Well, I got good news and I got bad news…<\/p>\n
The good news is — Google\u2019s added a TON of new features to Google Analytics<\/a>.\u00a0The bad news?\u00a0 You gotta learn how to use \u2018em if you want to stay at the top of your game.<\/p>\n But that\u2019s alright. It\u2019s not difficult. I promise. It\u2019s more a matter of just being aware that these tools even exist.\u00a0 Once you have visibility on what these tools do and how they can benefit you and your company, you\u2019ll quickly be able to decide whether you want to implement them into your regular measurement & reporting activities.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a list of 9 Google Analytics features you need to take a look at:<\/p>\n 1.\u00a0 Real-Time Data:<\/strong><\/p>\n Ok. I\u2019ll admit it.\u00a0 For most of us, this one just comes under the \u2018cool\u2019 category.\u00a0 I\u2019m a sales junky. Nothing gets me more excited than being part of a new campaign launch whether it\u2019s email, local search marketing, national SEO, Google Adwords\u2026.what have you.\u00a0 With Real-Time Data you get a live picture of the activity on your website. you can see what content is getting pulled, where they’re coming from and what keywords they used to get there.\u00a0 It\u2019s really a much better alternative than hitting \u2018refresh\u2019 on the Analytics Dashboard page every two minutes to see if you\u2019ve got any bites on that new landing page.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve got a fairly active site or are launching a new email marketing campaign that you expect will drive visitors to the site, try pulling up this tool and watching the activity. It\u2019s fun and a little addictive. And you may learn a thing or two about how people are engaging with your website along the way.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 2. Customized Dashboards:<\/strong><\/p>\n What data is important to YOU?\u00a0 If you\u2019re an Ohio-based business serving the Akron or Canton market, you don\u2019t care if someone from New York or California is visiting your site. You need to be looking at data that will help you reach your current and future customers.\u00a0 Further,\u00a0 if you\u2019re looking to keep an eye on the keywords people are using to find your site organically you don\u2019t want to have to take 3-5 clicks each time to get there.<\/p>\n Google makes it very easy to tailor these dashboards so your most important metrics are presented right on the home page. If you have a favorite report that you find you\u2019re pulling up time and time again, take a second and look for the \u2018Add to Dashboard\u2019 button in the top section of the report you\u2019re viewing.<\/p>\n 3. Search Engine Optimization (Webmaster Tools Integration):<\/strong><\/p>\n Google Webmaster Tools<\/a> — \u00a0In my mind, it\u2019s like the sad little sister to the Analytics & Adwords powerhouse. She\u2019s quiet. She’s unassuming. And let\u2019s just say she\u2019s got a \u2018great personality\u2019. But bang for the buck, this is one of the most important tools in a marketer\u2019s arsenal.\u00a0 Well, now Google\u2019s allowing us to raise Webmaster Tools\u2019 visibility by letting you link it to your Google Analytics account.\u00a0 While not providing the full suite of services from within Analytics it does let you zero in on the ORGANIC metrics for keywords you\u2019re targeting for your site. These include:<\/p>\n While it doesn\u2019t offer the full suite of tools available through Webmaster Tools, it does give you a window into that world so that you will remember to monitor and manage how your site shows up in the search engines.<\/p>\n 4. Social Engagement:<\/strong><\/p>\n This is where we finally get to hold social media<\/a> experts accountable. Here\u2019s the problem, on our site (and others) you\u2019ll see us recommending that you create truly great content that people will link to. But given that Twitter & Facebook and LinkedIn have \u2018no follow\u2019 links for anything shared there, you\u2019ll note that content shared through these social media sites have no SEO value.\u00a0 (Gasp!) Well, unless your content has been shared via Google Plus\u2026but another topic for another time.<\/p>\n That said – you need to create GREAT content<\/a>. Because the living breathing masses that share GREAT content through social media are telling their friends, who tell their friends, who tell their friends and so on and so on\u2026<\/p>\n With the Social Engagement metrics, you can see which social media channels are driving traffic to which pages. This is a real, tangible way to measure social media engagement and whether all your social media activities are driving traffic and conversions through your site. Heck, you may not even be trying to engage people on Facebook. But if you looked at these reports and learned that 10,15, 20% of your visitors are coming from content shared through Facebook\u2026.you might re-think your strategy there ehh?<\/p>\n 5.\u00a0Advertising\u00a0\/ Adwords Integration:<\/strong><\/p>\n Well, this one\u2019s just a no-brainer.\u00a0 If you\u2019re paying for people to click on a link to go to your site, you better be integrating that data into your overall assessment of site activity. With a few tweaks and tie-ins, you can link your Google Adwords account to your Google Analytics account and follow the traffic patterns all the way to a final sale.\u00a0 Linking these accounts gives you a better overall picture of how PAID users are engaging with your website.<\/p>\n 6. Site Speed:<\/strong><\/p>\n A basic but often forgotten metric is Site Speed. Beyond anecdotal claims that \u2018our site is slow\u2019, this tool allows you to assess the true load time of your site down to the individual landing pages. If you\u2019re seeing times greater than the 2-second maximum load time as Google recommends, it’s time to take action. Keeping page load times to a minimum will improve your user’s experience and, according to many in the industry, improve search rankings as Google considers page load time when it is assessing a page\u2019s quality.\u00a0 Should your site come with unacceptable load times you might also look at Google\u2019s Page Speed Tool<\/a>.<\/p>\n 7. Goals:<\/strong><\/p>\n The \u2018Goals\u2019 tool is NOT new. It\u2019s been around for years.\u00a0 But I wouldn\u2019t be doing my job if I didn\u2019t take this opportunity to remind readers about this very important tool to track conversions<\/a>.\u00a0 There are a number of different types of Goals you can set up for your site. The most common would be a URL-based goal where someone loads a confirmation page after signing up for a newsletter or making a purchase on your site. But Goals can also be based on a Visit Duration (time on the site), Pages \/ Visit, or an Event (which is a customizable set of conditions).<\/p>\n Search Engine Optimization is not about increasing the volume of visitors to your site. It\u2019s about growing your business. It\u2019s about getting those users to perform some ACTION on your site and engage with your organization in some predetermined way.\u00a0 In a perfect world, all Goals would be monetary (as with the Ecommerce Tool we discuss below), but for many businesses, a site visit is just the beginning of the sales process. So Goals allow you to identify when those requirements have been met so that you can measure whether or not your website is serving its role in the sales funnel. \u00a0Not to mention, in order to take full advantage of many of the other great features mentioned here, you\u2019ll want to have Goals up and running for your site.<\/p>\n\n