Tuesday, January 1, 2019

Building a WordPress site ~ [2] Google Integration

I believe in leveraging Google resources for your web work!

Did you know that Google maintains a blog for their services? Visit Blog.Google/Products.


Start with a new Gmail account (Video 19 min). The GMail name does have to be unique, but it doesn't have to be particularly memorable because it will be used only by the people working on the website.

For example, a name can be constructed with the domain name or company name, with a special character, then another word such as webwork, webstuff, webetc@ Gmail.com. (eg. rick-2019@gmail.com)

Try not to use lewd or suggestive words in your GMail name because the account name could become visible as visitors look up a connection you've created, such as your calendar or map.

BTW: Google says "Gmail doesn't recognize periods as characters in addresses -- we just ignore them." I verified this by sending a test message to rick.jaggers@gmail. The message showed up in my rickjaggers@gmail inbox.

You can go into settings for your new GMail account and basically disable it by setting up a forwarding address and deleting messages from your inbox after the message is forwarded.  The destination address does NOT have to be a gmail address. You can use your personal email account so you don't have to check another mailbox. You can also use another forwarder to send incoming gmail to multiple recipients!


Once you have your gmail account for your website, a lot of tools are opened up! Below are some of the more important tools that you can put to immediate use. These are intended for individuals, but Google doesn't monitor how they're used. In my case, these are used for my business:


  • GMail - this is mostly a placeholder that was used to create your Google account.
  • Drive - this is free cloud storage. The WordPress plugin "Updraft" will back up your website and store it in your Google Drive. 
  • Analytics - this will allow you to track visitors to your website. It is universal, and connecting with Google Analytics should be associated with your site.
  • Blogger - this is where you can store notes about your website; a real bonus if you are collaborating with other people
  • Calendar ~ Voice ~ YouTube ~ Maps - these can all be integrated with your website as the need arises.
    • DottoTech: Google Calendar - Google Basic Part 3 (19 min) 
      • Use for yourself, your team/customer/ and even embed in your website for benefit of your customers
    • DottoTech: Google Basics Part 5: Google Photos (18 Min) 
      • Collect/Save/Edit pictures for your website
    • Google Voice explanation. Google voice is great for a business because it accepts text messages, transcribes voice mail and then forwards them as an email! You can also listen to the voice mail messages. With an OBI200 device you can return the call and the Google Voice number will appear on their caller ID.

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