The analysis of statistical data related to website traffic is the basis of effective e-marketing activities. Probably the most popular analytics tool at the moment is Google Analytics.
It is also worth noting that the global IT leader provides this solution for free, despite its extensive and advanced features.
Is it difficult to install Google Analytics?
It would seem that only experienced IT specialists can implement a system that provides detailed statistics from the site.
However, the truth is that anyone with a basic knowledge of HTML can do the job. All you have to do is add a JavaScript shortcode to each subpage where you want to collect statistics. However, modern CMS systems facilitate this activity due to the possibility of using global tags – it is enough to enter one code, for example, before closing the tag, and information about website traffic will be provided from each subpage.
What data does Google Analytics collect?
As befits a major IT tycoon, Google provides extremely detailed website traffic data that can be easily used to build more valuable websites or more functional online stores.
Where is the traffic coming from?
There are several sources from which Internet users can find our site. Google Analytics divides them into:
- organic search – traffic from search engines;
- social media – traffic from social media such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Linkedin, etc.
- referral – go to a page from another service using a link;
- paid search – traffic from paid search results, such as Google Adwords.
Moreover, from the aforementioned traffic sources, we can also obtain accurate information from which pages (Referrals) or social networking sites (Social networks) Internet users came to us. It is also worth noting that Google Analytics presents all data in clear charts with the ability to provide statistics for any period of time. The system also generates reports that can be used for various purposes.
How do users behave on the site?
Another important metric provided by Google Analytics is bounce rate and average session duration. These metrics are extremely important from an SEO standpoint. A page where users do not navigate to other subpages may be under-optimized. This information can also be the basis for determining whether a website’s content is engaging a reader, for example in the case of blogs.
In addition, Google Analytics allows you to determine the “path” of the user on the website through the “Behavior flow” tab. The freedom to sort and filter your data makes Analytics an extremely powerful tool. With this information, you can, for example, determine on which subpage Internet users most often leave the website, which allows for better optimization.
One of the most important and widely used metrics is a metric that provides information about conversions as a percentage. It is most commonly used in e-commerce and allows you to determine if specific actions are converted into effects. Without the conversion rate, we can’t tell if changing the color of the Buy Now button had a positive effect. Google Analytics allows you to determine the conversion rate associated with signing up for a newsletter, purchasing, or completing a contact form. This allows any flexible configuration, so you can monitor many events at the same time.
What other data does Google Analytics provide?
Another valuable piece of information provided by the Google analytics tool is the age of the visitors, their gender and demographics (country of origin, province, and even city). The resulting data allows for a better understanding of your recipients and therefore contributes to better management of marketing activities, especially in the case of local companies.
Through Google Analytics, we also know on which devices users visit our website and how long they spend on it. If, for example, on mobile devices the bounce rate remains high, we get a clear message that the website has optimization gaps in terms of smartphones or tablets.
Page load time
Google Analytics works with Google Page Insights to measure page load speed. This metric is considered one of the most important in terms of website visibility in search engines, as well as in terms of user experience (UX). Moreover, in the case of a long page load, it may suggest some changes, thanks to which you can improve this parameter.
Resume
It is not without reason that Google Analytics is currently the most popular solution in the field of statistical analysis of websites. Ease of installation, an intuitive system and the ability to view detailed data are the main advantages that speak in favor of using this solution. It is also worth noting that Google Analytics is available as a mobile application, thanks to which we have access to all the information we need from anywhere.
