Google Analytics and Webmaster Tools Setup for Agencies

[Titan552]

Hi,

As agencies, what are people finding to be the best practices for allowing multiple members of the agency's team to access client WMT and GA data?

1. Have a generic "analytics@myagency.com" account that's used for the shares, that anyone in the agency can use as needed (limited, of course, not admin).

2. Have the individual person at the company use their company email for the share for each particular client?  employee@agency.com.  Yet what happens when we need someone else to check the GA or WMT data?

Any advice is much appreciated.  
Thank you!

[Titan552]

"Client's sometimes do more harm than good if they think they know what they are doing"

Ain't that the truth!

[NeilBelliveau]

I  guess we do own since we set it up and maintain control if the client leaves. The any employee working on the account will access WMT, analytics or any other account we create the client through this gmail account.

I feel if it is something the client sets up for us they can randomly change the pw or manage to mess something up with them having open access. Client's sometimes do more harm than good if they think they know what they are doing.

[Titan552]

But do YOU own the titancorp@gmail.com email? Or does the client?

And how do your employees access the GA and WMT data from the client?  Via this account, or do you now share the "titancorp@gmail.com" data with an "anayltics@laketahoeseo.com" account so that your employees can use the data?

I already have my clients create their own "client@gmail.com" account for this purpose -with the understanding that there will be lots of hands in this cookie jar (so don't use it for personal stuff -- only Google-related items).

[NeilBelliveau]

I do titancorp@gmail.com and house all my items under that account then link the other accounts to that. Great thing about this is when / if the client leaves I just hand over the account to them.

[Titan552]

To clarify ---

So if the client is "Titan Corp." you'd make a titancorp@laketahoseo.com and then use that?   Do you do that in your google apps account?

Or  titancorp-bigstorm@gmail.com?

The problem I currently have is that the email that I have some clients linked to is:   myagency@gmail.com.  I like it becauseI have analytics all under one hood, as well as the GWT data.  But now that I want to share that access with someone, I don't want them to have access to the entire "myagency@gmail.com" account because there is AdWords, YT, etc. data attached to that.

Or if I did keep the myagency@gmail.com as I believe Drew is suggesting, what do I do about an audit trail?  (Of course, if you don't trust the employee why are you giving them access? -- But I like the "trust but verify" philosophy")

Thanks to you both for the clarifications!

[drewschug]

We typically create a master email account (usually in gmail), which is really helpful for things like Google Webmaster Tools and Google Analytics, but it's also helpful to use that to link up to Adwords when necessary. Individual employee email accounts are good too, but it's also good to have that backup. We will also use the master email when it comes to doing some basic link building such as grabbing a few high-end directories that tend to over-promote. Ideally though, anyone who needs access should be given so via their own email account so they can be held accountable. More than this it saves time when accessing accounts.

It should also be known that Google Analytics has a limit of 25 on the number of accounts one email can create.

[NeilBelliveau]

We create a master account email for that client and then share out to other from there.

Feel that works best so everyone has their own login and no one can blame anyone for changing a password or hijacking an account.