6 Useful Google Blogging Tools

Even with Google Reader’s demise, lack of support for Google Feedburner (FeedBlitz is a good alternative), and lethargic Google Alerts, Google still provides great tools for bloggers. And they’re free! Here are 6 useful tools.
1. Google Trends – Find out what people are searching for right now in the United State or other countries. Already have an idea for a blog post title? Enter it here to graph the interest over the last few years. You’ll also find related terms here – ideas for other blog posts.
2. Google Analytics – Discover who is reading your blog, where they’re coming from and how they got there. Find out which posts are doing well and the keywords that are resonating with your audience. Use the top keywords to generate ideas for new posts. For an overview, see: Get Quick Blogging Insights With Google Analytics.
3. Google Docs – I use Evenote to store my blog post ideas, and even start many posts there before transferring to WordPress. But if you’re collaborating with other authors on a blog or blog post, check out Google Docs. Store ideas in a spreadsheet and collaborate with others on a post in real-time.
4. Google Keyword Tool – This is a great tool that all bloggers should be using. Plug your title or keyword you want to write about into the search box and see how many searches occur per month for that term locally and globally. The tool also offers suggestions for related terms.
5. Google Calendar – If you blog regularly or would like to, planning posts for a week or month at a time will keep you on course. You can Create An Editorial Calendar For Your Blog Using Spreadsheets, Plugins Or Evernote, or use Google Calendar, which is especially useful if you have a multiple-author blog. Yes, Google applications excel at collaboration.
6. Google Authorship – Although Google+ has become the second largest social network in terms of active users, it’s still hard to get into if you’re already active on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. But if you write online you should get a profile and check-in occasionally, if only for Google Authorship which lets authors claim their content, and puts your avatar in search engine results pages (SERP), ramping up the trust factor. See: Google+ Is Important Because Of Google Authorship. Here’s How To Set It Up.
If there are other helpful Google blogging tools that you use, please add in the comments below.
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