5 January 2011

What is Google Analytics?

Google Analytics shows you how people found your site, how they explored it, and how you can enhance their visitor experience.
Google Analytics is a free service that offers users up to 5 million page views a month.
If your site generates more than 5 million page views per month, you will need to link it to an active AdWords account in order to avoid interruption of your Google Analytics service.



How does it work?
Google Analytics uses a first-party cookie and JavaScript code to collect information about visitors and to track your advertising campaign data.
Cookies are the selected option because they reach the lowest common denominator
without using technologies regarded as spyware.

How do you add Google Analytics to your site?
No additional files. No heavy load on your website. Google does all the work.
Sign up using a free Google Mail account. www.gmail.com
Create a website profile - www.google.com/analytics
Add the tracking code that Google generates to your website pages.
In the footer file of your site (if applicable)
Does require basic access to the html code of your site.
"Check status" - Google will let you know whether or not the tracking code was installed
on your site successfully.
1 http://www.google.com/support/googleanalytics/bin/answer.py?answer=55591&topic=10988
2 http://www.google.com/support/googleanalytics/bin/answer.py?answer=55543&topic=10988

Information you can get out of Google Analytics
Google Analytics shows you how people found your site, how they explored it, and how
you can enhance their visitor experience.

Who is visiting your website?
New visitors
Repeat visitors
Geographical location Visualization: See where your visitors live
Browser, Platform, Screen resolution, Internet connection
Where did they come from? (refereeing sites, search engines, keywords)
Measure the success of partnerships, SEO.

Note: Advantage with Google Analytics - Integrates easily with your Ad
Words account to best measure and optimize the performance of those
Purchased words.

How people explore your site
Page views
Page views per visit
Time spent on your site
Bounce rate
Top Content - See where people are going. Filter your results to see individual
pages or sections of your website.
Site Search - Non-intrusive way of finding out "What are you looking for on my
site?)
Navigation summary - What page did they come from, where did they go next on
your site
Historical trending - Compare past date ranges to see how your website is
trending.

Enhancing your visitors' experience at your site
Goals - Understand your conversion rate (e.g. purchasing a product: How many
people continue through the purchasing process from a product page? Where
are they dropping off?)
Website Optimizer - Test different content/images to see what works best
(increase conversions) Does require access to your website's html code.
Site Overlay - See what your visitors are clicking on. Understand what is
working and what is not working in your design.
Site Search Results - Make it easier for people to find what they are looking for.
Understand the top searched keywords. Create the content or provide easier
access to relevant content. Listen to what your visitors are telling you.
contributed by, SEO Guru

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