Site Verification Tools

Various platforms allow website owners to have additional tools to help them use their sites. Among them are Google, Bing, and Pinterest.

For example, Google’s webmaster tools will show you the total number of individual URLs on your site that have been indexed by Google, which search keywords are most significant for your site, and other information about how Google is indexing your site.

Please note that verifying your site in order to use the webmaster tools is not necessary in order for your site to be indexed with Google, Bing, or any other search engine.

For most sites, in order to verify your site for webmaster tools, you normally need to add a hidden “meta tag” to your page or change a DNS entry. Since this isn’t always the easiest thing to do if you’re not technical, Jetpack’s Site Verification module is here.

If you have multiple domain names pointing to the same site, we recommend verifying the primary domain.

All of the Website Verification Services can be accessed via your Tools→Available Tools screen.

Here are instructions for how to verify your WordPress site with each service:

Google Webmaster Tools

1. Log in to https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/ with your Google account.
2. Enter your blog address (without http:// or https:// in front).
3. Click the Add a Site button.
4. The option you want is “HTML Tag.” (You may need to select Alternate Methods to find this option.)
5. You’ll see a line of HTML code like this:
   <meta name="google-site-verification" content="rc2RXSkjV5rz9P2s2hTwdDsnwTu4tD-gmruKUrqBGjs" />
6. Copy the entire code.
7. Leave the verification page open and go to your blog dashboard (in a new tab/window).
8. Open the Tools → Available Tools page and paste the code into the Google Webmaster Tools field under the Website Verification Services header.
   
9. Click on Save Changes.
10. Go back to the verification page and click Verify.

Google Warnings

If you receive an email from Google or an alert in your Webmaster Tools dashboard that your site’s security certificate could not be found, this means your site was inadvertently added as a “secure” site. Here’s an example of the message you may have received:

Dear Webmaster,

The host name of your site, https://exampleblog.net, does not match any of the “Subject Names” in your SSL certificate [....]
This will cause many web browsers to block users from accessing your site, or to display a security warning message when your site is accessed.

To correct this problem, please get a new SSL certificate by a Certificate Authority (CA) with a “Subject Name” or “Subject Alternative DNS Names” that matches your host name.

If you’re receiving this message, you’ll need to remove the site from your Webmaster Tools account, and then add it back as a standard site. Here’s how to do it:

1. Log in to https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/ with your Google account.
2. Under the button for Manage Site, click Delete Site.
3. Click the button to Add a Site and follow the instructions above.

Bing Webmaster Center

1. Log in to http://www.bing.com/webmaster with your Live! account.
2. Click Add a Site.
3. Enter your blog URL and click Submit.
4. Copy the content value of the meta tag. The content value is the bold text in this example:
   <meta name='msvalidate.01' content='12C1203B5086AECE94EB3A3D9830B2E'>
5. Leave the verification page open and go to your blog dashboard (in a new tab/window).
6. Open the Tools –> Available Tools Page and paste the content value in the Bing Webmaster Center field under the Website Verification Services header.
7. Click on Save Changes.
8. Go back to the verification page and click Return to the Site list.

Pinterest Site Verification

1. Log in at http://pinterest.com/ with your Pinterest account.
2. Go to your profile and click on the pencil in the bottom-right corner of the name box.
3. Scroll down and enter your Website address if you haven’t already.
4. Click the Verify Website button.
5. On the next page, click the link at the bottom to Verify with a meta tag.
6. You will be shown an example meta tag, which you’ll need to enter on WordPress.com.
7. Leave the verification page open and go to your blog dashboard (in a new tab/window).
8. Open the Tools –> Available Tools Page and paste the full code from the How to Verify field of the Pinterest verification page in the Pinterest Site Verification field of your blog dashboard.
   
9. Click on Save Changes.
10. Go back to the verification page and click the “Complete Verification” link.