Social interactions like Facebook likes, comments, and shares, +1s on Google+, etc. are called social signals.
Social signals impact search engine rankings and Google has been elevating the importance given to social signals as part of its ranking algorithm for several years now.
Note: Google encourages website owners to build their brand on social media as a long-term investment to drive qualified traffic, instead of 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 social trends and relationships can change at a moment’s notice. Without a perfect ‘map,’ Google is understandably reticent to assign more importance to social signals over other aspects of their search algorithm. In short, Google’s strategy is a sensible one - “wait and see” how things develop over time, as websites that provide value normally develop longevity, trust and authority, and these are the websites that Google naturally wants to rank higher in its search results.
Social Signal Sources
Social sites that search engines like Google and Bing look to when measuring social signals include:
With almost 2 billion active users, Facebook is the most dominant social community on the planet. Research shows that an average post on Facebook can reach over 100,000 users, so even if it seems like Facebook is not driving a ton of sales on your website, don’t be quick to dismiss Facebook as an important part of your online business strategy, as Google processes data and information from Facebook when determining your search rankings. In fact, Facebook seems influence search engine rankings more than other social media sites.
(Number of active Facebook users. Source: Statista.com)
After Facebook, Twitter is the next biggest social media site in the world, with over half a billion tweets sent out every single day. Twitter plays a significant role as a global influencer on the cybersphere and places great importance 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: Internet Live Stats)
Google+
As Google’s own social site, Google+ naturally carries a significant degree of authority online, even if it is still a fledgling online community compared to sites like Twitter and Facebook.
(More people are actively using Google+ every day. Source: InternetLiveStats.com)
In addition to the big three social media giants listed above, there are a number of other social media networks that should not be ignored, such as Pinterest, LinkedIn, Reddit, StumbleUpon, and Digg.
(Social media sites provide important signals that can affect your search engine 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 shares, comments, and likes a person has, growth rate of shares and likes, etc.
- Twitter – e.g. tweets and retweets, the number of people sending a tweet, trending topics, etc.
- Google+ – e.g. who is following you (influential users), how many followers on Google+ your URL has, amount of adds and shares, etc.
- Other sites – e.g. number of Pins and re-Pins on Pinterest, comments on Digg, etc.
- Other signals – In addition to the above, there are other not so obvious social media-related factors that can indirectly influence search rankings and traffic. These include positive 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 irrelevant by visitors [negative].
As a business owner, it’s not only important to grow your presence on major social networking websites, but also to be able to monitor, measure and analyze social marketing performance in order to improve your business results.
(Use social media to improve your results online)
Social media monitoring allows you to gain insights into your brand’s overall visibility on social media, take preventative measures against the spread of negative comments or feedback by disgruntled customers, measure the impact of campaigns, spot opportunities for engagement, and assess competitor activity and mind share. It can also provide vital information about emerging trends and what clients and consumers are thinking about specific businesses, brands, products, or topics.
As a business intelligence tool, the ability to track social media is invaluable. Using social media monitoring as a form of business intelligence, however, is a complex undertaking, often carried out by various groups that include online reputation managers, market researchers, marketing teams, social engagement and community staff, agencies, and professional sales reps. Typically, smaller businesses do not can’t afford to pay a social media monitoring service to track their coverage in the media.
Fortunately a number of providers have developed affordable tools that facilitate the active monitoring of a variety of social media channels, enabling companies to identify what is being said online about their brands allowing them to respond proactively to conversations and engage with online users in a timely manner.
We have written a comprehensive article about social media measurement tools and technologies that you may want to check out here:
(Do you know how to effectively monitor social signals?)
In this article, we explore a simple, yet effective social tracking plugin for WordPress and improving your social media exposure.
Introducing …
Social Metrics Pro – Social Media Analytics WordPress Plugin
Description Of Plugin
Social Metrics Pro is an easy-to-use social analytics premium WordPress plugin that is designed to help you improve your social media presence in an uncomplicated way. It is built on a simple concept – Social Metrics Pro tracks how each signal is performing and returns either a green or red indicator. The user’s goal is to change all reds into greens.
(SocialMetricsPro provides a standard operating procedure that any website owner can operate … just turn reds into greens!)
Colors indicate relative popularity. Posts that receive the most shares show up green. Posts with low social media activity display amber or red.
The plugin developers tested Social Metrics Pro on a network of 2,000+ 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”. 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 their revenue increased by 310%.
(According to SocialMetricsPro developers, focusing on improving your social media marketing can positively can have a positive effect on your search rankings, web traffic and revenue!)
Learn more about the plugin here:
Benefits Of Using SocialMetricsPro
Here are just some of the benefits and advantages of using Social Metrics Pro to track Tweets, Likes, Pins, +1s and more directly from your WordPress Dashboard on your website:
Fast And Easy Installation
Social Metrics Pro is really easy to install. Just upload the plugin file to your Plugin folder via your WP administrator section and activate.
Very Simple To Use
As mentioned earlier, the site owner’s objective is to change all the red squares into greens. Social Metrics Pro tracks and measures social media signals so you know where to invest more effort and which social marketing campaigns need to be better optimized.
Select Only Social Signals You Care About
Social Metrics Pro lets you track and monitor social media activity across leading networks like Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Pinterest, Digg, LinkedIn, and StumbleUpon directly from your WordPress admin area.
SocialMetricsPro lets you easily answer questions like:
- Which social media networks work best for my site?
- Which posts are performing the best on these social networks?
- Which are my most popular posts?
- And more …
With Social Metrics Pro, all of this information can be accessed with just one click.
(SocialMetricsPro actively monitors social signals from the sites that you care most about!)
Social Metrics Pro Features
Social Metrics Pro provides many unique features to WP users. Below we have listed some:
- Quick and easy to install and implement. Be up and running in minutes.
- SocialMetricsPro Is Widgets & Extensions Ready. You can extend its functionality with external and built-in widgets. Social Metrics Pro shows updated stats right on your WP dashboard, display social content on your blog sidebar or anywhere in your site using widgets.
- One-click upgrading. Update Social Metrics Pro in a single click via the WordPress Updates page, or update it manually. You can also choose to receive an email notification when new plugin updates are released.
- Plugin uses minimal resources. The plugin generates reports in seconds, using very little server resources. The tool also includes the amount of time spent retrieving information and the server memory used to gather data.
Additional plugin features include:
- Sorting, Searching And Filtering Features: Social Metrics Pro lets you sort and filter the data as you like. You can perform keyword searches to study topic-related posts, and even filter the results by publishing date, category, post type, or 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 simple to use … just turn all red squares into greens!)
User Testimonials
Below are a couple of the testimonials and feedback users have written about Social Metrics Pro:
”Our entire marketing strategy relies on social media. Each post on the site has viral potential, but we needed one place to see which social networks are performing the best for us…We went ahead and got the PRO Version of Social Metrics.” Syed Balkhi, Founder of List25 and WPBeginner.com
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“Social Metrics Takes WordPress Stats to the Next Level.” Lorraine Ball, Creative Director, Roundpeg
Product Tips
SocialMetricsPro comes with 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).
Support
Social Metrics Pro is well-supported, and users get lifetime software updates and new releases for free with their purchase, backed by a risk-free, 60-day, 100% money-back guarantee.
Product License Pricing
SocialMetricsPro plugin is available in two editions:
- Single Site License Edition – This license option enables you to install Social Metrics Pro on one site only. Includes free lifetime upgrades and support. Price = $27.00 (one-time).
- Unlimited Sites License Edition – This allows you to configure Social Metrics Pro on unlimited web sites that you own. Pricing includes free lifetime updates and free support. Cost = $47.00 (one-time).
Please Note: The cost of purchasing Social Metrics Pro can vary, depending on whether there are any promotions or limited-time special offers. Presently, the product is being retailed for the amounts shown above. This may not be the actual pricing charged by the product seller when you visit the plugin site and you may be shown additional upsells or one-time offers after your purchase.
Check the plugin’s website for current pricing details:
Additional Plugin Info
SocialMetricsPro requires a self-hosted installation of WordPress and can be instantly downloaded after purchase.
Download The Product
As mentioned earlier, with the increase in importance of social sites like Facebook and Twitter, search engines like Google and Bing now take into account a range of social signals to help determine website ranking.
No website owner can afford to ignore the importance of social media. SocialMetricsPro solves the problem of how to find a simple, time-saving solution that gives you immediate feedback on the success of your social marketing campaigns and shows you where to improve your results.
Social Metrics Pro is an ideal tool for beginners and advanced users alike. It tracks Tweets, Likes, Pins, +1s and more right from your WP dashboard.
Get Social Metrics Pro if you own or manage WordPress sites and want to make social marketing campaigns work for you.
For more details, check out the plugin here: SocialMetricsPro – Social Analytics Plugin For WordPress
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