advanced google analytics

Advanced Google Analytics

Jeff WisniewskiDarlene Fichter

CIL2012

Welcome

Login or buddy up!

Eveyone have a GA account?

Your experience with GA?

Interface old and new Filters and advanced segments Goals and funnels Events and alerts Tracking non-HTML files Creating and using filters and advanced

segments Tracking outbound links

SEE THEN DO

Game plan

GA Latest Version

Important

Filters are destructive, advanced segments are not

TIP: Create a backup, non filtered profile of your data for safekeeping

Filters and Advanced Segments

Create Backup Profile

Why might you want to exclude IPs from your analytics? You want report on traffic that excludes devices from within your libraries.

This could include staff devices, publicly accessible devices, or both.

Filter example: IP addresses

1. Click Filter Manager from the Analytics Settings page.

2. Enter a Filter Name for this filter.3. For Filter Type choose Predefined.4. Select Exclude all traffic from an IP

address.5. Enter the IP and click Save.

Exclude Single IP

1. Click Filter Manager from the Analytics Settings page.

2. Enter a Filter Name for this filter.3. For Filter Type choose Custom filter and

choose Exclude.4. Under Filter Field choose Visitor IP

address from the dropdown menu.5. Paste the regular expression code into the

Filter Pattern field.6. Click Save

Filters: Exclude IP Range(s)

Must enter using Regular Expressions

Filters: Exclude IP Ranges

"In computing, regular expression provides a concise and flexible means for "matching"

(specifying and recognizing) strings of numbers or text, such as particular characters, words, or

patterns of characters.“ Wikipedia

Filters: Regular Expressions

^136\.142\.(1\.([2-9]|[1-9][0-9]|1([0-9][0-9])|2([0-4][0-9]|5[0-5]))|(([2-9]|[1-2][0-9]|3[0-4])\.([0-9]|[1-9][0-9]|1([0-9][0-9])|2([0-4][0-9]|5[0-5])))|35\.([0-9]|1[0-2]))$

Google has a form-based tool for generating regular expressions for ranges of IPs

www.google.com/support/googleanalytics/bin /answer.py?answer=55572

http://tinyurl.com/ip-cil

Filters: Regular Expressions

Have multiple ranges?

Rerun the tool with the additional range(s)

Put them all together: separate each expression it generates with the pipe symbol, i.e. |

Paste into your filter

Filters: Exclude IP Range(s)

Advanced segments are non-destructive; they create distinct VIEWS of your data

Advanced Segments

Several predefined advanced segments are available out of the box

Can create custom ones

You can work with up to a total of four segments at a time

Predefined and Custom Segments

Create an advanced segment that compares iPad user behavior versus desktop user behavior

Example: Advanced Segments

Advanced segments apply throughout a profile.

If you keep the segment(s) active, they’re visible in all of the different reports available to you in GA.

Reports: Advanced Segments

View more or less content, Use the different or same keywords to find

your site, Stay on your site longer duration or not

than other visitors and so on.

iPad Users: What do they do?

1. Define segment2. Create statement3. Combine statements

Advanced Segments How To

Once you’re in your website’s profile, go to:

Standard Reporting tab > Advanced Segments >

New Custom Segment for Desktop

Create an Advanced Segments

Create second advanced segment Save Click to activate both View reports

Repeat Process for iPad

A “goal” is the page which a visitor reaches once they have completed a desired action, such as a registration or download.

A “funnel” is the pages they need to visit on the way to a goal. Can include up to 10.

EXAMPLE: Library legislative history course sign up

Goals and Funnels

Computers in Libraries 2012

1. Name the goal.2. Choose whether or you want the goal to

be active (on) now3. Choose a type of goal.

Most library scenario goals will probably fall under the “URL Destination” type, meaning the goal is to get the user to a specific place, in this case the “thank you for registering” page.

Setting up Goals and Funnels

Computers in Libraries 2012

4. Enter the URL for the goal page5. Under “Goal Funnel” click yes6. On the following page add the URL(s) of

the page(s) along the path a user would take to get from the homepage all the way through to the thank you page.

More Steps

Computers in Libraries 2012

Exact match has to be EXACTLY the same as the URL….even leading or trailing spaces will cause it to fail

*TIP

Computers in Libraries 2012

Computers in Libraries 2012

Goals Screenshots

Computers in Libraries 2012

Computers in Libraries 2012

Computers in Libraries 2012

Computers in Libraries 2012

Use event tracking to track: Any Flash-driven element: a Flash

website or movie player Embedded AJAX page elements Page gadgets File downloads

Tracking Non HTML files

Two ways:

Virtual pageviewartificially inflates pageview numbers

Event tracking

Tracking Non HTML files

Five components: Categories Actions Labels Values Implicit count

Category and Action: Events

Category: A category is the root level of Event Tracking Some sample categories are "Videos" and ”PDFs".

Action: An action is a descriptor for a particular event.

Event tracking

Label: A label is an optional

Value: A value is a numerical variable that you can assign to any event that you've assigned to a category.

Implicit Count: The implicit count is a count of the number of interactions with an event category.

Label, Value, Count: : Events

<a href="#"

onClick="_gaq.push(['_trackEvent',

'Guides', 'Download', 'Intro to Genealogy

Research']);”>Download the guide</a>

Category = Guides

Action = Download

Label = Intro to Genealogy Research

Event Tracking Code

Appear under Content > Events

Event Reports

1. Insert some code into the <head> of the page(s) on which you want to track outbound links:

<script type="text/javascript"> function recordOutboundLink(link, category, action) { _gat._getTrackerByName()._trackEvent(category, action); setTimeout('document.location = "' + link.href + '"', 100); }</script>

Tracking Outbound Links

Computers in Libraries 2012

2. Tag the specific link(s) you want to track so that the activity will be recorded in GA using a javascript onClick statement:

your link

<a href="http://www.example.com"

onClick="recordOutboundLink(this, 'Outbound Links', 'example.com');return false;">

the category the link label

Tracking outbound links

Computers in Libraries 2012

Google calls these Intelligence

Alerts

Any referrals from a local news site that recently wrote about your library?

A class confirmation page has been generated X times, class nearly full

Page views of your 404 page go up by X %...what’s wrong?

Alerts Use Case Examples

Admin > Profiles >

Assets > Custom Alerts >

Create New Alert

Alerts

Alert name

Apply to: Alerts can be cross profile if you choose

Period: Frequency at which the alert can be generated (Day, Week, Month).

Send me an email?

Alerts How To

Set up your mobile phone

Alert Conditions

Alert me when

Click Create Alert

Alerts: Mobile Phone

Traffic > Search > Overview >

Keyword > Cloud

Word Cloud (bonus!)

Improve the speed, improve the outcomes

Site Speed (bonus)

Audience > Visitor Flow (bonus)

Visitor Flow Visualization

Questions? Comments?

Thank you!