Google Analytics Basics

Google Analytics is a free analytics service from Google that tracks and reports website traffic. It’s now the most widely used analytics service you can find on the internet. Google Analytics will give you the following information about your website:

Google Analytics Basics

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  • Websites that send traffic to you
  • Number of website visitors
  • Where your visitors live
  • Most popular pages on your site
  • Number of visitors converted into leads
  • Ways to improve your site’s speed
  • Marketing tactics that drive the most traffic to your website

To install Google Analytics, you will need to create a Google account. Once you’ve created your Google Analytics account, you can sign into it, and you will need to compete a few steps to connect your website to the service. Setting up your Google Analytics is then simply a matter of how you want to organize your site or sites. Here are some steps you will need to take to get the optimal experience with the program:

Installing your tracking code — Once set up and logged in to analytics, click the Get Tracking ID button. After agreeing to the terms and conditions, you will then receive your Google Analytics code. The code must be installed on every page of your website that you want to track.

Setting up your goals — After installing your tracking code, set up “Goals.” This will help track when important things happen to your website. For example, if you sell products it can keep track of how often the purchase confirmation page appears and can be attributed to a dollar amount. Or you can track when a contact form is filled out.

Adding additional accounts and properties — If you have multiple websites to track, you can add another account by going to the Admin menu and selecting the Create New Account link in the Account column. Another way to add a new website is to go to Create New Property link in the Property column under the Admin menu.

Viewing the data — After setting up your accounts to your specifications, the fun is just beginning. If everything is set up correctly, you will be able to start learning about the traffic and trends on your website. You can use that information to create strategies for your website and business.

When it comes to knowing how your customers are behaving online, Google Analytics is the go-to option that will not disappoint.