The document discusses how to use custom event tracking in Google Analytics to gain insights from analytics data. It recommends starting with key performance indicators to identify important metrics to track. Custom events can then track user behaviors and interactions to measure those metrics. Examples are provided for how to implement custom event tracking for various user behaviors and site elements like downloads, videos, and a tuition estimator. Qualitative data may still be needed in addition to custom events.
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Custom Event Strategies for the Web Analytics Pioneer
1. Custom Event Strategies for the
Analytics Pioneer
How to See the Insights Trees for the Data Forest
Josh Braaten
Rasmussen College
Associate Director of Inbound Marketing
New York | March 25–28 #SESNY
2. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Josh Braaten:
ContentScientists.com/about
3. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Not Everything is Tracked Right Out-of-the-Box
4. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Enter, the Analytics Pioneer!
5. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Without Analytics Planning and Custom Events
6. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Some Things That Should Not Have Been Forgotten…
7. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
…Were Lost.
8. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Kick Back and Get Ready…
9. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
…to See the Insights Trees
for the Data Forest
10. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Ready to Become an Analytics Pioneer?
11. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Analytics Pioneer’s Guide to Custom Events:
• Always Start with KPI Planning
• Avoid Custom Event Mistakes
• Be Disciplined About Tagging Events
• Use Events With Other KPI to Tell the Story
12. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Finding Your Path by Finding KPIs
13. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Acquisition Engagement Outcomes
• Who saw it? • What did • Did they take
they do? action?
14. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Tuition
Acquisition KPIs:
• # and % of visitors interested in tuition
• % of visitors who use tuition estimator
• % of visitors who view tuition pages
15. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Tuition
Engagement KPIs:
• Price interest by program of study
• Price interest by geography
• Price interest by degree level
16. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Tuition
Outcome KPIs:
• CR% for tuition calculator users vs. rest of site
• CR% for tuition page viewers vs. rest of site
• Task completion rate for people looking for tuition
17. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Tuition
• Acquisition KPIs:
• # and % of visitors interested in tuition
• % of visitors who use tuition estimator
• % of visitors who view tuition pages
• Engagement KPIs:
• Price interest by program of study
• Price interest by geography
• Price interest by degree level
• Outcome KPIs:
• Conversion rate for tuition calculator users vs. rest of site
• Conversion rate for tuition page viewers vs. rest of site
• Task completion rate for people looking for tuition info
18. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Tuition
• Acquisition KPIs:
• # and % of visitors interested in tuition
• % of visitors who use tuition estimator
• % of visitors who view tuition pages
• Engagement KPIs:
• Price interest by program of study
• Price interest by geography
• Price interest by degree level
• Outcome KPIs:
• Conversion rate for tuition calculator users vs. rest of site
• Conversion rate for tuition page viewers vs. rest of site
• Task completion rate for people looking for tuition info
Almost everything we need isn’t tracked.
19. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Slide Header Here
Two Trees Do Not a
Forest Make
20. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Events Mistakes to Avoid
21. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Mistake #1: Not
Stocking Up on the
Right Events
22. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Tuition
• Acquisition KPIs:
• # and % of visitors interested in tuition
• % of visitors who use tuition estimator
• % of visitors who view tuition pages
• Engagement KPIs:
• Price interest by program of study
• Price interest by geography
• Price interest by degree program
• Outcome KPIs:
• Conversion rate for tuition calculator users vs. rest of site
• Conversion rate for tuition page viewers vs. rest of site
• Task completion rate for people looking for tuition info
23. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Tuition
• Acquisition KPIs:
• # and % of visitors interested in tuition
• % of visitors who use tuition estimator
• % of visitors who view tuition pages
• Engagement KPIs:
• Price interest by program of study
• Price interest by geography
• Price interest by degree level
• Outcome KPIs:
• Conversion rate for tuition calculator users vs. rest of site
• Conversion rate for tuition page viewers vs. rest of site
• Task completion rate for people looking for tuition info
Custom events can track most of what we need.
24. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Mistake #2: Veering From the Path
25. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
There’s No Replacing a Good Event With More Data
26. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Mistake #3: Being Fooled
by Look-Alike Metrics
27. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
These Metrics Can’t Do What Events Can Do
28. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Tuition
• Acquisition KPIs:
• # and % of visitors interested in tuition
• % of visitors who use tuition estimator
• % of visitors who view tuition pages
• Engagement KPIs:
• Price interest by program of study
• Price interest by geography
• Price interest by degree level
• Outcome KPIs:
• Conversion rate for tuition calculator users vs. rest of site
• Conversion rate for tuition page viewers vs. rest of site
• Task completion rate for people looking for tuition info
When you need an event, you need an event.
29. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Forging a Path by Tagging Events
30. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Anatomy of a Google Analytics Event
GA event method Record unique user Attribute optional
behaviors and acts integer values
_gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'Category', 'Action', 'Label', Value, interaction]);
Organize different types Associate dynamic or Determine if your
of custom events static values with events event affects bounces
31. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
http://rasmussen.co/gaeventplanner
32. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
I Think It Works?
="_gaq.push(['_trackEvent', '"&B4&"',
'"&B5&"', '"&B6&"'"&if(isblank(B7),"", ",
'"&B7&"'")&if(isblank(B7),if(B8="Yes“
,", , true", ""),if(B8="Yes",", true", ""))&"]);"
33. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
34. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Events Can Trigger Goals, Too
35. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Now We’re
Cooking…
36. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Tracking Click-Based Downloads
Category research-guides
Action download _gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'research-
guides', 'download', 'compare-
Label compare-rasmussen rasmussen']);
Value -
Non-Int? -
Example:
37. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Tracking Gated Downloads
Category research-guides
Action download _gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'research-
guides', 'download', 'business-careers']);
Label business-careers
Value -
Non-Int? -
38. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Tracking Affiliate Links
Category Outgoing Links
Action Ads _gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'Outgoing Links',
'Ads', 'Blog Sidebar']);
Label Blog Sidebar
Value -
Non-Int? -
39. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Tracking Form Errors
Category errors
Action email-address _gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'errors', 'email-
address', ‘valid email|ignition']);
Label [rule][value]
Value -
Non-Int? -
Credit:
Adam Singer
http:rasmussen.
co/tfbevents
40. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Tracking Embedded Map Engagement
Category maps
Action directions _gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'maps',
'directions', 'bloomington']);
Label bloomington
Value -
Non-Int? -
41. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Tracking Video Activity
Category Video
Action Play _gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'Video', 'Play',
'How Do You Become a Nurse']);
Label How Do You Become a
Nurse
Value -
Non-Int? -
Credit:
http:wistia.com/doc
/google-analytics
42. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Don’t Forget About Other Analytics Sources
43. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Tracking Organic Keyword Rankings
Category rank-tracker
Action keyword _gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'rank-tracker',
'keyword', 'url', 4, true]);
Label [page]
Value [rank]
Non-Int? True
Credit:
AJ Kohn
http://rasmussen.co
/kohnevents
44. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Tracking Conversion Rate Optimization Variations
Category vwo
Action visit _gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'vwo', 'visit', 'hp-
007-a', , true]);
Label hp-007-a
Value - _gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'vwo', 'visit', 'hp-
007-b', , true]);
Non-Int? true
Variation A Variation B
46. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
But What About Our Tuition Estimator?
• Acquisition KPIs:
• # and % of visitors interested in tuition
• % of visitors who use tuition estimator
• % of visitors who view tuition pages
• Engagement KPIs:
• Price interest by program of study
• Price interest by geography
• Price interest by degree level
• Outcome KPIs:
• Conversion rate for tuition calculator users vs. rest of site
• Conversion rate for tuition page viewers vs. rest of site
• Task completion rate for people looking for tuition info
47. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Tracking a Tuition Estimator
Category tution-estimator
Action calculate-tuition _gaq.push(['_trackEvent', 'tuition-
estimator', 'calculate-tuition',
Label [zip]|[school]|[progra '55116|bu|mark|ba|0|0', 110]);
m]|[credential]|[grant
s]|[partner]
Value [credits]
Non-Int? -
48. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
You’re Not Out of the Woods Yet
49. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Custom Events Can’t Track Everything
• Acquisition KPIs:
• # and % of visitors interested in tuition
• % of visitors who use tuition estimator
• % of visitors who view tuition pages
• Engagement KPIs:
• Price interest by program of study
• Price interest by geography
• Price interest by degree level
• Outcome KPIs:
• Conversion rate for tuition calculator users vs. rest of site
• Conversion rate for tuition page viewers vs. rest of site
• Task completion rate for people looking for tuition info
50. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Sometimes You Need Qualitative Data Too
51. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Now We Have Everything We Need
• Acquisition KPIs:
• # and % of visitors interested in tuition
• % of visitors who use tuition estimator
• % of visitors who view tuition pages
• Engagement KPIs:
• Price interest by program of study
• Price interest by geography
• Price interest by degree level
• Outcome KPIs:
• Conversion rate for tuition calculator users vs. rest of site
• Conversion rate for tuition page viewers vs. rest of site
• Task completion rate for people looking for tuition info
52. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Telling the Story
53. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
People Care About Price…
…But They Care More About the Outcome
54. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Price Interest by School of Study
School 1 8.1%
School 2 6.9%
School 3 6.3%
School 4 6.1%
School 5 5.6%
School 6 5.2%
School 7 3.9%
55. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Most Segments Improved in Task Completion
…But Website Segment D is a Big Deal
56. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Another Forest for Another Day
57. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Analytics Pioneer’s Takeaways
• Always Start with KPI Planning
• Avoid Custom Event Mistakes
• Be Disciplined About Tagging Events
• Use Events With Other KPI to Tell the Story
58. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Thank You
59. @JLBraaten New York| March 25–28, 2013 | #SESNY
Josh Braaten:
ContentScientists.com/about