It seems like analytics become a bigger part of how people make decisions every day. Their use has never been more present in sports, so why should business be any different?

Companies are realizing that in order to optimize their outreach efforts, they need to be able to use reliable data that tells them how to best allocate their capital. That’s where Google Analytics comes in. But before the service can be used to your advantage, you have to understand exactly what it is and how it functions.

So, What is It?

Simply put, Google Analytics is a web analytics service that helps you track and report website traffic. This information gives you a better understanding of how visitors find and interact with your website. It can also help you manage your digital marketing decisions. It’s also free, so it won’t take up all of your budget. Google Analytics can help your website boost its performance better than any other online tool out there.

Sounds Great, How Does it Work?

Good question. Essentially, Google Analytics uses a tracking code to collect data about who’s coming to your website, where they’re coming from, how long they’re staying, what they’re looking at, and more. Setting up Google Analytics on your site is easy, and something that we can help you with.

Google Analytics uses a cookie placed in the user’s browser to track their visit to your website. This interaction is recorded, and a staggering amount of information can be gathered from it. You don’t just learn surface level information about the user, you know exactly where they accessed your site from and what device they used to get there. Once they’re there, you can track the journey they take through your site, including what pages they went to and how long they were on each one. It’s vital information that will help you better understand what users want from you.

Google Analytics allows you to compare data from previous periods, such as comparing how many visitors you had in April of 2019 versus how many you had in the same month of 2018. It also shows you what specific channels users reached you through, whether that be organic search (SEO), paid search (PPC), or social media. Want to know how many users are actually following through with what you want them to do on your site and creating a conversion? Google Analytics has you covered.

Seems Pretty Important, Huh?

Absolutely. If your business isn’t taking advantage of all that Google Analytics has to offer, you’re not only passing up an opportunity to learn more about potential customers and clients, you’re also letting your competition get ahead. Being able to use this information to your advantage maximizes the performance of your website and provides the strongest ROI. Discover how effective your online strategies are and whether or not you provide a satisfying user experience so you can build on what’s working or correct what isn’t.

What’s the Catch?

There is no catch. Google Analytics is free, but if you want to take things up a notch there is a Google Analytics 360 option. This option is recommended for larger corporations or companies that feel like they’re reaching the limit of what they can do with the standard Google Analytics service.

There’s no such thing as the perfect platform. Google Analytics relies on JavaScript code and cookies to track information. Unfortunately, not all browsers are compatible with JavaScript, and cookies can be blocked by web browsers and ad blockers.

SPARKS! has you covered! For more information about how we can make Google Analytics work for you, please contact SPARKS! Marketing Communications at 866-500-8088 or visit https://www.onsparks.com/.

Check back soon for part 2 of our series on how Google Analytics can help take your website to the next level.