Govstack CMS has its own Out-of-the-box (OOTB) search, yet many users may choose to set up Google Search with their website. This page will act as a guide for setting up Google programmable search and analytics.
Programmable Search
Google Programmable Search is a tool to that utilizes a filtered view of the the globally available content from your site.
Adding Google Search ID to your site
- Navigate to the dashboard of your site.
- Click "Search Engines" in the navigation tree.
- Click "Create" in the content section that opens.
- Select "Google Search" from the dropdown.
- Type "Google Search" into the name field at the top of the page.
- Type or paste the ID you created into the Google Search Engine ID into the field (setup instructions below if you have not completed this setup yet).
- Click "Save and publish..." in the bottom right corner and then in the pop up.
- Next, click "Theme Configurations" in the left navigation tree.
- Select the Theme configuration for the site you are updating.
- Click "Remove" for the “Topnav Search Engines” and “Component Search Engines” to remove the search engine that is current in use on your site.
- Click "Add" for the “Topnav Search Engines” to open the Selection slide out.
- Select "Google Search" from the available options .
- Click "Submit" in the bottom left corner.
- Repeat steps 12-14 for “Component Search Engines”.
- Click "Save and publish" in the bottom right corner and in the pop up to finalize your updates.
Setting up your Google Programmable Search ID
Logging into you Google Programmable Search
- Go to Google Programmable Search and click 'Get Started' in the top right hand corner
- Login with your team's Google account
- Click 'Add' to create a new Search Engine
Create a new search engine
- Name the search engine
- Define the website URLs (the entire domain is recommended)
- Set the search settings
- Check the reCAPTCHA box and click 'Create'
- You should receive a success message
- From that success message, select 'Customize'
- In the following Overview Screen, set the following
- Set the 'Search Region' for the site search engine to Canada or United States
- Toggle 'Region Restricted' to On
- In the 'Look and Feel' area, click on the 'All Look and Feel' settings button in the top right hand corner
- In the 'Layout Panel', select the two page layout. This will be used to set the search form and a separate search results page
- In the 'Layout Panel' click on the 'Get code' button. This will display codes that need to be sent to GHD Digital
- Copy either of these codes and send to your Implementation Specialist for your project
- Enter the Result page URL to the Result site URL input field by:
- Type in your website URL followed by /search into the Results Page URL (ex: www.website.com/search/)
Analytics
Google Analytics can be used to provide statistics on your website's performance and help with analyzing search engine optimization (SEO).
To add you analytics ID to your site:
- Navigate to you website and login to the CMS
- Click on the Global Node in the left navigation menu
- Select Analytics from the tabs menu
- Paste your analytics ID into the applicable text field
- Save and Publish
Set up a Google Analytics account
- Go to Google Analytics and log in
- You can create an account under Welcome to Google Analytics, then click 'Start measuring'
- Provide an account name. Configure the data-sharing settings to control what data you would like to share with Google
- Click 'Next" to add the first property to the account
Create a new Google Analytics 4 property
To create a new property:
- Make sure you are signed in to the correct account
- Enter a name for the property (e.g. "My Business website") and select the reporting time zone and currency
- Click 'Next'. Select your industry category and business size
- Click 'Next'. Select how you intend to use Google Analytics
- Click 'Create'
- Continue to add a data stream to start collecting data
Google Analytics will tailor the set of default reports based on the information you provided about how you intend to use Analytics. For example, if you choose "generate more leads" the reports provided will help you measure lead generation.
Add a data stream
To add a data stream:
- Click 'Web'
- Enter the URL of your primary website and a Stream name
- You have the option to enable or disable enhanced measurements. We recommend that you enable enhanced measurements to automatically collect page views and other events.
- Click 'Create stream'. Two slide out windows will open
- Copy the script, being sure to include the code that starts with 'G-'. This is the code we will add to your site to start tracking
- Add this code in your website's Global node settings.
Questions about search
Which site search is recommended: Google site search or the out of the box option?
Out-of-the-box (OOTB) search site is great, but if you are looking to have documents in your website crawled, Google is recommended. You can also consider signing up with Cludo if you are interested in a premium search option. Ask your Account Executive or Implementation Specialist for more details.