4 tips for applying Google Analytics in your marketing strategy

1. Understand the basics of Google Analytics

Before you dive in, it is important to understand how Google Analytics works and what the key terms and features mean. For many marketers, Google Analytics' interface can be overwhelming, but a good basic understanding will help you work with purpose.

• Users and sessions: These are the core statistics of Google Analytics. Users are the unique visitors to your website, while sessions represent total visits. One user can have multiple sessions.
• Bounce rate: This percentage indicates how many visitors leave your website without further interaction. A high bounce rate can indicate irrelevant content or a poor user experience.
• Conversions: A conversion is a desired action a visitor takes, such as a purchase, sign-up or download. Make sure you set these goals correctly within Google Analytics to measure them.

2. Set targets to measure performance

One of the most powerful features of Google Analytics is the ability to set goals. Goals give you insight into how well your website is performing in relation to your business and marketing goals.

To set goals, first determine which actions on your website are important. These could be, for example, completing a contact form, completing a purchase or downloading an e-book. You can then configure these actions as "goals" in Google Analytics.

For example, suppose you run an e-commerce business. You want to know how many visitors actually make a purchase. By setting an "order completed" page as a target, you can see exactly how many people successfully complete the purchase process.

When setting targets, make sure you use the right settings, such as URL destinations, session duration or number of pages visited.

3. Make use of customised reports

Google Analytics offers a wide range of standard reports, but often you want specific insights to suit your unique marketing needs. Custom reports are a powerful way to filter and present data in a way that is most relevant to you.

With custom reports, you can, for example:

• Analyse user behaviour from specific marketing campaigns.
• Track the performance of individual pages, including conversion rates.
• Measure the impact of certain traffic sources (such as social media or email campaigns) on your website.

An example: suppose you want to know how visitors from a specific newsletter are performing. With a custom report, you can see how many sessions this source generates, how much time visitors spend on the site and which goals they complete.

4. Use segments for detailed insights

Segments in Google Analytics help you break down your data into specific groups of visitors, so you can better understand how different audiences behave. By applying segments, you can discover trends and patterns that would otherwise remain hidden in the overall data.

Consider segments such as:

• New versus returning visitors: This provides insight into how your website performs for new leads compared to existing customers.
• Mobile versus desktop traffic: Allows you to optimise the user experience on different devices.
• Geographical locations: Analyse the behaviour of visitors from specific regions or countries.

An example: if you run an international campaign, you might want to know whether visitors from different countries respond differently to your content. By setting up segments by country, you can identify variations in bounce rates, conversions and session duration and respond accordingly.

Google Analytics offers predefined segments, but you can also create your own to do even more targeted analysis.

Conclusion

Google Analytics is a powerful tool for marketers looking to make data-driven decisions. By understanding the basics, setting goals, using custom reports and applying segments, you can gain in-depth insights that will help you make your marketing strategy optimise.

Want to learn more about how to use Google Analytics effectively? Get in touch on with Funkhaus for expert advice and guidance. Together, we will ensure that your data is not only informative, but also contributes directly to your success.