Posts tagged google
In case you haven’t seen - a move that signals what we all knew was coming - Google is further unifying their products, starting with a single privacy policy.
Their new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy take effect on March 1, 2012.
Google adds winter easter egg in search results when users search for “let it snow”
Google Offers in my Gmail
Wonder if they are using the same accounting methods as Groupon?
Google+ opens their doors to the everyone. My daily followers triple.
Sounds like a good thing, but unfortunately, about 1/3 of the new followers are fake accounts being built by spammers. Looking forward to seeing how Google handles this influx of bogus accounts, which IMO will be the downfall of Twitter.
How to generate a QR code and track site visitors from it
- Format your URL to include additional tracking parameters for your analytics platform. I use Google Analytics, so the URL looks like this:
http://YOURURL.COM/SPECIFICPAGE/?utm_source=SOURCE&utm_medium=MEDIUM&utm_campaign=CAMPAIGN-ID
- Test the URL by pasting it into a browser and ensure it goes where you intended
- Add the URL using a free online QR code generator (look for one that gives you high resolution downloadable images without watermarks or redirects, like this one)
- Download the QR code to your computer and snap a photo of it with your phone using a QR code reader, such as the Google Search App, to ensure that it goes where you intended.
Although there is usually a delay, you should begin seeing the visits in your analytics dashboard within a few hours. You can now drill down to the SOURCE, MEDIUM and/or CAMPAIGN level to track visitor behavior from your QR code.
The Google+ team is rolling out profile verification badges for celebrities, public figures, and people who have been added to lots of circles. A new video by the product manager feels very personal.
If you are more comfortable with a three-pane layout of your desktop e-mail client, you’re going to dig this. Google just released a new Labs feature called “Preview Pane” which allows you to view and reply to e-mails while navigating your inbox.
Gmail users can enable this feature by visiting Labs from the Mail Settings icon in the upper righthand corner of your mail screen.
Using Google+ Circles
Online social platforms attempt to force us to map our ever-changing social graph. Google+ uses “circles”, which makes dragging and dropping our connections into animated buckets – dare I say – fun.
Here are some reasons why and how you should use Google+ Circles:
PRIVACY is a key use of putting people in custom circles with appropriate settings to avoid viewing by outsiders. If you are like me, you’re only comfortable with certain people seeing what you’re talking about and sharing. (Now if I can only get my connections to understand that sonograms of the unborn embryos inside them is a private, family topic)
Similar to those thoughts on privacy, RELEVANCY is important if you want to maintain your online connections. I’m sure that my mother doesn’t care to know that email open rates are dropping year over year, but my online marketing geek friends do. Consider what kind of content you put out and ensure that posts are visible to those circles.
Taking relevancy a step further, some communications require LOCAL CONTEXT and shouldn’t be pushed to the masses. Consider a “Locals” circle for posts like “Has anyone tried the new restaurant on Main Street?”
An important thing to note is that these tips aren’t only for Google+ users. While it isn’t highly visible, Facebook also has a “lists” feature that does basically the same thing as circles. Unfortunately it is buried in your privacy settings and not many people use this valuable feature.
I’m just getting familiar with Google+ myself, so expect more observations and tips as I dig in.
Google+ field trial
Should I feel special knowing that Google+ is growing by a million users per day? Are you on Google+? What do you think?
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