“I know what Google is, Deborah, but what are Google Alerts?”

Simply put, with an account set up in Google (free), you have access to create a Google Alert. Alerts can be any word or phrase. Once set up, Google will send you emails based on your desired deliverability (daily, weekly, etc..) every time the Google indexing comes across your search terms.

For example, you could set up a Google Alert for your:

  • Name
  • Business name
  • Website url
  • Names of your programs or services
  • Titles of articles you have put on the web

You could even set up an alert if you are following a news story, or to keep up with what your “competitor(s)” are doing.

Why would you want to set up these alerts?

Think of how cool it is to see when someone else mentions you or your business? I set up Google Alerts regularly for some clients when one of their articles are posted in sites like www.ezinearticles.com. That way when their article is picked up and reprinted by someone else, they can see when and where.

Important TIP: When you add an alert with more than one word (and most are) put quotation marks around the whole phrase. Example: “A Virtual Click Away”. This way the alerts are more targeted and not just a webpage that contains the words: a, virtual, click, and away within the page. The quotations make sure the alert will look for that string of words together.

To create a Google Alert

  • First go to www.google.com and sign in to your account (or create one if you don’t have an existing account).
  • Click the My Account link in the upper right of the Google home page
  • Chose the Alerts link
  • Follow the prompts to create your Alert

You can always go back to Manage my alerts if you want to delete or modify existing topics that you are monitoring.

This is a FREE tool – don’t miss out on the fabulous functionality it offers!