measures and tracks how each signal is performing and returns either a green or red indicator. The user’s objective is simple … turn all red squares into greens.
(A standard operating procedure that anyone can follow … turn all the reds into greens!)
Colors indicate relative popularity. Posts that receive the most shares are colored green. Posts with low social media activity show up amber and red.
The plugin developers tested Social Metrics Pro on a network of 2,000+ websites over a period of 3 months. During this period, all they focused on was turning the “reds” to “greens” and then keeping their metrics on “green”. From these tests, they noticed 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 the plugin developers, focusing on improving your social marketing campaigns can result in better search engine rankings, more web traffic and more revenue!)
More info:
Benefits
Here are just some of the many benefits of using Social Metrics Pro to track Likes, Tweets, Pins, +1s and more right from your WP Dashboard on your web site:
Fast And Simple To Install And Configure. Be Up And Running In Minutes.
Social Metrics Pro is very easy to install. Simply upload it to your Plugin folder via your WP admin user section and activate.
Simple To Use
As mentioned earlier, the site owner’s goal is to turn more reds into greens. Social Metrics Pro tracks and measures social media signals the way Google sees it so you know where to apply more effort and where to optimize.
Track Signals From Social Networks You Care About
Social Metrics Pro lets you centrally monitor social media activity from social media networks like GooglePlus, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, StumbleUpon, Digg, and LinkedIn.
SocialMetricsPro helps you get answers to questions like:
- Which social networks work best for my site?
- Which posts are performing the best on these social networks?
- Which of my posts are the most popular?
- And more …
With SocialMetricsPro, all this information is available on-demand, with a single click.
(Social Metrics Pro constantly monitors social signals from the social media sites that you care most about!)
Social Metrics Pro Features
SocialMetricsPro offers a number of great features to WP users. Below we have listed some of these features:
- Fast and easy to install and set up. Ready to go to work in minutes.
- Social Metrics Pro Is Widgets And Extensions Ready. You can extend the plugin’s functionality using external and built-in widgets. Access updated information right on your WordPress admin bar, add social content to your sidebar or anywhere on your site using point-and-click widgets.
- One-click auto-upgrade functionality. Update the plugin with a single click via the WordPress Updates page, or update the manually manually. You can also opt to be notified via email when a new version is released.
- Plugin works the smallest hosting configuration. Social reports are generated fast, consuming little hosting resources. Report generation also displays the amount of time used to retrieve information and the server resources used to compile data.
Additional plugin features include:
- Sort, Search And Filter Features: Social Metrics Pro lets you sort and filter data as you like. You can perform keyword searches to study topic-related posts, and even filter the results by category, publishing date, post type, or by post authors.
- Export Data: 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.
(Social Metrics Pro is very simple to use … just turn reds into greens!)
User Feedback
Below are a few of the testimonials plugin customers have provided for the SocialMetricsPro 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
SocialMetricsPro – Useful Tips
A step-by-step, practical guide on how to optimize your site for social media success (i.e. how to turn reds into greens) is also included.
Support
SocialMetricsPro is well-supported, and users get lifetime updates and new releases for free with their purchase, backed by a risk-free, sixty-day, full money-back guarantee.
Plugin Pricing
SocialMetricsPro plugin is available in two editions:
- Single Site License Edition – This license lets you install SocialMetricsPro on a single website. Price includes free lifetime upgrades and support. Cost = $27.00 (one-time).
- Unlimited Sites Edition – This lets you configure Social Metrics Pro on multiple websites that you own. Cost includes free lifetime updates and support. Price = $47.00 (one-time).
Please Note: Current pricing for SocialMetricsPro can vary, depending on whether there are any promotions or limited-time specials being offered. When we last checked, the plugin is being retailed for the pricing shown above. This may not be the actual price charged by the software author when you visit the site and there may be additional upsells or one-time offers after you’ve purchased.
Check the plugin’s website for current pricing details:
Additional Information
Social Metrics Pro requires a self-hosted installation of WordPress and can be instantly downloaded after purchase.
In Conclusion
As mentioned earlier, with the rising importance of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, search engines have started taking into account social signals when determining website ranking.
No website owner can afford to ignore the importance of social media. Social Metrics Pro solves the problem of how to find a simple, time-saving solution that gives you instant feedback on the success of your social media marketing campaigns and guides you how and where to direct your efforts in order to improve your results.
Social Metrics Pro is ideal for beginners and advanced users alike. It tracks Tweets, Likes, Pins, +1s and more right from your WP admin area.
We recommend getting this plugin if you own or manage WordPress sites and would like to make social media marketing campaigns work for you.
For full details, visit the plugin website here: Social Metrics Pro – Social Media Analytics Plugin
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