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Analytics & Data
Google Analytics: Site Search and Capital Letters
August 27, 2013 • Tim Wilson
The site search functionality on a website is a powerful source of information about what users are looking for. It’s the place where visitors actually use their keyboard to tell ...
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Analytics & Data
Google Analytics: How to Avoid Data-wandering
July 17, 2013 • Tim Wilson
When it comes to Google Analytics, a common question users ask is, “Where do I start?” They have logged into the tool multiple times and stared at the default report with its default timeframe of the last 30 days. They have pondered whether there was anything actionable buried in that c...
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Analytics & Data
2 Handy Google Analytics Features: Ecommerce Reports, Weighted Sorting
June 19, 2013 • Tim Wilson
Overall, Google Analytics has a clean and intuitive interface. But, somehow, useful capabilities sometimes get lost on the screen. Two such features are the "Ecommerce" metric group and "weighted sorting." The Ecommerce Metric Group Every standard report has one or more predefined “me...
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Analytics & Data
Google Analytics: 5 Custom Ecommerce Events to Track
May 14, 2013 • Tim Wilson
A friend recently asked me about event tracking on his new ecommerce site. He wondered if I had a comprehensive list of events to track. Well, in answer to my friend, this article is my list of five favorite event tracking customizations, using Google Analytics, for ecommerce sites. C...
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Analytics & Data
Using Analytics to Adapt and Learn
April 16, 2013 • Tim Wilson
Everyone wants to be data-driven these days. But, what does that really mean? Using the classic “people, process, technology” triangle, it is tempting to see technology as the most critical ...
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Analytics & Data
Effective Analytics: Using the Right Tool for the Job
March 19, 2013 • Tim Wilson
Web analytics platforms are rich sources of data for marketers and ecommerce managers. But it is a mistake to treat them as the only source of information. There are many others — many of which are inexpensive or free — that complement web analytics and are better at answering certain t...
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Analytics & Data
Locating 404s with Google Analytics
February 19, 2013 • Tim Wilson
404 error pages are bad. On the list of “Bad Things on Your Site,” 404s easily crack the top five. Yet site owners frequently have no idea how often 404s occur on their sites, much less monitor and address them. Can you answer the following questions? How many visitors to your site l...
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Analytics & Data
Configuring Google Analytics, Part 2: Advanced Capabilities
January 10, 2013 • Tim Wilson
Editor's note: This is "Part 2" of a 2-part series on how to know if you are fully using Google Analytics for your ecommerce site. The first installment, "Configuring Google Analytics, Part 1: Are You Taking Full Advantage?," we published previously. In "Part 1: Are You Taking Full Adv...
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Analytics & Data
Configuring Google Analytics, Part 1: Are You Taking Full Advantage?
December 20, 2012 • Tim Wilson
Editor's note: This is "Part 1" of a 2-part series on how to know if you are fully using Google Analytics for your ecommerce site. "Part 2: Advanced Capabilities" we published later. One of the first things I do with a new Google Analytics clients is log in to their accounts and do a q...
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Analytics & Data
Analyzing Mobile Traffic in Google Analytics; 5 Questions
November 16, 2012 • Tim Wilson
According to published reports, there were 20 million iPhones, 18 million Android-based Samsung Galaxy S3s, and 17 million iPads sold in the third quarter of 2012. The mobile channel, as such, can’t be ignored. But, “mobile” is complicated. It covers a wide range of devices and experien...
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Analytics & Data
Creating Custom Segments in Google Analytics
October 24, 2012 • Tim Wilson
In "Understanding Segmentation in Google Analytics," my previous article, I explained the concept of analyzing traffic to a website in separate groups. This process is called "segmentation." Google Analytics offers several default segments, to automatically track common groups of vi...
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Analytics & Data
Understanding Segmentation in Google Analytics
October 19, 2012 • Tim Wilson
Gary Angel, one of the sharpest digital analytics practitioners, regularly cites the benefits of segmenting traffic in Google Analytics. He says, “In every case, as you think about [specific metrics for your site], segmentation is an excellent first step for choosing the right explanat...
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Analytics & Data
How to Measure Website Load Times
August 28, 2012 • Tim Wilson
Consumers are increasingly impatient when it comes to waiting for their web browsers to load content. Measuring and monitoring how long it takes pages on your site to load — from desktop computers, laptops, tablets, or smartphones — enable you to take corrective action when any one of d...
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Analytics & Data
Google Analytics: 3 Tests to Ensure Your Checkout Process Is Working
July 13, 2012 • Tim Wilson
There’s a reason that an ecommerce site’s checkout process is one of the most popular analytics topics. Once a person initiates a checkout, she has self-identified herself as a visitor with a high intent to purchase. Chances are, you’ve already spent money acquiring that potential custo...
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Social Media
Measuring Social Media’s Impact on Revenue
June 15, 2012 • Tim Wilson
You can explore the impact of social media on your site’s revenue using data that is already available to you. None of this data is perfect, and none of it is comprehensive. But when used together, the data can inform how and where you invest. Organic vs. Campaign-Driven Social Media ...
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Analytics & Data
Integrating Google Analytics with Site Search to Drive Conversions
May 21, 2012 • Tim Wilson
There are two broad types of data you can collect about visits to your site. "Behavioral" data is about what visitors actually do on the site, while "attitudinal" data is about what visitors want to do. Both are valuable sources of information, and they complement each other in many way...