Social interactions like Facebook shares, likes, and comments, +1s on GooglePlus, etc. are called social signals.
With the increased importance of social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, search engines are now taking into account a range of social signals to help determine a site’s ranking.
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 the web spam team Matt Cutts has stated that Google takes a cautious approach when it comes to assessing social media signals, as so many things change quickly on social media. Without a full ‘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 a sensible one - “wait and see” how things develop over time, as websites that provide value tend to develop longevity, trust and authority, and these are the sites that Google naturally wants to rank higher in its search engine listings.
Social Signals – Which Social Sites Matter?
Social sites that search engines like Google look to for measuring social signals include:
With almost 2 billion active users, Facebook is the most dominant social network in the world. It has been estimated that an average post can reach up to 150,000 users, so even if it seems like Facebook is not driving droves of customers to your site, you should not be quick to dismiss the power of leveraging Facebook, as Google processes social data and information from Facebook when determining your search rankings. In fact, Facebook seems influence website rankings more than other social media sites.
(Number of active Facebook users. Source: Statista.com)
After Facebook, Twitter is the second biggest social media site in the world, with over 500 million tweets sent out every single day. Twitter plays a significant role as a global influencer on the cybersphere and places great emphasis on the authority of tweets posted to readers over the volume of tweets sent …
(Over 500 million tweets are sent every day. Source: InternetLiveStats.com)
Google+
As Google’s own social networking site, Google+ naturally carries great authority online, even if it has not reached the same level of growth and take up as Twitter and Facebook.
(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 media networks that provide important social signals, such as Pinterest, LinkedIn, Digg, Reddit, and StumbleUpon.
(Social media sites provide important signals to search engines that could affect your rankings)
Which Social Signals Should You Pay Attention To?
Social signals tracked by search engines like Google and Bing include:
- Facebook – e.g. how many Facebook likes, comments, and shares a person has, growth rate of likes and shares, etc.
- Twitter – e.g. how many tweets and retweets your site has, the number of people tweeting, trending topics, etc.
- Google+ – e.g. who is following you (high profile users), how many people follow you, number and growth rate of +1s, 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 factors that can influence search engine traffic. These include desirable and undesirable factors, such as age and authority of your social media account [positive], and whether your site is deemed to be irrelevant by other users [negative].
As a business owner, it’s not only important to find ways to develop your presence on major social networking websites, but also to be able to monitor, measure and analyze social media in order to improve your business results.
(Using social media marketing can improve your business results)
Tracking social media activity allows you to find insights into your brand’s online visibility on social media, spot new market opportunities, measure the impact of your marketing campaigns, spy on your competitors, and be alerted to crises. Additionally, social media monitoring can also provide vital data about emerging trends and what clients and consumers are thinking about specific products, businesses, brands, or topics.
As a business intelligence tool, social 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 marketing professionals, market research, PR agencies, agencies, social engagement and community staff, and professional sales reps. Typically, small businesses do not can’t afford to pay media monitoring professionals to track their coverage in the and actively monitor their online reputation.
Fortunately various technology providers have developed many tools to facilitate the active monitoring of a variety of social media channels, enabling companies to identify what consumers are saying about their products or brands so they can respond to conversations and engage with consumers in various social media platforms.
Go here if you would like to learn more about social media measurement tools and technologies that you may want to check out:
(Do you know how to effectively monitor social signals?)
In this article, we explore a simple, yet highly effective social media tracking plugin for WordPress and improving your social media presence.
Let’s Review …
SocialMetricsPro – Social Media Analytics Plugin For WordPress
Plugin Description
Social Metrics Pro is an easy-to-install social media analytics WordPress plugin that is designed to help you grow your social media influence in an uncomplicated way. It is built on a simple concept – the plugin tracks and measures how each signal is performing and returns either a red or green indicator. The site owner’s job is to change more red squares into greens.
(Social Metrics Pro provides a system that any user can follow … just turn reds into greens!)
Colors indicate relative popularity. This simplifies your social analytics. Posts that receive the most shares display green. Posts with low social media activity display amber and red.
The plugin developers tested SocialMetricsPro 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”. 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 dramatically can have a positive effect on your search engine rankings, traffic and revenue!)
For more details, visit the plugin site here:
Benefits
Here are just some of the many benefits and advantages of using SocialMetricsPro to track Likes, Tweets, +1s, Pins and more right from your WP Dashboard on your website:
Be Up And Running In No Time
SocialMetricsPro installs like any WordPress plugin. Just upload a zip folder containing the plugin files to your Plugins folder via your admin user area and activate.
Very Simple To Use
As mentioned earlier, the site owner’s objective is to convert reds into greens. SocialMetricsPro tracks and measures social signals so you know where to invest more effort and which need to be better optimized.
Choose Only Social Signals From Social Networks You Care About
SocialMetricsPro provides a powerful dashboard to track and monitor social activity across leading networks like Facebook, GooglePlus, Twitter, Digg, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and StumbleUpon.
Social Metrics Pro 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 is available on-demand, with just one click.
(SocialMetricsPro actively tracks social signals from the social sites that you care most about!)
Features
Social Metrics Pro offers WordPress users with a number of great features. Below we have listed just a few:
- Fast and simple to install and configure. Be up and running in minutes.
- SocialMetricsPro Is Widgets And Extensions Ready. You can extend the plugin’s functionality with external and built-in widgets. Access updated stats from your WP admin bar, add popular content to your sidebar or anywhere in your site using widgets.
- One-click upgrades. You can update SocialMetricsPro in one click via the WordPress Updates page, or update the manually manually. You can also choose to receive an email notification whenever a new version is released.
- Low server resource consumption. Reports are generated in seconds, using minimal hosting resources. The tool also includes the amount of time spent retrieving the information and the server resources consumed when gathering data.
Additional features include:
- Sorting, Searching & Filtering Features: SocialMetricsPro allows you to sort, search and filter information however you like. You can perform keyword searches to study posts related to certain topics, and even filter the results by publishing date, post type, category, 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 Excel or the spreadsheet application of your choice.
(Social Metrics Pro is simple to use … just turn all the red squares into greens!)
Testimonials From Users
Below are just some testimonials that customers have written about SocialMetricsPro:
”Social Metrics is the easiest way to see at a glance which posts have performed well on social networks.” Kevin Muldoon, Founder of WPMods.com
***
“Social Metrics Takes WordPress Stats to the Next Level.” Lorraine Ball, Creative Director, Roundpeg
Social Metrics Pro – Tips
A practical, step-by-step guide showing you how to optimize your social media strategy (i.e. turn reds into greens) is also included.
Product Support
Social Metrics Pro is well-supported, and comes with free lifetime updates and support, backed by a risk-free, 60-day, complete money-back guarantee.
Product Price
SocialMetricsPro plugin is available in two editions:
- Single Site License – This enables you to run SocialMetricsPro on one domain only. Includes free lifetime updates and free support. Cost = $27.00 (one-time).
- Multi-Site License – This enables you to set up Social Metrics Pro on unlimited websites that you own. Includes free lifetime updates and free support. Price = $47.00 (one-time).
Please Note: The cost to purchase the SocialMetricsPro product can vary, depending on whether there are any promotions or limited-time specials being offered. Presently, the product sells for the prices shown above. This may not be the actual price set by the plugin seller when you visit the site and there may be additional upsells or one-time offers after your purchase.
Check the plugin’s website for the latest pricing here:
Additional Product Information
Social Metrics Pro requires a self-hosted installation of WordPress and can be instantly downloaded after purchase.
Install This Product
As mentioned earlier, social signals impact search engine rankings and Google has been tracking social signals as part of its ranking algorithm.
No website owner can afford to ignore how important social media is to their online success. SocialMetricsPro solves the problem of how to find a simple, time-saving solution that gives you immediate feedback on the success of your social media marketing strategy and guides you where and how 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 WordPress dashboard.
We recommend getting SocialMetricsPro if you own or manage WordPress sites and want to track your social signals automatically.
For more information, visit the plugin website here: Social Metrics Pro – Social Media Analytics For WordPress
***
***