This document provides an overview of key metrics and concepts in Google Analytics for interpreting website analytics data. It discusses examining trends over time, combining quantitative analytics data with qualitative user research, filtering and segmenting data, and understanding specific metrics like visits, pageviews, bounce rate, and time on site. The document also covers visualizing data through site overlays and finding resources for hands-on Google Analytics training.

1. Painting by Numbers:Google Analytics

2. So What? Ask yourself “so what” 3 times. What can you do with this data? If you can’t do anything, it’s not useful.

3. Look for Trends Numbers in a vacuum do not mean much. Can you compare it to something? Can you look at the data over time? 42

4. Don’t Forget Qualitative Data! Must know visitors and pages to interpret analytics data (quantitative). Use surveys, focus groups, or informal chats with visitors to find out about how they use the site (qualitative).

5. Filter & Segment Make sense of the data by looking at a subset: your subject library or department, new visitors, iPhone users, etc. Combine to create advanced segments: new visitors with iPhones, etc.

6. What Do All These Numbers Mean? Visits %New Visits Pageviews Pages/Visit Bounce Rate Avg. Time on Site Traffic Sources Content 1.02 121,585 99.05% 123,747 99.69% 00:00:02

7. Google Analytics Dashboard

8. Google Analytics Dashboard

9. Visits & % New Visits Visits Measured by cookies. From the time a site is accessed until browser is closed or user is inactive for 30 minutes. % New Visits Measured by cookies. What about visitors who don’t allow cookies or remove them?

10. Visits & % New Visits

11. Visits & % New Visits

12. Pageviews & Pages/Visit Pageviews An instance of a page being loaded by a browser. Relies on changing URL. Pages/Visit Average number of pages accessed in a visit. “Visit” as defined previously. Activity on rich media (Flash, etc.) sites will not show up as pageviews without special code.

13. Pageviews & Pages/Visit

14. Pageviews & Pages/Visit

16. Combine Bounce Rate with Keywords or Avg. Time on Site to find out more.

17. Prioritize bounce rate by most popular landing page.

19. Bounce Rate

20. Avg. Time on Site Calculated by timestamps for each page. No way to tell how much time was spent on last page. Did they find what they want or just give up? What can you really do with this information?

21. Avg. Time on Site

22. Avg. Time on Site

25. Traffic Sources

26. Content Content why people come to your site & what they are looking for Try viewing as Content by Title Landing Pages core entry points for visitors (not just your home page) Try sorting Top Content or Landing Pages on Unique Pageviews, Bounce Rate, Etc.

27. Content

28. Content

29. Site Overlay Visual representation of what links are being visited on site Puts the data in the context of the site. Use it to decide which links can or should be changed.

31. Hands-On Training Sessions

32. Google Analytics Resources Kyle James’ Presenations Avanish Kaushik's Blog & Web Analytics an Hour a Day Shelby Thayer's Blog Web Analytics Association Google Analytics Blog Google Analytics Help: Getting Started Analytics IQ Analytics Help Forum ITS Technology Training Community https://wikispaces.psu.edu/display/training/Google+Analytics+Training and click Google Analytics Resources.

33. Questions