9 Awesome Things You Can Do With Google Analytics

9 Awesome Things You Can Do With Google Analytics 

Google Analytics  took the best features of their analytics program and made it even easier to use with new organization and visualization features. Here are nine awesome things you can do with Google Analytics 5 that will help you get the most out of your analytics information and use it to improve your website’s content, conversions, and user experience.

Below we’ve compiled everything you need to know to get started with Analytics in general, and specifically with Version 5. (This is a beginner’s guide, aimed at users who may or may not be familiar with Analytics, and doesn’t cover some of the more in-depth features.)

A Brief History of Analytics

Google Analytics was originally developed from the Urchin on Demand software that Google acquired in the spring of 2005 (Urchin is still developed and available through value-added resellers, and is currently at version 7). The first Google-branded version was released in November 2005. In 2006, further ideas from Measure Map (developed by Adaptive Path) were integrated into Analytics when Google acquired them.

Early on, Analytics was available by invitation only, as demand for the product was very high. It wasn’t fully available to all users until nearly a year after its initial release (August 2006).

Why Use Analytics?

Analytics is a powerful application for tracking traffic patterns on your website. The fact that it’s an entirely free program, and integrates with other Google programs, like AdSense and AdWords, only makes it that much more valuable.

Considering most people already use at least some Google products, it makes sense to use Analytics, because it is such a powerful, yet easy-to-use, product.

What’s New in Analytics 5?

One of the biggest new features in Analytics 5 is the addition of custom dashboards. You can create custom dashboards for your sites that include whatever metrics you’re interested in. Beyond that, you can even choose how the information is displayed (table, chart, etc.).

Some beta features in Analytics 4 have become primary features in Analytics 5, including Intelligence. Another nice addition is the JavaScript interface, which makes Analytics feel like a much smoother, more professional application. Overall, the biggest changes are in the interface layout, rather than the functionality of the program.

There are also some features that have been removed from 5, including breadcrumb navigation within reports and links to external referring sites (which adds extra steps when you want to see exactly what page referred traffic to your site). The percentage change in metrics that was displayed in the chart when comparing date ranges is also missing (though the data is shown in the table below the chart). Whether these features will be added in future revisions or not remains to be seen. Since none of these affect the functionality of Analytics, they’re more of an annoyance than a real problem.

The Basic Interface

When you access the report for your site, you’ll first be brought to the Visitors Overview screen. This differs from the last version of Analytics, where you were first brought to a general overview screen that also showed information about traffic sources and content. At the top of the report, you’ll see a chart showing your traffic patterns for the past month. You can also use the dropdown to change the date this graph and the rest of your reports show (or you can choose to compare two date ranges).