Google Analytics: An Introduction to Reports and Metrics:
Have you ever wondered who visits your website and from what location? or if, over time, your traffic is getting better? Google Analytics offers an abundance of data that can assist you in marketing to the appropriate audience and optimizing your website.
Don’t worry, though, if your Google Analytics dashboard is making your head spin. In order for you to comprehend how traffic analysis functions on your website, we’re here to clear it up and concentrate on the information that matters most.
Google Analytics baseline measurements
Make sure you set up a Google Analytics account and connect it to your website before you begin. Then, depending on your traffic, wait for the initial data to arrive, which should happen in a few days or weeks.
While Google Analytics offers many metrics to monitor, the following are the most crucial ones for newcomers to be aware of:
meetings,
users,
fresh users,
views on pages,
per session, pages
the average length of a session, and
bounce percentage.Â
We advise starting with these metrics for the time being, but you can add or track other indicators as well. What is the meaning of each metric?
Sessions:
What many would consider to be a “visit” to your website is actually a collection of interactions with it over time. A user may perform many actions in one session, such as viewing multiple pages or completing multiple purchases. Multiple sessions are possible for a single user. The session terminates either 1) after a predetermined period of time, such as thirty minutes of inactivity or following midnight, or 2) if a user leaves and returns via an alternative pathway (for example, by using a keyword to find the website).
Online sessions are similar to in-person sessions at the gym. A person might use a treadmill for a brief jog or run the entire length of the weight room. It counts as a new session if you go away and return the next day.
Users: This is the total number of visitors to your website who have made at least one session. This indicator provides you with a more precise estimate of the number of visitors to your website.
Fresh Users: This will provide you with information about the percentage of new and returning visitors to your website. Ideally, you should have a good mix of both first-time visitors and recurring visitors who are happy with the site and keep coming back.
views on pages: The total number of instances a page has been visited on your website throughout a specific time frame This encompasses returning to the same webpage.
Pages per session: The typical amount of time spent on a website in a single session. If users are participating and investigating your site, you should see more pages per session.
Average session duration is the amount of time visitors spend on your website on average. Once more, the greater this number, the more users are communicating with your website.
Bounce rate: The percentage of visitors who only view one page is known as the “bounce rate.” A “bounce” is the term used to describe a visitor to your website who swiftly leaves again. A high bounce rate typically signifies that users are leaving a page or the website due to some inconvenience or because they’re unable to find the products they require.Â
Thankfully, practically all of these metrics are included by Google Analytics in the “Overview” area, which we will talk about in the following section.
How to read and comprehend the basic analytics on your website?
Regularly monitoring these metrics is a smart idea because they provide you with a wealth of data on how users are communicating with your website. What are some telltale signs?
Over time, the number of sessions, consumers, and page views rises.
Most of your visitors browse many pages in a single session. As time goes on, the average length of a session rises, suggesting that people are actually taking the time to browse your website.
You continue to see a consistent number of people returning while increasing the percentage of new sessions. This means that not only are your website and its contents reaching new audiences online, but they are also drawing in return visitors.
The bounce rate is the single metric that should ideally be maintained low. Depending on your website and sector, this percentage shouldn’t go above 70–80%. If your site’s bounce rate is high, it suggests that users are not happy with what they are reading and are departing quickly. This may indicate that you need to make changes to the site’s design or language.
Site performance overview (Audience)
It’s time to learn about the rest of these website visitors now that you are aware of the fundamental traffic figures. The Audience report is relevant in this situation. The information provided here can assist in developing a personalized profile of your possible client, which is helpful in generating ideas for:
what fresh products to create, what kind of images and text to include on your website, what kinds of advertisements to buy (on Google, Facebook, and other platforms) in order to drive additional traffic, and what sort of advertising plan you would like to create (read this post about marketing terms and strategy if you’re interested in learning more about marketing).
Using the traffic comparison feature, you can utilize this report to monitor the progress of your website over time. You will be ready to compare outcomes from quarter to quarter, year to year, and month to month as more time goes by and you gather more data.Â
Here’s how to get that performance summary for your website (including all of the indicators mentioned above) and how to compare statistics across time:
How to view the report on audience Open your Google Analytics account and log in.
Choose “All website data” in the upper left corner. From the left-hand side menu, select Audience. Next, select Overview. The date range can be modified in the upper right corner. To choose a previous era of interest, click on Compare to. Press Apply.
How to comprehend your report on audience
A summary of some of the contents of the Google Analytics Audience report is provided below:
Demographic information:
The ages and sex of the site visitors are provided in this section. You will need to manually enable it from the side menu on your left for this data to be collected. To access your administrator profile, click the gear icon, log in, select “Property settings,” and then select “Enable demographic and interest reports.”Â
Interests:
This displays your visitors’ interests based on their Google profiles and search terms. You might use this information to generate ideas for advertisements, new goods, content for your website, and joint ventures with other businesses.
Geographic information:
You can see the language spoken by users as well as the city from where they are connected in this section. When determining whether to create a bilingual website and whether your goods or services might succeed in other countries, language data can be helpful. For e-commerce businesses in particular, origin data is helpful as it can assist in selecting the best shipping options.Â
Brand-New vs. Repeat Users:
This section displays the number of visitors who are new to the site as well as those who are returning. If the proportion of customers who return is very low, you can try to raise it. For instance, you could add a form on your website to gather visitors’ email addresses, and then use that information to create a mailing list where you can distribute content that will entice people to visit your website or store again.
Mobile apparatus:
You can find out in this area what proportion of visitors use a computer, device, or mobile device to access and browse your website. Check out our post on optimizing your website for mobile devices.Â