Setting Up Google Marketing Tools

Google provides a suite of marketing tools to help you manage advertising strategies and website traffic data. These tools usually need to be set up by installing configuration code or verifying the ownership on your Oncord website to make sure the data is stored and synced properly.

This article will instruct you how to set up: 

Google Analytics 4
Google Ads
Google Tag Manager 
Google Search Console

Google Analytics 4 

As Google introduced the new generation of Google Analytics which is called Google Analytics 4, all standard Universal Analytics properties will stop processing new hits on July 1, 2023, and 360 Universal Analytics properties will stop processing new hits on October 1, 2023. Click here to see the announcement.

Therefore, it's important to make the move over to Google Analytics 4 as soon as possible to build the necessary historical data before Universal Analytics stops processing new hits. 

This article will show you how to create your Google Analytics account and Google Analytics 4 property, and then instruct you to install it on your Oncord website. 

Note: If your Oncord website already has installed Google Analytics (Universal Analytics) with Google tag (gtag.js), please follow the instruction from Google to set up your Google Analytics 4 using your existing tag: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/9744165?hl=en

Set up Google Analytics Account

Click the link below and follow the instruction to create a Google Analytics account and a Google Analytics 4 property, and then add a data stream: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/9304153?hl=en&ref_topic=9303319

Install Google Analytics into Oncord (Using Google tag)

Once you've completed the Google Analytics account setup, it's time to configure the installation.

One of the most common ways to do the Google Analytics installation is by adding Google Tag (gtag.js) to every page of your website (within your design).

Get the Google Tag (gtag.js) from your Google Analytics 4 Property

Sign in to your Google Analytics account.
Click "Admin" at the bottom left of the window.
At the top of the "Property" column, use the dropdown selector to select the property that contains the data stream for your Google tag.
In the "Property" column, click "Data streams".
Click the web data stream that you want to edit.
Under "Google tag", click "Configure tag settings".
In the “Your Google tag” section, click "Installation instructions".
In the "Installation instructions" page, select "Install manually"
Click the Copy button at the top right of the box to get the Google Tag (gtag.js).

Add the Google Tag (gtag.js) to all Pages (Within your Design)

Where embed code needs to appear on all pages throughout your website, it should be added to your website design theme. 

Edit the website design (Dashboard > Website > Designs, select the design to edit). 
Click "SOURCE" in the left menu to view the source code of your website design.
Paste the code just before the closing </head> tag. 
Click the "Save" button located at the top left of the screen.

It should take up to 30 minutes for Google to start data collection.

Tip: It's recommended to use Google Tag Manager to manage and configure your tags. Please check out the next help article about Setting Up Google Tag Manager with Oncord.

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Google Ads

Google Ads can help business owners and marketers to promote their businesses by launching ads across Google's products and partner sites such as SERP (search engine result page), YouTube, and Google Maps

The Google tag lets you send data from your website to the linked Google Ads account to help you measure the effectiveness of your website and ads.

This article will show you how to create your Google Ads account, and then instruct you on how to add the Google Tag to your Oncord website.

Set up Google Ads Account

Go to https://ads.google.com/ to create your Google Ads Account, you’ll need an email address and website for your business. 

Install Google Ads into Oncord (Using Google Tag)

Once you've completed the Google Ads account setup, it's time to configure the installation.

One of the most common ways to do the Google Ads installation is by adding Google Tag (gtag.js) to every page of your website (within your design).

Get the Google Tag (gtag.js) from your Google Ads Account

Sign in to your Google Ads Account.
Click "Tools and settings" at the top right of the window.
In the "Setup" column, select the "Google tag" option to open the configuration page.
Click  "Installation instructions" at the top right of the "Your Google tag" section.
Click "Install manually".
Click the Copy button at the top right of the box to get the Google Tag (gtag.js).

Add the Google Tag (gtag.js) to all Pages (Within your Design)

Where embed code needs to appear on all pages throughout your website, it should be added to your website design theme. 

Edit the website design (Dashboard > Website > Designs, select the design to edit). 
Click "SOURCE" in the left menu to view the source code of your website design.
Paste the code just before the closing </head> tag. 
Click the "Save" button located at the top left of the screen.

It should take up to 30 minutes for Google to start data collection.

Tip: It's recommended to use Google Tag Manager to manage and configure your tags. Please check out the next help article about Setting Up Google Tag Manager with Oncord.

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Google Tag Manager

Google Tag Manager is a tool that provides a central place to help manage all the 'tags' and embed code that appears throughout the pages of your website.

Tag Manager installation for web requires a piece of code that you add to your web pages. This code enables Tag Manager to fire tags by inserting tags into web pages.

This article will show you how to create your Google Tag Manager account, and then instruct you how to add the code to your Oncord website. 

Create a Google Tag Manager Account

Click the link to create a Tag Manager account and container:
https://tagmanager.google.com/

• Tag Manager account - It represents the topmost level of the organization. Typically, only one account is needed per company.
• Container - A collection of tags, triggers, variables, and related configurations installed on a given website or mobile app.

Install Google Tag Manager into Oncord

Get the Code from Google Tag Manager

In your Google Tag Manager account, click "Workspace".
Click your container ID (formatted as GTM-XXXXXX) at the top of the window to launch the "Install Google Tag Manager" window. 

There are two snippets and you need to copy and paste each of them onto every page of your website.

Add Code to all Pages (Within your Design)

Where embed code needs to appear on all pages throughout your website, it should be added to your website design theme. 

Click the Copy button at the top right of the box to get the first snippet.
Edit your website design (Dashboard > Website > Designs, select the design to edit). 
Click "SOURCE" in the left menu to view the source code of your website design.
Paste the code just before the closing </head> tag. 
Repeat the steps above to paste the second code block right after the opening <body> tag.
Click the "Save" button located at the top left of the screen.

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Google Search Console 

Google Search Console (formerly Webmasters Tools) provides you with detailed reports about your pages' visibility on Google. 

One of the steps required to configure Google Search Console involves ownership verification of your domain.

This instructions below will show you how to verify your site ownership in multiple ways based on the types of website properties you want to add to your Search Console account.

Note: Google Search Console supports two types of website properties which are Domain property (example.com) and URL- prefix property (https://example.com). Click here to see the differences.

Domain Property Verification

To check your name servers:

Navigate to Dashboard > Settings > Domain.
Click the domain you want to verify.
In the "Name Servers" section, the ones under the "Current" heading are your current name servers.

Oncord Name Servers are:

• ns1.oncord.com
• ns2.oncord.com
• ns3.oncord.com
• ns4.oncord.com

If You're Using Oncord Name Servers

Step 1: Copy TXT Record

Sign in to your Google Search Console account.
Select the property type - "Domain" (the box on the left).
Enter the domain of your website into the text field (tryoncord.com in this example). . 
Click the "CONTINUE" button.
Select the record type > TXT (recommended) in the drop-down menu at the top of the pop-up window.
Click the "Copy" button to copy the TXT record.

Step 2:  Add the TXT Record to the DNS Configuration on Your Site 

Login to the admin panel of your website and navigate to Dashboard > Settings > Domains.
Click the same Domain as entered in Search Console (tryoncord.com in this example).
In the "DNS Records" section, enter the same Domain in the "New Hostname" field.
Select "TXT" in the drop-down box for the record type.
Paste the TXT record into the "Text Information" field.
Click the "Save Configuration" button.

Step 3:  Verify Domain Ownership

Go back to the Search Console page.
Click the "VERIFY" button.

Once the verification process has been completed, it should take up to a day for Google to process the data, then you will see the data performance in the Google Search Console report.

If You're Using Other Name Servers

Follow the Step 1 above to copy the TXT record.
Sign in to your domain name provider (e.g. godaddy.com or namecheap.com)
Add the TXT record to the DNS configuration in your domain name provider's account. 
Follow the Step 3 above to verify the domain ownership.

 Please Note: 
It may show "Ownership Verification Failed" as DNS records may take hours to finish the configuration. Please be patient and don't remove the DNS record, try to click the "VERIFY" button again after a couple of hours or a day. 
Please don't remove the DNS record after the ownership has been successfully verified. It may cause losing verification if the record gets removed.

URL - Prefix Property Verification

Method 1: Upload an HTML File to Your Website

Sign in to your Google Search Console account.
Select the property type - "URL prefix" (the box on the right).
Enter the URL of your website into the text field (https://www.tryoncord.com/ in this example). 
Click the "CONTINUE" button.
In the "HTML file" section, click the "Download" button to download the verification file.

Log in to the admin panel of your website and edit your home page (Dashboard>Pages>home).
Click the "MEDIA" button on the left-hand panel.
Click the "Upload Files" button, and then upload the verification file.
Go back to the Search Console page.
Click the "VERIFY" button.

Method 2: Use Your Google Analytics Account

Install Google Analytics into the website you want to verify.
Sign in to your Google Search Console account.
Select the property type - "URL prefix" (the box on the right).
Enter the URL of your website into the text field (https://www.tryoncord.com/ in this example).
Click the "CONTINUE" button.
Under the "Other verification methods" tab, select the "Google Analytics" option.
Click the "VERIFY" button.

Please Note:
Your Google Analytics has to be installed properly before the verification process. Please check out our help article about Setting up Google Analytics 4.
You must use the same Google account for both Search Console and Google Analytics.

Method 3: Use Your Google Tag Manager Account

Install Google Tag Manager into the website you want to verify.
Sign in to your Google Search Console account.
Select the property type - "URL prefix" (the box on the right).
Enter the URL of your website into the text field (https://www.tryoncord.com/ in this example). 
Click the "CONTINUE" button.
Under the "Other verification methods" tab, select the "Google Tag Manager" option.
Click the "VERIFY" button.

Please Note:
Your Google Tag Manager has to be installed properly before the verification process. Please check out our help article about Setting up Google Tag Manager.
You must use the same Google account for both Search Console and Google Tag Manager.