When it comes to creating the best SEO strategy, you can’t afford to leave anything to chance. This is why SEO experts rely so heavily on data. Data can help you to make decisions that are more informed.
The good news is that this data is relatively easy to find, especially if you’re signed up for Google Analytics. This tool offers a huge amount of detailed information about your website. But admittedly, it can be challenging to navigate.
If you’re interested in getting an overall view of your site, there are a few key factors that you should be on the lookout for. Let’s talk about where on your Google Analytics report you can find the most important metrics. We will also discuss how you can customise these reports and tailor them to your specific needs.
1. Organic search
Organic search can be found by selecting ‘Acquisition’ and then ‘Overview.’ This option will give you a general idea of the level of traffic that all of your primary channels are receiving. More specifically, it gives you a summary of your visitors’ behaviour. For instance, which organic landing pages are the most captivated by? What pages are your visitors exiting from?
Another important metric you’ll find is your bounce rate. How long does it take before the visitors leave your site? By studying your bounce rate, you can get a better idea of which pages are causing you the most trouble and devise a plan on how to fix it. Perhaps it’s just a matter of UX or UI. Or maybe you need to consider targeting a new audience.
The best thing about Google Analytics is that it will allow you to view only your organic traffic. Simply select ‘Add Segment’ and then tick the box that shows organic traffic. You could either remove the ‘All Users’ or leave it so that you can make comparisons. An organic search may seem like an obvious metric, but it’s definitely an excellent place to begin.
2. Landing page and page titles
Landing page can be found by selecting ‘Behavior,’ ‘Site Content,’ and then ‘Landing Pages.’ From there you can find page titles by selecting ‘Add secondary dimension’ and then ‘Page Titles.’ These options will show you which of your pages are performing the best when it comes to organic search. The page title shows you which keywords these pages have been optimised for, giving you an idea of which search phrases your visitors are using. Not only that, but you can find out which phrases have the best performance in terms of bounce rate and traffic.
The landing page and page title features are ideal because in some cases, the URL of the search engine will feature HTTPS or the user’s account may be protected by data privacy policies. In this case, the keyword section will return a ‘not provided” result in Google Analytics organic reports. These features are a great alternative. They give you the ability to identify the pages that are not performing well and figure out whether or not you should refine your keywords or revamp your content.
3. Conversion goals
Conversion goal can be found by selecting ‘Conversion,’ ‘Goals,’ and then ‘Overview.’ Sure, you may have a lot of traffic, but if it’s not converting you’re not working efficiently. The conversion goals option allows you to track your conversions and test the quality of your organic traffic. And you can track them on two levels.
Filter your goals in terms of traffic so that you can get a better understanding of what percentage of your site’s conversions are a result of organic traffic. You can also take it a step further by adding a monetary value to the conversions so that you can identify the value your SEO is offering to your business. Whether you are interested in rankings or revenue, this is valuable data.
4. Assisted conversions
Assisted conversions can be found by selecting ‘Conversion,’ ‘Multi-Channel Funnels,’ and then ‘Assisted Conversions.’ Conversions goals are extremely useful, but they don’t really offer an in-depth look at conversion. Assisted conversions can tell you if someone initially found your site through Google and didn’t convert, only to later return and convert after they type in your URL directly.
Most visitors are not going to convert on their first visit. This is especially the case if they are at the top of your sales funnel. In most instance, when they have decided to purchase, they will visit your website directly or go through your social media channel. Assisted conversions can help you identify which channel brought them back to your site. In this way, your data is more accurate.
Just make sure that you pay close attention to surges in your organic traffic. For example, if there is a drop in your organic assisted conversions but your organic traffic is remaining consistent, this may be a sign that your leads are not qualified. This means that changes need to be made.
5. Site speed
Site speed can be found by selecting ‘Behaviour,’ ‘Site Speed,’ and then ‘Overview.’ Site speed is one of the most important ranking factors to date. And there is no shortage of tools that can let you know how quickly your page loads, such as Pingdom, Google Page Insights, and GTmetrix. However, only Google Analytics will tell you the speed of your site, page by page. In many cases, you’ll notice that there is a relationship between slow pages and exit pages.
6. Site search
Site search can be found by selecting ‘Behaviour,’ ‘Site Speed,’ and then ‘Search Terms.’ This feature is ideal for websites that have a search function. Not only does it let you know where the user experience is weak, but it can also show you if your visitors are having a hard time finding a certain page. In this case, you could make changes to your navigation. Site search also gives you the ability to identify search terms or keywords that you may need to create new pages for if they don’t already exist.
7. Mobile
Mobile can be found by selecting ‘Audience,’ ‘Mobile,’ and then ‘Overview.’ One of the best ways to find out if you have optimisation issues is to compare the traffic of your mobile users to that of your table and desktop. Let’s say that your bounce rate for mobile sessions is much higher than your desktop sessions. This would mean that you need to consider performing a mobile audit.
You should also take into account the conversion rate of different devices, as this will let you know which device is the most valuable to your brand. Most web traffic will come from mobile, although there are certain industries that favour other devices. This is the case with B2B services that tend to rely more heavily on their desktop.
8. Customise your dashboard
You can customise your dashboard by selecting ‘Customisation,’ and then ‘Dashboard.’
Tailor your dashboard so that it shows information in a way that is easily digestible. Use charts, line graphs, and tables so that you can better visualise the data in one quick view. Create your dashboard with the use of a dashboard.
As you can see, Google Analytics Metrics can be extremely useful. This is especially the case if you know which metrics to use. If you want to get the most out of your digital marketing strategy, then you will determine your goals and then use the metrics that help you achieve them.
