Google Analytics produces thousands of different numbers, metrics and statistics. There’s so many numbers it can be more confusing than enlightening trying to figure out which ratios should be taken into account, which stats are the most important. This session is a beginner’s guide to best practice set up of Google Analytics and navigating the user interface so you can look at your traffic more critically. We’ll also talk about how Google Analytics WordPress plugins simplify your set-up and analysis. Learning outcomes Identify your most valuable (not popular) web pages Discover your most valuable traffic sources Interpret your data by understanding key concepts and terms How to get more from your Google Analytics plug-ins.

1. WordCamp Toronto 2014David Bird
@d8vidbird

3.  According to Wikipedia:
◦ a free service that generates detailed statistics about a website's
traffic and traffic sources.
◦ Tracks visitors from all referrers, including search engines, social
networks, direct visits and referring sites.
◦ It also displays [results from marketing campaigns] … and digital
collateral such as links within PDF documents, [videos, kiosks, and
just about anything else].
◦ It's [probably] the most widely used website statistics service.

4. Goals
 Setting goals makes reading reports easier
 Using goal values makes reading reports even easier
Reporting
 The ABC’s of reports
Plug-ins
 How WordPress Plug-ins help

5. Changing how you look at website data

7.  What you want people
to do on your website
◦ Get to a thank you page
◦ A confirmation page
◦ Click a down load
◦ Read content
◦ Comment
◦ Etc.
 You will have multiple
goals

9.  Ranks the pages by
contribution to
achieving that goal
◦ Page with $0.35 is worth
more than one with $0.15
 Differentiates between
popular and valuable

10.  Compare traffic sources
◦ Email vs. Social Media
 Identify strong / weak pages
◦ Popular versus valuable pages
 Identify what “assists” achieving goals

12.  Acquisition
 Behaviour
 Conversions

13. How people find your website

16. $2,500 / month

17. $2,500 / month

18. What people do on your website

21. Did people do what you wanted them
to do?
Your GOALS

31. Type Measure of……
Destination Users doing what you want
them to do.
Going to a specific page on your
site (ex; Thank you, order
confirmation, etc.
Duration Engagement
Pages per
session
Engagement
Event Engagement
And ……
Users doing what you want
them to do

32. 1. Admin > Views > Goals
2. Click “Custom” (near the bottom)
3. Name the goal
4. Select goal type you need:
◦ Destination = specific page on your website (thank you, order confirmation)
◦ Pages / Session = viewed a specific number of pages
◦ Duration = spent a specific amount of time on your site
5. Follow the steps for the selected goal type
6. Insert a goal value
7. Save

33. 1. Set up 3 goals - With
values:
I. Destination Goal
II. Duration goal
III. Pages / session goal
 Wait 2 weeks
 Look at your data
 Is it easier to identify
strengths and
opportunities?

34. Gaining even more insights

36.  When users can’t find
something they use
search

38.  Identifies
◦ SEO search terms for your pages
◦ Content you can add because people are looking for it
◦ What’s missing from your website.

45. Image from ZERO TO WORDPRESS HERO
Ben Lobaugh

46. 1. Load the GA code properly
2. User Type Filters
3. Set Domain
4. Tracking File Downloads (PDFs, Zip, Word, etc.)
5. Track Outbound links (social media buttons)
6. Site Search
7. Goals and goal values

47. 1. Load the GA code properly
2. User Type Filters
3. Set Domain
4. Tracking File Downloads (Ex: PDFs, Zip,
Word, etc.)
5. Track Outbound links (Ex: social media
buttons)

48. Google Universal Analytics
By Andrius Dobilinskas
Just check the boxes

49. Google Analytics
By Yoast
Just check the boxes

50.  Tracking code properly installed
 Cleaner information:
◦ Filtered out ourselves from GA data
◦ Only our domain is being tracked
 Tracking file downloads
 Tracking outbound links

51.  Make 3 Goals in next 24
hours
◦ Destination, Duration,
and pages / session
 Set-up Site Search
 Load and set up a GA
plug-in

53.  David Bird
 Bird’s Eye Marketing
 www.birdseyemarketing.ca
 david@birdseyemarketing.ca
 @d8vidbird
 613-875-4987