Google Analytics Basics

Introduction

Google Analytics (GA) is a service offered

by Google that generates detailed statistics about the visitors to a website. It shows how people find your site, how people navigate through it and how they become customers.

Business Basics

Google Analytics

The introduction of Google Analytics in 2005 as a free analytics tool marked a watershed moment in web analytics.

This document was created by a blogging team at Nerd Insider with a passion for all things digital, and aims to enhance the available information and knowledge of Google Analytics and its uses.

Benefits of Google Analytics •

GA can track visitors from all referrers, including search engines, display advertising, payper-click networks, e-mail marketing and digital collateral such as links within PDF documents. This helps you identify where you traffic comes from and strengthen weak referral channels.

•

Flexible graphing tools allow you to compare specific time periods, slice date among a variety of factors, and to visualise data in new ways.

•

Helps you pair effective landing pages with the best keywords.

•

Provides an intuitive way to find out how design and layout affects your bottom line, allowing you to find and correct obstacles to conversion.

•

Helps you make informed keyword buying decisions.

•

Allows you to target the best markets via location

•

Once you have created the data it is easy to share, send and schedule customised reports.

•

There is context sensitive help which allows you understand some of the meaning behind your results.

What You Can Measure

Getting Started Once you sign up for a Google Analytics account, all you need to do is

many

copy and paste the custom java script provided into each page of your

things about the people coming to your

site. Or if you already have a Google Adwords account you can simply

site, including where they’re located

log into that account and click the analytics tab to get started.

Visitors:

geographically,

This

what

shows

language

they

speak, how often they visit your site and

Steps You should take

what computers and browsers they use

Sharing Reports

to get there.

Traffic Sources: Here you’ll find how people got to your site. You can track which sites link to your page or keywords people search to find you.

Content: This tab gives you insight into specific pages on your site. It can help answer questions about how people enter and exit your pages, as well

Another handy feature is the ability to share reports. You can do this by locating the email button at the top of all reports, below the title.

established objectives, reports in the Goals tab will be helpful to you. Here you’ll find data about desired actions including

downloads,

You can send the email instantly, schedule a regular report email or add the report to an existing pre-scheduled email. If you need to present the report, you can export it as a PDF XML, CSV or TSV file.

Making results meaningful Of course all this information only provides a basic overview of how to get to grips with Google Analytics. In order to produce meaningful results and more importantly act on these results it may

Ecommerce: You’ll only need

To be competitive you have to constantly refine and optimise what

this tab if you’re selling items on your

you do. Not only must Google Analytics be implemented correctly,

site

you also need a measurement strategy tied to your business

it

transaction information.

houses and

all

merchandise,

revenue

Adjusting time range Visualize data Calculating & Forecasting

Share reports

be worthwhile utilising Google Analytics Consultants.

registrations and purchases.

as

Set up dashboard

Planning

Goals: If you’re aiming for

users,

Add the code

Measurement

as which ones are most popular.

from

Sign up

activity

objectives. Therefore your own consultant will truly help you get the most of your Google Analytics account.