Unless you are like all of us here at MashMetrics you may be taken a little aback by “Analytics”. Don’t worry, we are not going to attack you with all kinds of techno-babble. Follow our 10 Step Program to not only understand web analytics but also be so engaged with the new insights you can find you become addicted!
- Step 1 – The Differences with Enhanced Google Analytics
- Step 2 – Going from using Vanity Metrics to Goals
- Step 3 – Navigating around Google Analytics
- Step 4 – Top Google Analytics Reports
- Step 5 – Using Enhanced Google Data Studio Dashboards
- Step 6 – Segmenting Your Data
- Step 7 – Using the MashMetrics Custom Report Library
- Step 8 – Sharing Google Analytics Data
- Step 9 – When and When not to Analyze
- Step 10 – Where you can find more GA help
Teaching you about Google Analytics from using Vanity Metrics alone, however, is counter-productive. We believe so much in the difference between what you get “out-of-box” and our Enhanced Google Analytics setup and goal framework we allow you to preview this new data, with YOUR OWN DATA, RISK-FREE! Don’t miss out on another week of inadequate website data. Check out our Install or Insight / Support Plans today!
Step 1: How is Enhanced Google Analytics Different!
Welcome to Enhanced Google Analytics
Welcome! Today starts a new chapter in the way you have been measuring your website behavior. While you have likely been checking overall traffic trends or even checking to see how various “channels” are growing (or not). Enhanced Google Analytics, however, allows you to see how your users are truly behaving.
- 0:20 The difference between MashMetrics Enhanced Google Analytics and traditional GA “out of the box”
- 0:45 15 Pre-Configured Goals
- 0:60 Google Data Studio Dashboards
- 1:05 Custom Report Library
- 1:20 Custom Dimensions
- 1:25 Custom Filters
- 1:35 How to find your new MashMetrics Enhanced GA profile
- 2:50 Explanation of the “Adjusted Bounce Rate” and Session Time
Step 2: Going from Vanity Metrics to Achieving Goals!
Make your website’s story easy to read and understand. Google, out of the box just was not meant for today’s browsing behaviors and as a result, delivers a lot of confusion. MashMetrics program helps you see the entire picture, turning previously untracked actions into goals that make data easy to understand and act upon. On your path to GA recovery, we introduce you to our framework and goals showing you how to move from quantity or “vanity metrics” to quality MashMetrics.
Step 2 walks through the 15 pre-configured goals that the MashMetrics Enhanced GA Service Includes. From On-page activities, to Page and Site Engagement; you can track improvements both from a Macro and Micro goal level.
- 1:00 MashMetrics Enhanced GA Provides Data Context
- 2:00 MashMetrics Pre-Configured Goal Set 2 – On-Page Activities
- 2:54 MashMetrics Pre-Configured Goal Set 3 – On Page Engagement
- 3:11 MashMetrics Pre-Configured Goal Set 4 – Visitor Engagement
- 3:26 Goal #6 Contact Links
- 3:57 Goal #7 All Form Submits
- 4:26 Goal #8 Offsite Clicks
- 4:49 Goal #9 Social Media Clicks
- 5:07 Goal #10 File Downloads
- 5:45 Goal #11 Scroll Tracking; users scrolls more than 50% page
- 6:15 Goals 12 + 13 Time on page; user more than 45 or 120 secs on single page
- 6:30 Goals 14 + 15 Video Progression; user watches more than 10% / 50%
- 7:07 Goals 16 – 20 Overall visitor engagement over entire session
- 8:00 Goals and Session Based Reporting Explained
- 9:12 Page Actions
Step 3: Navigating around Google Analytics
Step 3 we give you a personal walkthrough of Google Analytics out of the box and intro some important basic features. A strong analytics foundation must include the building blocks and GA is a pretty interactive tool, so we’ll help identify the tools we like and think you will enjoy and find useful.
- :25 New Google Analytics Homepage
- 1:00 Date Range Selector
- 1:20 Real time traffic
- 1:45 When users come to your site
- 2:35 Sorting made easy
- 3:40 Da Vinci Tools a tool we love
- 4:25 Secondary dimensions and becoming a super analyst
- 5:35 Landing page by city
- 5:45 Device category by browser
- 7:20 Annotations – Google Analytics Evernote
Step 4: Top Google Analytics Reports to Review
Your Free Enhanced GA is populated and prepared …. Let’s get actionable! Gain a new and deeper understanding of your sites overall performance and the health of your business.
Find insights previously undetected that can help you improve your site, marketing objectives, or customer satisfaction. Establish goals and use MashMetrics custom reports to help optimize your site and improve your online presence.
- :30 Vanity metrics are like a Hollywood House
- 2:20 Top 5 reports
- 3:20 New vs. returning visitors viewed through MashMetrics goat set framework
- 4:00 Site overview and visitor engagement through goal set 4
- 4:49 Audience Overview Report
- 5:15 See the micro and macro
- 5:40 All Channels report and on page engagement goal set
- 7:00 Landing Pages report and on page activities
Step 5: Google Data Studio Enhanced Dashboard
Make your data sexy and attractive with Google Data Studio and MashMetrics Engagement and Awareness Dashboards. Tired of looking at confusing numbers, see your data visualized and compared within your own custom dashboards and MashMetrics dimension. Watch Step 5 and learn how to access both your Engagement and Awareness Dashboards now!
- :20 Google Data Studio
- 1:00 Enhanced Google Analytics Dashboard
- 1:45 Enhanced Google Analytics Awareness Dashboard finding quality traffic and insights
- 3:45 Traffic Performance and quality metrics
- 4:15 How are users finding your website or Channels users are utilizing
- 5:30 Engagement Dashboard
- 5:50 Landing pages and page activity’
- 6:50 Events visualized
- 7:15 Video Performance
- 7:35 Filtering Engagement Dashboards
- 8:30 Filter mobile vs. Desktop Engagement Dashboard
- 9:15 Putting context to data analysis
- Step 6: Segmenting your Data Like an Analytics Rockstar
Getting dirty with your data and creating segments. In Step 6 we explore segments and through MashMetrics on-page engagement goals where you can compare and contrast like an analytics rockstar. You have made it this far so don’t stop … keep on truckin’
- :15 MashMetrics Intro to Enhanced Google Analytics capsule
- :45 Using Segments vs. Secondary Dimensions to understand over activities on your website
- 4:30 On page engagement goals
- 5:15 Create your own custom segment and get dirty with your own data
- 9:45 Create segment of users clicking on offsite links through MashMetrics framework
Step 7: Using the MashMetrics Custom Google Analytics Report Library
Step 7 provides information and access to MashMetrics Custom Report Library. Take advantage of our growing library of custom reports, 15-preconfigured goal sets, custom segments, and Custom Google Data Studio templates.
- :35 MashMetrics Custom Report Library
- 1:20 MashMetrics 15 pre-configured goal sets
- 2:45 Custom Segments
- 3:25 Custom Google Data Studio Templates
Step 8: Sharing and Saving your Google Analytics Data
In Step 8 we drill down into sharing and saving reports within Google Analytics.
- :25 Sharing
- 2:10 Saving
Step 9: When and When NOT to Use Analytics
We thought you may need a little break from the technical tool How-To’s and get a little more philosophical as we near the end….the comments have kept me company … so keep them coming as this continues!
It seems strange that I would even be broaching the topic … WHEN to use Analytics. You might think I will say ALL THE TIME. ALWAYS BE DATA DRIVEN. WHAT IS NOT MEASURED IS NOT MANAGED!!!
Well you know, sometimes things ARE left unmanaged…so why take the time to measure it?
Want to know your Top Content – we got you covered there and Top can even be thought of by quantity, engagement, or onpage activity. Through this short 10-step program we hope you learned the brush strokes on how to use the new enhanced data to learn more about what your users are doing than you did before. We hope we got you addicted!
Now that you know though … are you gonna do something about it?
If you learn that those partners that begged you to put their links on their page are not being clicked on … are you going to change them out to avoid the clutter and increase CTR to better areas?
If you learn that your long-form content is not getting the scroll rate you had hoped … are you going to come up with a few variations to test and improve page layout?
IF a majority of your traffic is coming from “low performing” sources, lets just say social media … will you still keep spending your days posting and liking and pimping on Pinterest, FB and more or start working on getting more actual backlinks from referring sources or improving SEO which can last for a long time once nailed….since those users tend to have more engagement and on-page activity?
YES I WILL….WHEW … OK … you get it
If you are just looking at this data because you are curious and makes you feel good about distributing content to the world. AWESOME! DON’T STOP! I don’t need to tell you how many people you are impacting (Your Monthly Users) However, we certainly prefer you start to take ACTION on the data. That is when you REALLY SHOULD look at analytics.
A small secret, data is about cause and effect. Try things … look back on the data … and see if that worked or not. Try new post topics, go back and revise old posts, switch out outbound links, new product layouts, etc. (Careful I mind you, making too many changes at once then makes it impossible to see what actually influenced the change.) Then look to see if the needle changed. NOW you can go back … look at the data in context and see if your change made a dent in the data. NO more not wanting to try new things because you don’t know if it will work … now you will know with certainty and can keep repeating what you did (or stop and move on of course).
So in summary, when should I use Analytics? When you make a change, When you want to improve, When you are ready to start growing. So yeah, a lot 🙂
Step 10: Where You Can Get Additional Google Analytics Help
Here we are, the last step … and you are still quite confused. Don’t feel bad, this stuff takes time and getting used to. Perhaps a little hands on help could be of assistance?
Get a 1:1 Enhanced GA Walkthrough from Thomas Bosilevac, world-renowned for his presentation and teaching skills surrounding Google Analytics. Ask Questions, get Answers!
Want to learn more about ways you can configure Google Analytics yourself, feel free to check out Google’s official Google Analytics Academy, discussion board .
Don’t want to bother with this stuff yet completely see the benefit of data-driven decision making? Purchase an actionable Insight Report where we scour through the data for you to find opportunities you can cost-efficiently have done to massive improve your bottom-line!
Perhaps you need help every month, or you make constant changes on your website and want to make sure pages are tagged correctly or new goals are setup or new publisher / remarketing tags need to be installed … or so much else. We have you covered there too with our Insight and Support plans!
What functionality do you put in your dashboards to make them more accessible? Please leave a comment here and follow us on Linkedin and Twitter!