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Part 1: Google Analytics – Who’s Visiting My Website?

July 15th, 2009

Google logo render - Mark Knol

Image by Mark Knol

By Matt Cook
Point.Click Media

Wouldn’t it be great if there was a way to see who was visiting your website? I don’t mean just counting the number of hits with one of those horrible looking black and fluorescent green hit counters that you see at the bottom of some websites, but to see some actual data about who is visiting your site and what they’re looking for?

OK, the jig is up. Google has a simply magnificent piece of web-based software available to anyone and everyone who wishes to use it, and here’s the best part: It’s free. I’m talking about Google Analytics.

Google Analytics was first released under its current form in 2006, and has since grown into a supernova of website statistical data available at your fingertips. All that’s required is to sign up for a free account, set up the Analytical code through their easy-to-use interface, and paste the code into your website. Then sit back and watch the data roll in.

“All right, so what exactly am I getting here?” is what you maybe asking. To list off all of features within the Google Analytical system and their advantages could take eons, but here’s a Coles Notes version of some of the key features you can expect to find from Google Analytics via their custom reports:

  • Site Usage: Find out how many people are visiting your website, what time of day they’re visiting, and where they’re coming from. Are they typing your website address directly into the address bar, or are they finding you through search engines? Also, find out percentages of unique traffic vs. returning traffic.
  • Visitor Trends: How many pages do your users visit on your website? Which ones are they visiting most? How long do they stay on each page? Additionally, you can also identify where your users are from, whether they are local in your city or if you are getting traffic from Botswana. What browser are they using? Are the majority of my users on a dial-up or high-speed internet connections?  All of this data is ready available.
  • Traffic Sources: In addition to finding out where your traffic is coming from, you can see how people are finding your website. What keywords are they searching for when they find you? Am I getting traffic from the Facebook group I created? How about from that association that I joined last month? It’s all covered.
  • Cross-Data Referencing: Google also allows you to pinpoint your demographics even further by allowing you to filter multiple categories. What percentage of my traffic from Vancouver is using Internet Explorer vs. Firebox browser? Out of the 100 people that visited my website last weekend during our big trade show, how many went to our landing page?
  • Goals: If you are selling a product or service directly online and wish to track the conversion rates, Google has that one in the bag also. With their Goals feature, you can set up custom goals for your website and receive reports on how many units you’ve sold online, or how many times your support manual was downloaded. All incredibly valuable information that is now a must have.

This, folks, is just the tip of the iceberg. If you’re drooling at the possibilities of what your business could accomplish with this amazing market research and you need a towel, contact Point.Click Media to find out how to implement this outstanding feature on your website today and take the first step in getting your website to work for you.

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Posted in Product Reviews, Web Tools on July 15th, 2009

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