If you are familiar with Google Analytics, then you are aware of the immense amount of information that the dashboard provides. In many ways, that’s great! However, this amount of data can be overwhelming to people who are just starting out with the software. We are here today to help clarify what reports can provide you with important analytics. Let’s dive into each one and determine which reporting will best suite your needs.
The Google analytics dashboard is broken down into 5 types of reports: Realtime, Audience, Acquisition, Behavior and Conversions. Each report is beneficial in identifying website audience traffic.
*When logging into your Google Analytics account, these reports can be found in the left-hand column. Select which report you would like to view, and a drop down will appear with options.
Realtime Report:
This is real-time data – activity that is being detected on your site in that very moment. This report shows a map to see the user’s location and what page they currently are on. Businesses can determine which pages are getting the most engagement and how long the user is on the page before they fall off.
When would real time analytics be valuable? Time specific promotions, such as a sale launching at a specific time or event tickets going on sale at noon, are a few examples of when a business would be interested in knowing how many people are actively utilizing their website.
Audience Report:
Breaking down the audience of a website has never been easier! This report is the most detailed within Google Analytics by far. The available audience data is as granular as the demographics, interests, and location. Not to mention, the number of returning vs. new users the site is attracting.
Knowing the audience that is engaging with the business content is the most crucial piece of information when forming a robust and effective marketing plan.
Acquisition Report:
What is driving the website traffic? Organic search, paid search, social media, or referral links? All those questions can be answered within the Google Analytics Acquisition Report. It is broken down into graphs that detail the amount of traffic driven by each advertising element.
Any traffic driven from select advertising campaigns can be found here. However, to utilize this report, pixel codes and UTM strings must be attached to the campaign.
Behavior Report:
Where does the consumer navigate once they land on my site? The behavior report illustrates a map of where your audience visits while on the site. This allows business owners to know which page of their site is stickier than others. As the name suggests, a sticky webpage is a page that attracts visitors to stay longer than other comparable pages.
Trends can be detected if there is a pattern in where consumers fall off the site. That data can then be used to determine other ways to keep consumers interested and engaged before jumping to another site.
Conversions Report:
E-commerce sites will benefit more from this reporting than other websites, as they will be able to stay up to date on product sales, purchase amounts, and billing locations. These conversions can help businesses gauge how marketing efforts are turning into tangible results.
Goal setting is also a feature of this reporting. Though this will vary by business, it can be extremely helpful in keeping your objectives in line.
Understand Your Data with Media Venue
Is your website set-up with Google Analytics? If not, Media Venue is happy to assist you in getting the tools you need to execute your business goals and objectives with helpful data and reporting. For more information, call or email our Digital Marketing Manager, Hannah Moore, at 502-855-4785 or hannah@mediavenue.com.
About Our Blogger
Hannah Moore brings a plethora of digital marketing knowledge to the Media Venue team. Her experience with a variety of digital campaign types and platforms fosters a deep understanding of modern marketing methods and makes her an authority in the digital sphere. She uses complex targeting technology to assist her clients in reaching their key audience.
