Evaluate Content with Google Analytics (Oct 2009)
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The document discusses the usage of Google Analytics as a traffic analysis tool for evaluating content performance, emphasizing metrics like visitor traffic sources, popular content, and bounce rates. It outlines how to access various reports and segments to better understand user interaction and advises against unpublishing content to maintain search engine ranking. Contact information for accessing Google Analytics data is provided as well.
Evaluate Content with Google Analytics (Oct 2009)
- 1. Evaluate Your Content with Google Analytics Ben MacNeill User Interface Designer, eXtension October 22, 2009
- 2. Google Analytics • Traffic analysis tool • Free (Need a Google account. No public view unfortunately*.) • Who (Visitors), What (Content), Where (Traffic) How (Bounces)
- 5. How are your readers finding your content?
- 6. boiiiiiiing How many boiiiiiiiiiiiing boiiiiiiiiiiiiing visit your bo– page and boing boiiiiiiiing leave? boiiiing (and is boiiiiiiiing that good boiiiing or bad?) boiiiiing
- 7. What about my content? • the Public site GA data is aggregated • No way to look at a single category of content (until recently!)
- 8. Top-Level Categories in GA • Available in content reports • Top Content (Most Popular) • Top Landing Pages (Arrivals) • Top Exit Pages (Departures) • Look at all content or limit to specific types (Articles, FAQs, Learning Lessons, Events)
- 9. What Does it Look Like?
- 10. How it works • Actual url: http://www.extension.org/faq/824 • We pass an extra parameter to GA when the visit is recorded • Extra parameter = Top-level categories
- 11. Using the 'Find Page' Filter • Select a report: Content > Top Content • Choose any CoP resource area tag • No spaces. "beef_cattle" not "beef cattle" • View all content: fire_ants • View only FAQs: (faq).*(fire_ants) • View only Articles: (pages).*(fire_ants)
- 12. Let's Go to the Browser
- 13. Analysis: Bounce rate • the percentage of visitors to a page who leave without visiting any other page
- 14. Bounce rate: 41%
- 15. Bounce rate: 91%
- 16. Bounce rate: 41%
- 17. Under-performers? • Don't unpublish a piece of content • Destroys all the Google page rank built up for that page • Generates a "Page not found" for all new visitors coming from search • Damages the reputation of the site • Breaks all links that point to your page
- 18. Content, check. What about my visitors?
- 19. Let's Go to the Browser
- 20. Set up a Category Segment 1 3 4 2 5
- 21. Advanced Segments • A slice of all traffic • Great for Visitor-based reports (Visits, geography, traffic sources) • Page-level metrics will be skewed (Pageviews, Average Pageviews, Time on Site) Because the segment includes all pages the visitor viewed – not just your pages.
- 22. Get Reports by Email
- 24. Getting Access to GA • If you need access to eXtension GA, send me your gmail address or the email associated with your Google user ID. • ben.macneill@extension.org • thanks!