Google Analytics has a ton of depth, and it’s capable of doing just about anything you’d like it to do. There are several critical customisations you can perform in the dashboard that allow you to unlock the potential of this powerful tool, and maximise your chances of boosting your website’s rankings.
1. Connect the Google Search Console to Google Analytics
Years ago, Google did away with keyword search data in Google Analytics and lumped it all in the “not provided” group. This move was made to protect the privacy of searchers, but it caused a headache for webmasters eager to know which of their targeted keywords were working most effectively. However, this looks set to change, as it appears keyword data is coming back. Before you do anything with the keywords, you have to connect the Google Search Console to Google Analytics. You can do this in two steps:
- Create a Google Search Console account and verify that you have access to your website. Once you do this, you can move to step two.
- Open Google Analytics and go to your Property settings. Connect your Google Search Console.
When you connect, all of your relevant reports with keywords will appear under the Acquisition tab. This will begin automatically populating these reports based on your keyword input, but there is a 48 hour delay before the process starts. Once initiated, the Acquisition tab allows you to monitor and track keywords.
2. Create Multiple Views in the Dashboard
Once you collect data in your reports in Google Analytics, you can’t change the reports. With this in mind, wouldn’t have a backup of your data be a good idea? What happens if you mess up creating a report or if you accidentally kill your entire site? To prevent this, you need to create three different views in Google Analytics as a backup. They include:
- Master Copy- This is your main view. You’ll use this view to handle all of your analysis work for your site.
- Test View Copy – Before you add a new and untested setting into your Master copy where it’ll be permanent, add it to the test view. You’ll be able to safely test it without altering the data in your master copy.
- Raw Data Copy- Don’t configure any settings in the raw data copy and leave it totally untouched. It something should go extremely wrong and you lose everything, this will be your raw data backup so you don’t have to start from scratch.
3. Keep Your Goals to One or Two Main Ones
Your site should have one or two main goals that you focus on, and these goals should closely tie into your site’s revenue. Any event that causes sales could represent a good goal to aim at. Other examples include:
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- Affiliate link clicking
- Consultation request
- Demo request
- Free trial signup for your products or services
- New email subscriptions
- Webinar registrations
If your website takes people to the same URL for all of the listed actions, you can have Google Analytics to count it toward your goal. One example of this would be the traditional “thank you” pages you get after you sign up for a product or service.
Google Analytics is an extremely powerful tool straight out of the box. However, small tweaks and customisation options can take it to the next level. Take your time, and use the three tips we provided to start customising Google Analytics, and make it work for you.
