Google Analytics:

See how these 7 basic metrics are used to optimize your website’s performance

If you own and/or manage a website, then see how you can use these 7 basic metrics in Google Analytics to help fix, fine tune, strengthen and ultimately improve your website’s performance based on actual visitor activity.

Google Analytics, briefly explained

Google Analytics is a web-based statistical tool that is installed on a website; its function is to track and report website visitor activity from number of visits to pages viewed to exits, and any interactions in between.

Once installed, then you can use the Google Analytics information to see how well or poorly your website is doing in terms of trafic and visitor interactions, so as to make the necessary changes that will optimize your website performance.

The 7 basic GA metrics to help optimize your website

Metrics, basically, is shorter way to say statistical measurements. In GA there are many, many types of metrics. However, when it comes to measuring to what degree your website is visited and interacted with, the following are the basic GA metrics that I use.

#1. Number of visits (users)

It all starts with visitors to your website. Specifically, GA shows both users and new users, which tells you how much your website is growing

# 2. Average time spent on the webpage

This metric is used to see to what degree the information presented on a specific webpage is really of interest to the visitors.

#3. Bounce rate

A bounce is when a person leaves a webpage without continue to surf through or interact with your website.

A bounce rate tells us what ratio of the total visitors to the page bounced out. In other words, if out of 100 visitors 75 bounced out, then you have a 75% bounce rate

#4. Average number of pages viewed

Each visitor that surfs through your website will view several pages, during a visit (also known as a session). The total of pages viewed divided by the number of visitors gives us this metric. This tells how much your website as a whole is interesting/useful to those visitors that have found you.

#5. Number of Contact Conversions

In this case, a Conversion is a Contact that is effectively established, whether through the submittiing of a completed online form, a phone call initiated from the website, or an online chat. This is the standard metric for B2B and B2C Service Websites that rely on prospect engagement.

#6.Number of Sales Conversions

This is specifically for e-commerce websites, wherein GA can be set-up to track actual purchases including the quantity of transactions and value of purchases.

#7. The dollar value of concluded sales

And last but not least, in the end, this is the true metric that counts; and keep in mind that this last metric is a result of the previous metrics.

How to use these metrics to optimize your website’s performance?

The above metrics are some of the factors that you can control when it comes to website performance, but how do you work with that data?

Following are a few simple examples that show you how you can look at these metrics so as to determine what action or fix to apply to get more website activity.

Example : Many visitors (Metric #1) to your webpage but your Bounce Rate (Metric #3) is also high.

This can mean one of 2 things:

1) The visitor’s driven to that webpage are not the right public. This would require that you first look at where those visitors come from (also available in GA) and then determine what change you need to do to attract the right public: it could be in the message, or the use of the advertising or social media, etc.

2) The public is right for that webpage, but the webpage itself is, content and/or presentation, uninteresting; so now you have to see how to re-work the page so as to make it more engaging.

Example : The Average time spent (Metric #2) on a webpage is high, but Conversions (Metrics #5 or #6) are low.

Clearly that Webpage’s content is of interest because people spend time on it.

Evidently the Call-to-Action needs to be reviewed for more response; or worse, there is no Call-to-Action.

And so on with all of these metrics.

As mentionned at the outset, these statistical measurements are only as valuable as you use them are tools to help you find out what, about your website, needs to be fixed, improved, or strengthened to get the most R.O.I. out of your website’s content.

How is your digital marketing doing : Want it to do better?

If you are looking to generate more business and find that you need effective marketing actions, then let’s schedule a one-on-one meeting — video or on the phone. Just .send me an email (vincenzo(@)vcommdesign.com) or call me (514-529-5669) to let me know you are interested.

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