If I break anything it’s because I’m beta testing the new (and only) WordPress plugin from Google.
It’s called the Google Publisher Plugin (beta) and it was just released in the WordPress Depository.
Apparently, for now, it just uses 2 Google products, AdSense and Webmaster Tools.
While that might sound handy dandy, both of which you really don’t need a plugin to use. They say…
This first version of the Google Publisher Plugin currently supports two Google products:
Google AdSense: Earn money by placing ads on your website. The plugin links your WordPress site to your AdSense account and makes it easier to place ads on your site — without needing to manually modify any HTML code.
Google Webmaster Tools: Webmaster Tools provides you with detailed reports about your pages’ visibility on Google. The plugin allows you to verify your site on Webmaster Tools with just one click.
Once the plugin is installed you’ll see two boxes in the settings, one for each of the modules.
The Webmaster Tools box tells me my site is verifies but doesn’t deliver any real data (like crawl errors, sitemaps, or search queries) like you would think it should. The “Manage Site” button when clicked will just send your browser to the Webmaster Tools dashboard. Big Whoopty Doo!
The AdSense Module on the left does actually do something. You’ll have to connect your AdSense Account first. I’ve fuzzed out my AdSense ID number for obvious reasons. The three links (Open AdSense | Performance reports | Help) once again take you directly to the AdSense Account Website. UGG! I could have just gone there in the first place.
The Manage Ads Button actually does do something! #WEEEEEEE!
When clicked it pulls up the front of your site and shows possible ad placement options! Now that might be something useful down the road.
WRAP UP:
Will they add more functionality to this plugin? I certainly hope so. While I am underwhelmed at what the plugin does, I am also mindful that it’s just a start. I’ll keep the plugin activated for now and when the next update comes I hope to have much more good news to report on?
What could the future version do? The Google World is vast. More like what couldn’t it do?
- How about showing LIVE visitors on your site in real time (Google Analytics)
- Embeded YouTube Videos could also show YouTube Comments. (YouTube)
- Show trackbacks and mentions (Google Alerts)
- Show other places your images are being used (Google Image Search)
- Based on the content of posts, show matching Trends (Google Trends)
That’s just me scratching the surface of what they could do. What would you like to see it do?
He's an avid hockey fan, rides a mountain bike, sometimes rides a road bike, has a few motorcycles (he had a really fast one, bought a cool orange one, rode a really slow one, and now,a perfect "BDR Weapon"). If that isn't enough, he makes cheese and sourdough bread, loves strong beer and good red wine, and poorly plays the Mandolin.
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