You just launched a brand new website, now what?
Below is our list of our top 3 must have tools. Whether you are the web designer or business owner, these tools will provide helpful information.
Did we mention these tools are free?
1. Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a free tool that lets you analyze your website data, visitors, bounce rates, traffic sources, flow patterns, etc. If you are promoting the website online via e-mail marketing, Google AdWords, Facebook Ads, or other means; Google Analytics is a must-have. Without Google Analytics, you won’t know if your advertising campaigns bear any fruit. For instance, if your Google AdWords campaign has very high bounce rates, and no conversions, you’ll likely need to optimize your campaign(s) to better improve those numbers. Otherwise, you’re just throwing money away.
Installing the Google Analytics script onto your website is a breeze. Google provides you with the code and instructions on how to install the script.
If you have a WordPress powered website, you can install the new Google Site Kit plugin. This plugin connects directly to your Google Analytics account and does all the hard work for you (no coding necessary).
2. Google Search Console
This is an absolute must-have tool for any website owner! Google recently revamped the “Google Search Console”, which provides useful, high-level information about your website. This includes our favorite, the ‘Performance’ tab, which lists all of the organic keywords and phrases the website currently ranks for. You can also filter these results based on search type (i.e. web, image or video), time-frame, country, device, etc.
In addition, Google will send you instant email alerts whenever there’s an issue with your website. Examples of notifications include:
- Broken links or 404 Errors
- Usability Issues – i.e. A particular page is not mobile friendly
- Performance Issues
- Security Issues – i.e. Website is infected with malware
- …and much more
Over the years, Google has made significant changes to their algorithm, which now correlates with the health of your website. This tool should be used proactively monitor and resolve any issues with your website. If Google identifies issues with the website, address them right away as it may negatively impact your rankings. This tool is also commonly used by SEO experts.
3. Google My Business
One of the fastest ways to drive organic traffic to your website is getting the business listed on Google My Business. Verifying the business listing is a simple as an automated phone call, or a postcard mailed to the business address. Once verified, you’ll have the ability to enter in the following information:
- Business Location & Service Areas – Your business will appear in the local SERPs and Google Map SERPs.
- Branding & Logo – In addition to the street view of your business location, display business logo(s) and other eye-catching images,
- Business Hours – Specify your business hours & holiday hours.
- Description – More detailed information about your business.
- …and much more
One of the most important features of Google My Business is receiving instant email alerts whenever someone posts a review. This is especially critical if someone posts a negative review, as this may hurt your organic rankings. We always suggest following up with a comment to anyone who posts a review.
We hope you find this useful for your business. If you have any questions, please leave us a comment below.
