To create a Google+ profile, go to the Google+ sign-in page and login. If you don’t have a Google account at all, you’ll have to sign up for one here. This gives you a basic Google+ profile page, but it doesn’t have all the information you’ll need to set up Google authorship.
To meet the requirements, follow these steps:
- Upload a photo of yourself.
- Finalise the setup. Once you’re in Google+, choose Profile and then Edit Profile.
- Click on the button that reads +1’s. Tick the box that reads, “Show this tab on your profile” and save the changes.
- Once this is complete, choose “About” and “Other Profiles.” Choose your other social media profiles and save:
- Fill out any other information you’d like included in your Google+ profile.
- Once you’re finished, choose “Done editing.” Your profile will be updated.
- You’ll be shown a number. Write that down or copy and paste it into a document. Leave the Google+ profile setup page and open a new browser window. If you ever lose the number, you can find it within the URL:
- Follow the below steps based on which method you use to link your sites for Google+ verification.
Three-link
- Add a link to the newly created Google+ profile page to your biography page. This link must contain the words Google+ in the anchor text. Your anchor text code should also contain the attribute “rel=me.” Your link’s URL should point to the Google+ page with the 21-digit ID you wrote down or copied when you chose “Done editing” above.
- Add “rel=me” to each link to your biography page.
- Go back to your Google+ profile and choose “Edit Profile.” Select “Other Profiles.” Choose “Add custom link” and add a link to your biography page.
Two-link
- Link to your Google+ profile in your mini-biography. The anchor text for this link should be Google+. Again, your link’s URL should point to the Google+ page with the 21-digit ID you wrote down or copied when you chose “Done editing” above.
- Go back to your Google+ profile and choose “Edit Profile.” Select “Contributor to”. Choose “Add custom link” and add a link to your site’s main page.
Email Verification
- Go to this website. Enter the email address on your content page in the box marked “Verify you have an email address” (step 4).
- You will receive an email from Google requesting you click a link to verify that you’ve used a valid email address.
Finalise the process
Once you’ve finished setting up your Google+ profile, it’s time to test everything. To make sure your markup code is valid, go to the testing tool and enter your URL. If you’re using a biography page, you’ll also need to run that URL through the testing tool.
When it’s broken down into these steps, it’s easy to see that you don’t have to be a web programmer to make Google authorship work. By getting on board with the Google authorship concept early, you’ll be able to benefit from the increased exposure you’ll get from being one of the few sites using this strategy.
