Google Analytics is an online service offered by Google that generates detailed statistics about the visitors to a website. The tool tracks where visitors come from (such as what other websites send traffic), how long they stay on the site, and what pages they visit. Google Analytics reports can also show where visitors exit the website. The tool will show how many times a page is viewed (page views), how long the visitor spends on the website (average time on site), which browsers are being used to view your content (browser market share), where the visitors come from geographically (geographic location), and more.
Why Does Google Analytics Matter?
Google Analytics matters because it can provide website owners with a detailed understanding of how visitors are using their website. The tool’s reports can help identify which pages are being viewed the most, how long people are spending on the website, and where visitors are coming from. In addition, Google Analytics provides website owners with a high-level understanding of the total number of visitors to their site and how these visitors found the site in the first place.
Explore your website stats
Google Analytics offers several different reports that can better understand how your website is being used. The Visitors report summarizes how many people have visited the website, where they came from, and what pages they viewed. The Acquisition > Overview report shows traffic sources for the website, including how visitors found the site and how successful your marketing campaigns have been at bringing traffic to the site. The Behavior report offers a closer look at what visitors are doing on the website, including which pages they viewed, for how long, and where they entered and exited the website.
Compare different kinds of visits to your website
Not all visits to your website are created equal. Some visits are more valuable than others. The Acquisition > All Traffic > Channels report shows how traffic is divided by different channels, including paid search, organic search, social media, and email. The report can be used to determine which channels are sending the most valuable traffic to the website. For example, suppose the website owner finds that most of their traffic is coming from social media. In that case, they may want to focus more of their marketing efforts on social media.
Find the best ways people find you on the web
The Acquisition > Referrals report shows which websites are sending traffic to your site. This report can be used to identify which websites are sending the most valuable traffic to a website, which sites should be emailed asking for a link back to the site, and more. Any websites that send significant amounts of traffic to your site might make good partners in promoting your business or website.
Get to know who your visitors are and how they got there
The Visitors > Demographics report provides an overview of website visitors’ average age, gender, and interests. This information can be used to provide more targeted content on your website that appeals to different demographics. The Audience reports go into greater detail about who is visiting your site. These reports use location data (provided by Google Maps) to show where visitors are coming from, which browsers and devices they use to view the site, how long they stay on a page, what links they click on in your content, and more.
Understand how people interact with your site
Google Analytics provides website owners with a high-level understanding of how their site is being used. The Visitors > Flow report shows visitors’ path through your site, from when they arrive to when they leave or get lost in a series of navigational loops. This information can be used to identify which pages are the most confusing and should be redesigned to be more user-friendly.
Know where your visitors are coming from and how they find you
The Acquisition > All traffic> Source/medium report shows how traffic is divided by different sources, including referral sites, search engines, paid search ads, email campaigns, social media links, and direct visits to the website. This information can be used to determine which sources are sending the most valuable traffic to the website. The report can also be used to identify which marketing campaigns are the most successful at bringing traffic to the site.
Final Thoughts
Google Analytics is a powerful tool that website owners can use to better understand how their website is being used. The reports provided by Google Analytics can be used to discover opportunities for improving the website, such as redesigning confusing pages and refining marketing campaigns.
