Most business owners and marketing professionals have heard of Google Analytics, and many who come to us have used it in the past. However, we’ve become accustomed to being asked lots of questions about how it works and what it’s actually used for.
To help you understand why you need to be making the most of Google Analytics, let’s take a quick, step-by-step look at how you put it to use…
First You Install Google Analytics Tracking Code
The first step to using Google Analytics involves installing their tracking code on your website. You will be assigned a unique user number and given a link to an app that can be used to monitor visits to your website.
This is a simple step, and one that your web design partner can usually handle for you. It’s important, though, because without a tracking code installed correctly on your pages you can’t get any of the information you need from Google. In other words, the tools have to be in place before you can get the right reports.
Then Google Analytics Watches Website Visitors
Once you have Google’s tracking code installed on your website, it works in the background as visitors come to your site and interact with your pages. It logs the source of visits, pages clicked, time spent on your site, and so on.
The great thing about Google Analytics is that it does this without disrupting your normal business or operations. And, each new visit is tracked and catalogued so you can get access to trends and reports later.
You Get Insights on Traffic Sources and Visitor Actions
While Google Analytics will keep tabs on individual visits and user sessions on your website, its real value comes in the ability to aggregate those reports over time. Rather than seeing what one person did on a landing page, for instance, you can view the results you got from hundreds of visits. Or, you could separate activity by calendar date, time of day, or referral source.
At that point, you move from having analytic data to actual insights that can help you make better decisions about where to spend your time and money.
You Use Real Information to Make Your Business More Profitable
The more you use Google Analytics, and the better you get at generating reports, the easier it is to build a stronger bottom line. You might notice, for instance, that most of your customers are coming through one search engine optimization or pay-per- click advertising campaign. Or, you could see that visitors are bouncing from a certain page that needs to be rewritten or reorganized.
Those are just examples, but the point is that Google Analytics gives you exactly the kind of information you need to spend less and sell more month after month.
Need to Make More of Google Analytics and Web Statistics?
If you and your web design partner aren’t making full use of Google Analytics, then you’re making investments and decisions based off of incomplete information. That’s no way to maximize your returns or generate sustainable growth.
At Biondo Creative in Philadelphia, we use experience, creativity, and technical know-how along with real-world data to devise marketing strategies that actually work. If that’s the kind of service and attention you want from a web design partner, contact us today to see how we can help!