There are many occasions where WordPress users have to use Google tools for their websites. These include Google Analytics, Google AdSense and Google Search Console. Many plugins exist that act as a go-between between these two. Now Google has developed a plugin that seamlessly integrates these two and provides a great user experience.
Installation is very simple.
Open WordPress Dashboard>Plugins>Add New
Search for Site Kit
Install the plugin. Then open another tab in the browser and sign in to your Google account. You will need this to authenticate AdSense and other Google services.
Click on Start Setup. Verify ownership of your website.
Now you can setup Search Console. You will have to sign in with Google account and authenticate. Click Add Site and you are done.
If you are setting up AdSense for the first time, you have to add authenticating code between <HEAD> and </HEAD> of each post. Earlier you have to use a plugin for this or if you are more enterprising edit the Theme Header (header.php) file. Site Kit takes care of this. Just click on connect AdSense and follow the instructions.
Similar procedure can be followed to connect Site Kit to Google Analytics.
Best thing about Site Kit is the Dashboard where you can see your Google AdSense reports, Search Console reports and Google Analytics reports at one glance. If you want more details, a link is provided for the respective pages. Since you will not want to see the detailed report every time, it saves a lot of time to just glance at the reports from the WordPress dashboard. Also, the Site Kit Dashboard is much less cluttered as compared so it makes an easy viewing.
The AdSense Dashboard gives you a clear idea about your earnings from RPM and the total number of impressions. It also shows you a list of top performing pages.
The Analytics Dashboard shows Audience Overview, top content and top acquisition sources.
The Search Console Dashboard shows Overview that includes Total Clicks, Total Impressions, Average CTR and Average Position. It also shows a list of top search queries .
Overall, if you do not have AdSense and use Analytics or Search Console rarely, then Site Kit will not have much use for you. But if you use these services extensively as I do, Site Kit provides a seamless solution for the integration of WordPress and Google services.
