Google Analytics is a powerful tracking option to monitor website traffic. We equip all of our websites with Google Analytics to help our clients gain better insight into their site-users. 

Accessing Google Analytics

To access Google Analytics, please follow the steps below.

1. Go to https://www.google.com/analytics/
2. Click ‘Sign In’ at the top right of the page
3. Select ‘Google Analytics’
   1. This will be the 3rd option down
4. Click on your property folder to expand the options
5. Select the desired URL to proceed to the ‘Admin’ dashboard

Reporting

Real Time

Real Time reporting allows a Google Analytics user to see who is on the website at this moment. They may also view the location of the site-user.

Audience

The audience section gives the Google Analytics user insight into what users are viewing the website. This will monitor some of the following stats. 

• Behavior 
  • Measure what first time users are doing
  • Figure out economic impact 
• Technology
  • What browser is being used to visit the website?
• Mobile
  • What devices are used? What screen sizes?
• Custom
  • Custom variabless such as date range
• Benchmarketing
  • Compare data with industry data shared by other companies
• User Flow
  • Graphical representation of the paths a user took through your site, from the source, various pages, and the exit

Acquisition

Acquisition reports will give insight as to what channels users are using to access your website. 

Behavior

The behavior portion gives insight into how users move from one section of the site to the next. 

Conversions 

The conversion aspect of Google analytics allows a user to set-up goals (such as conversions using contact forms) and track conversions.

Glossary

Dimensions—A dimension is a descriptive attribute or characteristic of an object that can be given different values. Browser, Exit Page, Screens and Session Duration are all examples of dimensions that appear by default in Google Analytics.

Metrics—Metrics are individual elements of a dimension that can be measured as a sum or a ratio. Screen views, Pages/Session and Average Session Duration are examples of metrics in Google Analytics.

Sessions—A session is the period of time a user is actively engaged with your website, app, etc., within a date range. All usage data (Screen views, Events, Ecommerce, etc.) is associated with a session.

Users—Users who have had at least one session within the selected date range. Includes both new and returning users.

Pageviews—Pageviews means the total number of pages viewed. Repeated views of a single page are counted.

Pages/Session—Pages/session (Average Page Depth) is the average number of pages viewed during a session. Repeated views of a single page are counted.

Avg. Session Duration—The average length of a session.

Bounce Rate—Bounce rate is the percentage of single-page visits (i.e., visits in which the person left your site from the entrance page without interacting with the page).

New Sessions—An estimate of the percentage of first-time visits.

Goals—Goals let you measure how often users take or complete specific actions on your website.

Conversions—Conversions are the number of times goals have been completed on your website.

Campaigns—Campaigns (also known as custom campaigns) allow you to add parameters to any URL from your website to collect more information about your referral traffic.

Acquisition—Acquisition is how you acquire users.

Behavior—Behavior data helps you improve your content.

Tutorials

• Google Analytics Support
• Moz’s Absolute Beginner’s Guide
• Social Media Examiner’s How To Use Google Analytics
• Guide To Tracking Multiple Subdomains In Google Analytics
• Google Analytics Academy