Web analytics involves measuring website data to understand user behavior and optimize the user experience. Goals in Google Analytics define desired user actions like form submissions, duration on site, and page views. Setting up goals allows calculating conversion rates and goal value. Page value metrics show which pages contribute most to goals. Custom segments provide deeper insights into user groups. A/B testing and heat maps help improve conversions and the user experience. Common Google Analytics setup issues include unrealistic bounce rates, self-referrals, missing search keywords, and direct traffic spikes.

1. Making Better
Decisions with Google
Analytics
Elliott Koppel
Director, Paid Search and Analytics
Virante
@TheKoppel

2. Web Analytics
The measurement, collection, analysis and reporting
of internet data for purposes of understanding and optimizing
web usage.

3. Web Analytics 2.0 (Avinash Kaushik)
1.the analysis of qualitative and quantitative data from your
website and the competition,
2.to drive a continual improvement of the online
experience that your customers, and potential customers
have,
3.which translates into your desired outcomes (online and
offline).

4. Too much information, where
should I start?

8. Types of Goals

10. Destination – Specific Page
Loads
• E.g., Thank You Page
• Registration, Lead or Purchase

12. Duration – Visit lasting a
specific amount of time or
longer
• E.g., Visits lasting at least 5
minutes

13. Pages Per Visit – Visit
including a specific number of
pageviews
• E.g., Visitor views at least 5 pages

15. Event
• User interaction with content that can be tracked
independently from a page load

16. Event - Examples
• PDF Download
• Video Play
• Social Recommendation

17. How to Set Up?

18. How to Set Up?

19. How to Set Up?

20. Goal Value
= Conversion Rate * Average Transaction Value

21. Goal Value
1,000 visitors
100 complete lead form
20 convert into purchases ($2,000)
Average value = $100
Goal Value = (20/100) * $100 = $20.00
Conversion Rate * Average Value

22. How Does This Help?

23. Page Value
The average value for a page that a user visited
before landing on the goal page or completing
an Ecommerce transaction (or both).

24. Page Value
Which page in your site contributed more to your
site's goals

25. Page Value
Ecommerce Revenue + Total Goal Value
Number of Unique Pageviews for Given Page

26. What else do we look for?
• High Bounce Rates

27. What else do we look for?
• High Exit Percentages

28. What else do we look for?
• Low Average Time on Page

29. Segment for greater insight

30. Page Value can vary greatly
across segments

31. Page Value can vary greatly
across segments

32. Conversion rate also varies
across segments

33. Custom Advanced Segments
• Visits with a Purchase
• Mobile device is iPhone
• Referral visits from Reddit
• Visits from North Carolina
• Visits after 5:00pm
• Organic Branded Keywords

34. Setting up Custom Advanced
Segments

35. Other Analytics Tools. . .

36. A/B Testing
Comparing one version
of a web page against
another identical page,
except for one variation,
to determine which has
a greater conversion
rate.

37. A/B Testing – 148%
improvement
12.5% Conversion Rate 31.0% Conversion Rate

38. A/B Testing – 102%
improvement
.99% Conversion Rate 2.0% Conversion Rate

39. Heat Maps
Gain a better
understanding of
the user experience
to guide decisions
on making
improvements.

40. Heat Maps

41. Checklist for Analytics
Ensure Google Analytics is set up properly and is
installed throughout your site. Track everything!
Set up goals with values (or Ecommerce tracking)
Segment, segment, segment
A/B testing to improve conversion rates
Heat Maps to understand the user experience

42. Common Problems with Setup
Bounce rate too good to be true (around 10%)
Likely fix: Make sure there is only one instance of Google Analytics on each page
See your own website listed as a referral site
Likely fix: One or more of you pages doesn’t have the correct tracking code installed
“(not set)” showing up as keyword in search reports
Likely fix: Make sure that you have auto tagging enabled in your AdWords settings
Large spikes in Direct traffic
Likely fix: Make sure that you are tagging email links with campaign parameters
Content Report showing unique URLs for content that is not
unique
Likely fix: Exclude URL query parameters under the Profile Settings