Installing Google Analytics on your website is not enough…
In fact, it’s not even half the battle. If we stick with the military analogy, then installing Google Analytics is like turning on your radar system. It’s a critical step, but it’s not going to do much good unless someone looks at the radar screen!
That brings us to the first key takeaway…
Google Analytics is Worthless Unless You Review the Data
Here’s the thing about Google Analytics…
It does absolutely nothing to help your digital marketing unless you take time to review the data. That sounds obvious, but when was the last time you logged in?
If you’re like many of the businesses I talk to, then you may not even know how to log in! :) Again, that’s like turning on your radar system, but never looking at the screen.
So the second critical step after installing Google Analytics is to consistently review the data. It’s not enough to review it one time per year. At a minimum, you or your team should log in once a month.
But what do you do once you’re logged in?
What Should You Be Looking For?
Like a radar system for the military, Google Analytics can alert you to threats and opportunities. That’s what you should be looking for every time you log in.
So two questions to ask are:
- What is hurting the performance of my digital marketing channels? For example, does traffic from mobile devices have a really high bounce rate and zero conversions? That could indicate a problem with the mobile version of your website.
- Where are your biggest opportunities to generate more leads and sales? For example, which marketing channels are already working and can be scaled up to increase sales?
Of course, knowing this information is not enough and that brings us to the second key takeaway…
Reviewing Data is Worthless Unless You Take Action
The third and final step after reviewing the data is to take action.
If you find that traffic from mobile devices is not converting, then you need to improve your mobile pages. If you find that organic search traffic is driving lead and sales, then you should invest more in search engine optimization.
The exact action to take depends on what you find when reviewing your Google Analytics reports.
As you can see this process is a lot like riding a seesaw. You review the data (go up), then take action (go down), then review the data again (go up), and then take action on that data (go down), and on and on and on…
The faster you ride the seesaw, the better because you’ll see more rapid improvements in the performance of your marketing.
Want to Get More Out Of Google Analytics?
On Thursday, January 21st, we’re hosting a live webinar training called…
“Introduction to Google Analytics“
When you attend this 90-minute online training, you’ll discover how to install Google Analytics (properly) and run critical reports so you can make smarter marketing decisions.