Google Analytics is one of the most popular free tools you can add to your website to track visitor behavior. It pulls real time data about how people entered your website, how long they stuck around, what they clicked, how far they scrolled, and dozens of other activities.

If you’re feeling awkward about watching your customers’ activity on your site, just remember, an estimated 28 million websites use Google Analytics already, so you’re not the first. When you’re running a marketing campaign to drive visitors to your site, watching Google Analytics can tell you exactly how user-centric your content is—and how you can help them better.

Google Analytics shows you what works and when you should pivot.
How many daily visitors do you have scrolling through your site on an average day? It’s a good idea to keep track of this number so you can watch for abnormalities. A major drop? Your website might have been down for the day—and you better get that checked out. A spike? Cha-ching, sounds like your marketing strategy is doing its job!

Take note of pages that have especially high traffic. If there’s an eye-catching graphic, in-depth article, or engaging video, it might be worth repeating that strategy across your site.

Watch for hit and miss pages.
Your site’s bounce rate is another key data point to track. Bounces refer to how many people visit your website and hang around for a second or two. But like a party guest who leaves before the cake, they exit your site without clicking any further.

A high rate of one-hit visitors could mean your webpage loads too slowly, isn’t formatted right for their device, or is….bland. (Don’t shoot the messenger!) If you see a lower-than-average bounce rate, that means your content is engaging and answers their questions. Pat yourself on the back and keep up what you’re doing!

Are you the answer to everyone’s question?
Google Analytics can also tell you how many of your visitors are coming from a Google search. It also shows how many other websites your visitors passed up before they clicked on yours. (If only dating could be this transparent, right?). If search engine visitors account for a large segment of your daily hits, that means your search engine optimization (SEO) strategy is working. If it’s fairly low, you might need to adjust your content and keywords.

Okay, so you’re feeling the Google Analytics FOMO. What’s next?
You don’t have to be an IT guru to set up Google Analytics. Google offers a comprehensive set-up guide you can follow if you run your own website. Once the tracking code is set up, you can start tracking your site visitors right away. Get ready to get busy!

Still not sure what to do with all these numbers? Save time and give us a call. Making your hometown brand stand out, that’s what we’re here for. Let’s Chat.