4 Google Analytics Metrics Small Businesses Should Track
You did it! Your new website has been live for a few months, you have a paid ad campaign running, a consistent social media strategy in place, and a whole lot of data from Google Analytics at your fingertips.
To most people, diving into Google Analytics can be a completely overwhelming experience. There's so much data to look at, from demographics and conversions to a breakdown of behavior flows. Unfortunately, not everyone has the time to look through and understand all of that information. So, what are the key metrics you should be looking at to help improve your small business' digital marketing efforts?
Here the Triton Commerce marketing experts discuss the 4 Google Analytics metrics all small businesses should track
4 Essential Google Analytics Metrics to Track
When it comes to evaluating your Google Analytics metrics, there are four main areas you should be checking on a regular basis:
- Traffic Source
- Time on Site
- New & Returning Visitors
- Conversion Rates
1. Traffic Source
Analyzing where your traffic comes from is instrumental in allocating your digital marketing efforts. If you're getting a lot of traffic from Social Media Marketing or Paid Ads, but organic search traffic is lacking, it might mean you need to adjust and focus on your SEO strategy. Looking at your traffic sources every month is a great way to better understand your audience and what areas your marketing is successful in; as well as those that are offering an opportunity for improvement.
2. Time on Site
Getting leads to your site is the first hurdle. The second is figuring out whether or not your website engages those leads to the point that they convert into potential customers and sales. Reviewing the average time spent on site is a great way to get a feel for whether or not people find your website helpful. Generally, two to three minutes is an excellent goal for the average site duration.
3. New & Returning Visitors
There are a lot of factors that may affect metrics of new and returning visitors, including seasonality to how often your business typically engages with returning customers. However, keeping track of the percentage of new visitors to your website is great for gauging your business' organic online growth. If your inbound marketing and SEO strategy is doing what it should, you should see a consistent increase in the percentage of new visitors month after month.
4. Conversion Rates
When you initially set up your Google Analytics account, one of the first things you'll want to do is set up conversion tracking. Generally, a conversion is any time an end user on your website performs a desired action through a call-to-action button.
For example, a phone call, a filled out contact form, or receiving someone's email address might be considered conversions, all of which you can track in Google Analytics. Regularly evaluating your conversions will help you understand how well your site generates leads. Although, keep in mind that a deeper analysis may be necessary to strategize cultivating more leads.
Triton Commerce: Your Google Analytics Experts
While these four Google Analytics metrics are a great place to start when evaluating your site's performance, there are still several other variables to consider. Our digital marketing experts keep track of your website's performance and continuously instill the best practices to develop websites that succeed.
f you're interested in learning more about how Google Analytics and a comprehensive digital marketing strategy can improve your small business's online presence, give us a call at 651.321.0578 or contact us online.