How to set up Google Authorship for my blog
Google is still pushing it’s own social media platform Google + and is enticing people to use it with SEO brownie points. If you’ve noticed that some blog posts in a Google search come up with the author’s profile shot next to them, these are people taking advantage of the SEO benefits of Google + by using ‘Google Authorship’. Apparently Google rewards authors who are fully embracing Google-ness with higher rankings and click-through rates. Aside from the SEO benefits though, it is a nice touch and helps build trust if your photo pops up alongside your blog post.
So how do I set my blog up so it has Google Authorship I hear you ask? Okay, here’s how:
1) Set up a Google + account if you haven’t got one already. Spend a bit of time adding a profile shot, some info about yourself and adding people to your circles.
2) On your next blog post add “?rel=author” to the end of your Google+ URL and use this link somewhere in your blog post. For example my URL would be: https://plus.google.com/111172182225460256522?rel=author. I would then create a hyperlink with this URL at the bottom of my blog post, like this: By Marie Leverett
You could add this link automatically to all of your blog posts by adding it to your blog template.
3) You now need to link your Google + profile to your blog. Go to the About section of your Google + profile, scroll down to the Links section, click ‘edit’ & then under ‘Contributor to” add the URL for your blog.
4) You’re all finished! Relax, make a cup of tea and then head back over to search for your blog post and see your photo pop up in the search results. Magic…SEO brownie points coming your way.
