The Basics of Google Analytics for Small Businesses

As a small business owner, Google Analytics is one of the most valuable tools in your arsenal. However, many new companies and startups are underutilizing this platform, designing their marketing strategies with guesswork. This is because Google Analytics involves a bit of a learning curve.

As part of our mission to help brands and businesses to grow, Insights ABM has created this beginner’s guide to Google Analytics. 

Below, we’ll discuss what this platform is and outline some of the key functionalities that you should begin using. Our experts can even assist you in setting up Google Analytics! Let’s get started.

What is Google Analytics?

Google Analytics is data collection and analysis software designed by Google. It is used to measure various performance metrics so that you can assess and improve your website’s performance. 

Google Analytics gathers information from Google, visitors, and your website itself. It then breaks this data down into easy-to-understand graphs and charts.

Google Analytics can add serious value to your marketing efforts. It allows you to create data-backed strategies, measure your ROI, and gain insights into your ideal audience. You can also find flaws in your current advertising practices so that you can optimize your site to provide a better user experience.

Google Analytics Features and Sections

After your Google Analytics account is live, you will initially be taken to the website overview. However, the real value of Google Analytics lies in the various tabs that are located to the left of your screen. 

Some of the tabs that you will see include:

Acquisition

This section addresses everything related to the origin of your web traffic. When you select this section, you can ascertain:

• How long user spend viewing your webpage
• How many different pages users visit
• How many new users have visited your site

The acquisition tab will help you to determine which advertising channels are generating the most traffic for your site. 

For instance, you may find that 75% of your traffic is coming from Google Ads but few users are being drawn in from social media. In this scenario, you may want to consider ramping up your social media marketing efforts so that you can draw in more traffic.

Audience

The data on the audience tab overlaps the information in the acquisition section somewhat. However, it focuses on where your traffic comes from geographically and which devices they are using to view your content.

When you’re viewing data on the audience tab, you can segment the information based on several different kinds of criteria. For example, you can divide traffic by location, demographics, or device type. This information is especially useful for small businesses that provide services to a specific geographic region.

Conversions

When you navigate to the conversion section, you can set up custom goals designed to measure the overall success of your business. This tab also has unique features that are made specifically for online marketing and eCommerce businesses.

Behavior

The behavior section will give you insights into what users are doing once they have arrived on your site. You can find out how each page of your site is performing and how long users are spending on specific kinds of content. 

The behavior section will also let you test your site speed so that you can make sure that it is functioning optimally.

Setting Up Google Analytics

If you need help setting up Google Analytics for your business, Insights ABM can help. We are Dallas’ premier digital marketing firm. We’re known for producing dynamic content. Contact us today and let’s build your brand!