Google Analytics10 Ways to Reach Your Marketing Goals

Tina Arnoldi, Consultant360InternetStrategy.com

April 10th, 2014

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What we’ll cover – and why it matters

1. Sources of traffic2. Tag your campaigns3. Top landing pages4. Social media – when to post5. Content – unique visitors

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What we’ll cover – and why it matters

6. New visitor bounce7. Dealing with “not provided”– Landing Pages– Webmaster tools– AdWords

8. Visitor Flow9. Advanced segments10.Trends over time

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Source of today’s screen shots• www.books.tinaarnoldi.com– Small book blog– Not a money maker, more of a hobby– I own it, therefore no confidentiality issues– Easy for audience to follow along with low traffic

and simple content• Screenshots are also used from other

accounts with data blocked out

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Poll

• Rate your Google Analytics knowledge

1. Never looked at it2. Logged in a few times and was overwhelmed3. I could teach this class!

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1. Know your traffic sources• Source = Origin– Ex. Facebook.com

• Medium = Tied to the origin– Ex. CPC – Cost per click for paid

Facebook ad

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What to look at with traffic sources?

• How do people find you?• Does behavior change based

on the source?• Any surprises?

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• Was there different behavior by traffic sources?

• Is it behavior you expect?

• If it’s positive, you may want to put more resources into that traffic source or reevaluate your landing pages.

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• Source/Medium

• Direct – missing campaign tracking?

• Goodreads – should there be more?

• What brings in new?

• What about returning?

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Poll

• Are your campaigns tagged so you know where traffic is originating?

1. What’s tagging?2. For the most part3. We’re “tagging ninjas”

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2. Tag your campaignsCampaign Source (utm_source) Required. Use utm_source to identify a search

engine, newsletter name, or other source.Example: utm_source=google

Campaign Medium (utm_medium) Required. Use utm_medium to identify a medium such as email or cost-per- click.Example: utm_medium=cpc

Campaign Term (utm_term) Used for paid search. Use utm_term to note the keywords for this ad.Example: utm_term=running+shoes

Campaign Content (utm_content) Used for A/B testing and content-targeted ads. Use utm_content to differentiate ads or links that point to the same URL.Examples: utm_content=logolink or utm_content=textlink

Campaign Name (utm_campaign) Used for keyword analysis. Use utm_campaign to identify a specific product promotion or strategic campaign.Example: utm_campaign=spring_sale

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URL builder• Step 1: Enter the URL of your website.

– Website URL *(e.g. http://www.website.com/page.html)

• Step 2: Fill in the fields below. Campaign Source, Campaign Medium and Campaign Name should always be used.– Campaign Source *(referrer: facebook, citysearch,

newsletter4)– Campaign Medium *(marketing medium: cpc, banner, email)– Campaign Term(identify the paid keywords)– Campaign Content(use to differentiate ads)– Campaign Name *(Christmas, promo code, or slogan)

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What happens if I don’t tag?

• All of those visitors that are actually from a paid campaign will be reported as “organic” in Google Analytics.

• It’s easy to tag in AdWords. – Link your analytics account to enable auto-

tagging.

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Poll

• We drive most of our traffic to…

1. Our home page2. Our contact page3. Specific landing page4. I have no idea

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What is a landing page?

• Google Analytics– Where your visitors land on your website

• A better definition– A page that has a form and exists to capture

visitor’s information regarding a specific service or product

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3. Top landing pages

• What pages are acting as the intro to your site?

• Can they be improved?

• Is your important messaging there?

• Are your top landing pages also your top exit pages?

• Is there a call-to-action?

• Does it answer the question on the source?

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3. Top landing pages

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Big question: How are they converting?

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Poll question

• What’s your social media strategy?

1. Um.. we don’t have one??2. We just sort of post somewhat regularly3. Nothing official but we’re active daily4. We have a written policy we follow closely

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4. Social media – when to post

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5. Content • Content pageviews do help identity what’s of interest to

readers.

• However, focusing on pageviews isn’t the best option because that doesn’t necessarily help build the audience.

• You can also look at content in the context of visitors.

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Unique visitors

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6. New visitor bounce

Your new visitors are the ones that need a reason to come back

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So how do you lower bounce rate?• Limit how much is in the sidebar of the page

so visitors aren’t overwhelmed.– Ex. 3 posts instead of 30 posts

• Additional resources are good but don’t overdo it with external links.

• Make related content stand out.

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7. Dealing with “not provided”

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Poll

• Are you using Webmaster tools?

1. Never heard of it until now2. No idea, our web team keeps secrets3. I’ve logged in but have no idea what it means4. Yes! We’re all over search queries

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Also use Webmaster Tools for actual search queries

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Poll

• Do you use AdWords?

1. Never tried it2. Used to – it’s a waste of money3. Yes – it’s brought us new business4. Yes – but mostly for market research

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And there’s always AdWords!

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Poll question

• What do you think of the “visitor flow”?

1. The visitor what?2. It’s like one big maze3. We use it to make marketing decisions

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8. Visitor Flow

• A graph that represents the path visitors took through your site– Node = dimension– Connection = path

• Focus on one piece at a time

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Right click on a segment for a closer look.

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Poll

• Have you used advanced segments?

1. Yes - we only use the built-in ones2. Yes - we’ve created custom segments3. No - we’re afraid of permanently changing our data

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9. Advanced segments

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10. Trends over time

• Seasonal• Economic• Advertising• Change in products/services

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Application1. Make a list of all your marketing efforts2. Look at numbers in context3. Review or create a content strategy4. Set-up webmaster tools5. Pick one segment in “Visitor Flow”

Questions?

Tina Arnoldi, Consultant360InternetStrategy.com

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