How to "Verify" Your Blog Using Google Webmaster Tools

"Verifying" my blog should have entered my consciousness earlier had I been eager enough to monitor my performance in the search engines or the volume of my visitor traffic. But no, I wasn't, on both counts. It was the thought of monetizing my blog which opened up my eyes to the need to "verify" my blog. When I signed up for Google AdSense (which needs a separate post), I realized it was part of the drill, so to speak.

One exasperated comment I read today in the Google Help Forum typifies the frustration of newbies, who are particularly non-techies: "I have an account with a password, why would you have to 'verify' the blog?" Good question, so if you are like this guy here's my attempt to answer that:

--Google is the top search engine on the Web, so when your blog is "verified" using the Google Webmaster Tools, you improve your site's visibility to Google.

--When your blog is more visible to Google, it gets indexed better by its search engine, so your blog's webpages are likely to be included in Google's search results when people query on topics or subjects you have blogged about.

--Since you will want to update your blog frequently with new posts, Google will be able to capture your updates very quickly, when your blog has been "verified" by Google. This means that if Google's database gets updated quickly, people who search Google will find the most current information about your blog.

Here's how to verify your blog:

1. Log-in to Google Webmaster Tools using your username and password for your Blog-spot blog. This procedure will take you to your Dashboard.

2. Enter the URL or address of your blog's homepage (e.g., http://anyblog.blogspot.com) in the box provided in your Dashboard (like the one shown below), then click Add Site.








3. After clicking Add Site, you blog will appear on your Dashboard. Click on your blog's link to go to your Overview Page . Click "Verify Your Site" as shown below:











4. In the Verify a Site Page, you will see your blog's status, quite understandably, as "NOT VERIFIED." So, you should proceed now with the verification process. There are 2 methods available, as you will find out when you click the dropdown box indicated below (with yellow arrow):












5. There are 2 verification methods available, namely: "Add a meta tag" and "Upload an HTML file." Click Add a Meta Tag. This is what you'll see upon choosing Add a meta tag:









Since this is presumably your first time to do this, you may want to click also the "Show me an example" link for you to gain some familiarity with the relative location of the tag to be pasted on your blog's template. This is what you will see:













6. Copy the whole meta tag you were given (from < to />), then open a new tab on your browser (don't logout yet from Google Webmaster since you will need to go back to complete the verification process) and login to your Blog*spot blog, proceeding to the Layout Page and clicking the Edit HTML link.

This will bring you to the Edit Template Page, which contains the XML codes for your chosen template. Locate the opening "head" tag in the template (not very far down from the template's first line of code) then insert your meta tag. Make sure to save your tag, as indicated by the numbered arrows below:


















7. Go back to the Google Webmaster tab (this is why I said earlier that you shouldn't logout yet from Google Webmaster), then click "Verify." You will be instantly rewarded with this sight--success!











We are done with the verification process, but before we leave the Google Webmaster Tools site, I invite you to explore the other links shown on the left sidebar of this site. Since you are just starting with your blogging, you may not yet find immediate use for these FREE tools, but as you progress, I'm sure you will want to go back to this site to available of these functionalities.

Here's what you'll find when you click Diagnostics:














On the other hand, here's what you'll see when you click Statistics:

















I have given you a flavor of what you can find in Google webmaster tools, and I guess you'll agree that we have just barely scratched the surface. Now, why don't you go ahead and do the actual exploring of this site yourself. I'm sure you will want to go back to Google Webmaster Tools again and again in the future. Good luck.