optimize your wordpress site with web analytics and testing
Post on 14-Sep-2014
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DESCRIPTION
Slides from WordCamp Boston 2013 session on site optimization using Google Analytics, SEO, A/B and multivariate testing, and heatmapping. Examines strategy. Recommends specific pluginsTRANSCRIPT
Optimize Your WordPress Site with Analytics &
TestingChristina Inge
EdTripsWordCamp Boston 2013
What Is Optimization?
• Making sure your site meets business goals• With data• Real, usable data• and the right tools
You Can Optimize for (Just About) Anything:
• Getting more visitors • Making your site easier to navigate• Getting more people to buy/donate/sign up• More blog posts, community posts, social engagement• Scaring people away
Develop Goals
• Improve usability• Increase conversions• Grow (the right kind of) traffic
Create KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)
• What #’s let us know we’re succeeding?• Examples might include:
• Visitor metrics• Type of visit• Number of actions• Source of traffic
Familiarize Yourself with Common Terms
Conversion
• Any action you want people to take on the site: buy, download, register
Visits • Raw number of views of any page
Unique Visitors
• Separate IP addresses coming to site
Referals • Links sending traffic to your site
Find the Right Tool for What You Need
Google Analytics
• Most people skim the surface of the most powerful optimization tool.
• Don’t just track visit volume.• Do track the details.• Five things your GA can
answer:
Does a mention in a niche trade pub do us more
good than a short write-up in
the Boston Globe?
Do people who visit at night buy more often than
those in the daytime?
What is the best day – really- to
send out an email, based on
what people buy?
Did that paid search campaign coupled with a
whitepaper lead to more sales?
Should we spend time on
Google+?
GA Plugins• Just needs to be a basic part
of every site• Choose the lightest, smallest• You don’t need to access GA
from within WP or other elaborate add-ins
• Often part of other optimization plugins, so check if you really need a separate one
SEO Plugins: A Must When You Test
• More than just Google Search rankings
• Allow you to tailor meta data to what is drawing the right traffic, optimizing your site
• SEO is core to optimization-attracting traffic, structuring the site
Testing SEO Meta Data Works!
Meta Description Visits ConversionsEdTrips web platform for educational travel
8,000 240
EdTrips allows you to manage your educational trips with a simple online platform
6,000 540
EdTrips-Manage Educational Trips the Easy Way, with Payment Collection, Your Own Website, and More
7,000 900
Using an SEO Tool in WordPress
• Configuration gets a lot done-fast
• Sets up to make your job easier, or enable client self-service
Creating a Template For Basic SEO
• Set up a standard process for <title>, <meta name=“description” > and other content for optimized SEO
• Creates an optimized title automatically if properly configured
Optimize Each Page
Testing• You need to test for true
optimization• Hunches, what you think works—
the data is what really tells the story
• Testing is so easy, there’s no reason not to do it
• Involves the design team, the client• Really
What to Test
Visuals Text Calls to action Layouts
Entire themes if your site is new
How to Test
Gather your data-observe
Develop a hypothesis-based on your data
Create variation(s) that are still on-brand, consistent
Give it more time than you think
Go back and test again
Nelio A/B Testing Plugin
WordPress Landing Pages
SES Theme Split Test
Case Study: Using Analytics to Find the Best PR Sources
EdTrips
EdTrips
• Online platform for organizing learning trips• Target audiences include teachers, scouts, adult ed, and
venues• WP custom theme• Working with only two free tools in this example:
The Goal
• Find the best sources of inbound traffic
• Which websites are leading visitors to stay?
• What referrals lead to conversions—in this case, checking out the app?
Referral Sources Alone are
Really Useful
Referrals with Goal Completions are Even Better
One View Helps You Learn
• Where to pitch• What topics interest real, buying
customers• Where to advertise• What to advertise• What your customers really want• And it’s not this screen
Setting Up Goals-A Real-World “Test”
Google Analytics Channels
Implementing Testing and Analytics
• It’s affordable and takes less time than you think• Avoid “plugin overload”: you only need a few• Focus on immediately actionable data• Test only when you already have data• Sometimes, you only need analytics to optimize, sometimes
you need both testing and analytics—run lean• Have fun!
Thank You!
• Christina Inge, VP of Marketing EdTrips, Adjunct Instructor, BU CDIA
• [email protected]• Marketingforgrowth.wordpress.com