In my series on website metrics, today I want to talk about website activity. The tool I like to use to measure website activity is Google Analytics. By installing a small snippet of code on your website you can track visitor traffic. Although you will only be able to see aggregate information, the data can be used to revise your website to generate strong returns.
I will typically monitor where traffic comes from (paid versus organic), the keywords used in search engine search queries that drive traffic to a website, the location including country and state for traffic, and even popular pages. In the new version of Google Analytics you can even monitor visitor traffic in real time on your website. I particularly like the page funnel views that show navigation paths from and to popular pages.
I feel that by analyzing your website traffic you can identify whether your website is working as a lead generation engine for you. By carefully monitoring your bounce rate, page traffic, and keywords and then revising your website to cater to your desired visitor you can improve your reader’s online experience plus drive sales.
If you are not using Google Analytics and believe it or not there are still some websites out there with no analytics tracking installed, it is time to quickly implement the code. Accounts and tracking are free.