Formally called “Google Webmaster Tools,” Google Analytics is ground-level basic website tracking that can be installed into WordPress websites. The importance of having Google Analytics installed into WordPress for your website is that this allows you to keep track of how online visitors interact with your website.

Essentially, this lets you know what is and is not working for your website, what you can afford to remove, and what you might want to include on your next website audit or update. Additionally, adding a search console into your website further allows you to monitor the most common phrases in which your visitors are searching on your website.

There are a number of tools out there that can be used to track data on your website, gather information, and things like that. But this article will be focusing on the nitty-gritty — installing google analytics and the search console in WordPress websites.

Here some steps to take when installing Google Analytics and search consoles for your WordPress website by yourself:

1. Login to your WordPress admin
2. Pick your method to implement (theme, plugin, SEO tool)
3. Set up your Google account and get your integration codes
4. Verify your connection and track your data

Getting into some of these points, MyUnlimitedWP will focus on numbers 2 through 4.

Number 2 – Pick your method to implement: After logging into your WordPress account, if you have an SEO plugin for your website, it is important that you figure out how you will actually put these tools into your website. Remember that less is more, so if you can use your current setup without adding any more plugins to your website, that is always preferable.

Usually, when installing Google Analytics, you are going to use a shortcode of some kind (same with installing the search console). There are a couple of ways this can be done, but try to use your current setup to install these tools into your website as opposed to adding another plugin. The reason we discourage the latter (if it can be avoided) is because adding another plugin might be putting the data into your theme, plugin, or SEO tool.

Number 3 – Set up your Google account and get your integration codes: When you set up a Google Analytics account, be sure to also set up a google search console account in that same account so the two accounts can connect and essentially “talk” to each other. If you have a Gmail account, you could also use that for added convenience.

Number 4 – Verify your connection and track your data: Next, you would need to verify with Google that you own the website. Keep in mind that if you have a big competitor, Google Analytics will not be able to be installed on the competitor’s website so we can track their data. Although there are ways you can see some of their data…that is another article for another time. The main point is that you are going to need to verify your website. Here are a few ways to do that:

A. Perhaps you have some knowledge and are planning to verify your website yourself…you may be able to do it! You can verify your website by putting a small number of coding inside the header of your websites.

Many WordPress themes and plugins have processes in which you can install that code onto your website. If not, you are going to have to do it in the actual files of your website, which means so you are going to have to go to your website’s control panel > file manager > install code.

You could also upload an actual file to your server. You can do this by uploading the actual file to your server which, in turn, will help you get your website verified.

If you want to hire a company: A lot of website hosting companies can help you with this especially if verifying your website is not something you feel comfortable doing. Your website company most likely also has instructions on how you can do this for your website host. Of course, keep in mind that the process is going to be different for the different website hosts.

B. Once you have verified that you are the owner of your website (congrats!), you can then install the tracking code for your Google Analytics and the code for your search console for your website.

Typically, this will be done in your theme, as one plugin can do this. That, or your SEO tool can do this. Remember that if you opt to utilize an SEO tool, there will be a spot to put your codes in for Google Analytics. All you are left to do is, well, nothing. Just let the code do its thing and you will soon start seeing data appear in your Google Analytics.

We recognize that there are a lot of different ways to go about installing Google Analytics and a search console for your website. The individual configurations make a difference, but this article covers the basics of that process.

If you decide to hire a company to install Google Analytics and/or a search console into your WordPress website, going for a company that is well-versed in WordPress and takes your budget into consideration should be determining factors. Reach out to us today for all your WordPress needs — from unlimited WordPress changes to advanced support with access to premium WordPress plugins!