What measurements to consider when it comes to Google Analytics and your blog

I would first like mention that I ran into some hiccups in my first couple weeks using Google Analytics. After my first time installing the tracking code, it took over 12 hours before I started receiving data. The few times I logged back in to check my data, Google Analytics reported that the “tracking code was not installed.” Each time, I reinstalled the code and the site began receiving data again. So my data has undoubtedly been underreported.  For the time being the problem is resolved, and although it has been a minor source of frustration, it is a learning process!

Below I will list a few measurements that caught my eye when tracking the progress of my personal blog (the one you are reading right now)  

In these early stages of my blog, promotion has been on the light side. I’ve sent out a few emails to friends and family notifying them of them of the blog, and I’ve posted a couple links on social media. As you might imagine, my number of unique visitors thus far is quite low. So at this point, this measurement is a signal of my lack of promotional support if anything. So, what I thought would be a more reliable indicator of site success in these early stages is average visit duration.

Average visit duration can answer a few very important questions. First, am I reaching out to the right audience in terms of my promotional activities? In other words, when I tell people to check out my blog, do they end up liking it? Or maybe you have the right audience but your content is not up to par. If your content is not holding the attention of your audience then average visit duration will decrease drastically.

However, my average visit duration was 00:00:00, which I was not particularly enthused about until I started doing some research on the measurement. According to experts, for Google Analytics to accurately capture average visit duration, it needs to record at least two timestamps. One time stamp is recorded at the beginning of the visit and the next time stamp is recorded when the user clicks to another page. (Wedderburn, 2013) So, theoretically, some of my users visit times could have been counted as zero because they only viewed one page. Even if they spent 5 minutes reading a post and never clicked to another page,  this is counted as a bounce and recorded as zero on average visit duration.

This also explains why my bounce rate was 100%. If you look at how a lot of blogs are organized, a reader could read every post of your blog and still spend their entire visit on only one page. This is because all the posts appear on one page, you simply scroll down.

So how do we start getting better data in terms of average visit duration? My first thought is to organize your blog in a more interactive fashion that encourages users click on another page. Whether it means limiting your homepage to one post with other posts as links on the sidebar, or creating email subscription and comment pages, it will encourage more page views and start giving you more accurate data regarding average visit duration.

Source/Medium

I found the source/medium function to be a great resource to track the origin of your web traffic. Viewing your traffic in this way allows you to see what channels are responsible for the visits to your site. Are they coming from sites on which you are promoting your blog? Or are they coming from a source that is otherwise unknown to you? In my case, the source/medium measurement revealed that promotion via social media accounted for the majority of traffic to my blog. This is considered referral traffic.

Traffic sources can be broken down into three major traffic categories; search, referral, and direct. Search traffic comes from search engines. Refferal traffic is caused when someone clicks on a link to your site. Direct Traffic comes from individuals entering your URL directly. (Using google analytics, 2013)  Google Analytics will indicate in a percentage how much each source is responsible for site traffic.

Again, it comes down to the principle of accountability. Am I putting my time and resources in the right place? Are my marketing activities paying off? Source information is extremely valuable in answering these questions.

Social Reports

As I was looking into traffic sources I also came across the social report function. Social reports allow you to determine how many people are finding your blog via social media sites. Looking at social reports can give you valuable information on the effect of specific campaigns executed through social media networks.

I was drawn to this metric because social media can seem like a challenge when it comes to measuring ROI. Devoting time and money to these “gated communities” can sometimes seem like a toss up. To some degree, with Social Reports Google has addressed this issue. Giving us real time data regarding the contribution of social networks to our blog sites, shedding a little more light on the social media world.

Keywords

Another area of Google Analytics that I think is extremely valuable in the development of my blog is the keyword function. Although I haven’t received any specific keyword data at this time, I am closely monitoring the report. Once I start receiving organic keywords that were searched to arrive at my blog, I will start getting a better idea of the issues that people want to read about. How can I give the people what they are they looking for? The more closely my content caters to these keywords the higher my blog will appear on search engine results. 

The fact that I am a beginner to web analytics and SEO, and that it is a complex and evolving topic, the keywords function becomes a helpful resource. Are their innovations and schools of thought that are new to me? Is my terminology and phrasing on point? Studying keywords and making sure you are seeing results via Google Analytics is a great way to stay up to date and informed on your topic.

Wedderburn, J. (2013). Meaning of 00:00:00 visit duration. Retrieved 25 November 2013 from http://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/analytics/GLFvjrucTME

Side Income Blogging. (2013). Using google analytics on your your blog: Traffic sources. Retreived 25 November 2013 from http://sideincomeblogging.com/analytics-for-your-blog-traffic-sources/

Google vs. Facebook: Who claims pole position in online ads?

Google Adwords and Facebook Ads are two easy to use online advertising platforms that have been made available to individuals and businesses. Both platforms have distinct advantages and disadvantages, which makes the task of deciding on a provider that much more difficult. Below I will outline a few important advantages of each platform.

Background

•  In 2012 it was reported that Google had a global advertising reach of just over 2 billion users, while Facebook has a reach of 900 million.
•  The average unique visitor spends about 100 minutes on Google per month, and over 400 minutes per month of Facebook.
• Google boasts a 2% clickthrough rate while Facebook’s is only .05%.
•  Google charges an average of $1.60 per impression, while Faceboo charges $.15.
• Google Adwords produces $2 in revenue for advertisers for every dollar spent while Facebook produces $3 for every dollar spent. (E-telligence, 2013)

Google Adwords

Consumer Intent

This is one of the more obvious concerns for advertisers. While consumers are on Google, they are actively searching for something. Whether it is a product, service, or location, Google users have the intention of finding what it is they are looking for. The argument here is that Google users are farther down in the sales funnel, and thus more likely to click on an ad and make a purchase.

Keywords

In Facebook ads you enter phrases that match with interests listed on a profile page. However, in Google Adwords, you choose likely combinations of keywords that will be entered into the Google search engine. These are specific products and services that are being actively sought out by consumers. To many, this seems like an easier sell than the Facebook approach. And contrary to typical SEO, where listings can get lost in secondary pages, Adwords can guarantee that your ad will appear. (Barton, 2012)

Maintenance

In Google Adwords, the user has the ability to continuously manipulate ad copy as you monitor the progress of your campaign.

Facebook Adwords

Demographics

One of the biggest advantages of Facebook ads is the ability to better target your audience on the basis of demographics, psychographics and geographics. You can target specific age groups, or key in on interests and lifestyles (Carter, 2010). By carefully examining ad results you can get to know your audience in very valuable ways.

Liking

With Facebook Ads, you get the added bonus of “likes.” Likes basically equate to extra exposure for your page. If someone happens to like your page through your advertisement then that will be displayed via the newsfeed for all of the liker’s friends to see.

Detail

In Facebook Ads you have the luxury of more room for ad copy, and the opportunity to incorporate a picture into your advertisement This gives you a little more bang for your buck when it comes to ad presentation.

Due to its low cost, and advanced targeting capabilities Facebook advertising is compatible with smaller advertising budgets. If you have money to spend, Google Adwords can get your ad in front of consumers farther down on the sales funnel, and potentially more ready to buy.

Carter, B. (2013). Facebook advertising vs. Google adwords. Retrieved 11 November 2013 from http://www.searchenginejournal.com/facebook-advertising-vs-google-adwords/25532/

E-telligence. (2013). Google Adwords vs. Facebook Ads [Infographic]. Retrieved 11 November 2013 from http://visual.ly/google-adwords-vs-facebook-ads

Barton, D. (2012). Four Advantages of Google AdWords Over Search Engine Optimization. Retrieved 11 Novemer 2013 from http://www.southernwebgroup.com/2012/01/google-adwords-vs-search-engine-optimization/

Why content and conversation are not mutually exclusive in social media

As marketers, we are always searching for the winning recipe that produces social media marketing success. And the debate commonly turns to one important question: Do we concentrate on content or conversation? Which will be the catalyst in our social media campaign? To be honest, there is no simple answer to this question. There is no one ingredient that turns your campaign from stagnant to stellar. The truth is, content and conversation are not mutually exclusive. In order to make a social campaign successful, content and conversation must rely on one another to drive success. Without good content, your readers will have nothing to talk about. Without conversation your content will not get the exposure it needs. There are strong arguments to be made for both content and conversation. However, in this context, I see no opportunity to pick one over the other, which leads me to believe, that both are an integral part of any social media marketing campaign. Below I will explain content and conversation in terms of their dependency on each other.

An article from the Washington Post surveyed several business owners and asked them which social media posts succeeded at creating the most response from readers. For the most part, their answers suggested a combination of content and conversation driven posts. Anthony Saladino, CEO of a Kitchen Remodeling business, remarked that his most shared posts consisted of detailed guides and renovation reports that were rich in content. Aaron Schwartz, founder of a watch company, said his most popular posts were ones that solicited a direct response from readers. They posted creative questions like, “what would you name this model of watch?”

Now, from here, the debate can go in a lot of different directions. How does the type of industry affect the importance of content vs. conversation? Does great content go beyond generating strictly “shares” to comments, replies etc? However, at the root of this argument we are beginning to see how content and conversation can produce the best results when they work together. Schwartz’s posts weren’t effective simply because they were presented in the form of a question, they were great because they were clever, and relevant to the brand. If one were to produce content with the sole purpose of creating a conversation you are threatening the continued health of your brand.

For example, let’s say I ran a skateboard shop, and I wanted to generate more engagement with my followers on our blog. I decided to start posting about hot button pop culture issues. People gobble this kind of stuff up and will most likely talk about it. However, what is this kind of conversation doing for your skateboard brand? At the end of the day, you have created buzz, but that buzz hasn’t contributed to the strengthening of your brand.

Everyday we see wonderful examples of social media campaigns that have utilized both content and conversation to drive their campaigns. Old Spice has succeeded at many things, but especially their ability to create entertaining content and get people talking in unique ways. In 2010, Old Spice released a series of well written response videos to celebrities via Twitter. These videos were well produced for comedic value (content), and presented in a manner that sparked a great deal of consumer response (they were themselves responses) (Catacchio, 2010).

Khazan, O. (2012). What type of content should you put on social media channels? Retrieved 11 November 2013 from http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/on-small-business/post/what-type-of-content-should-you-put-on-social-media-channels/2012/04/20/gIQA2OXwZT_blog.html

Catacchio, C. (2010). Shirtless Old Spice guy replies on Twitter with hilarious personalized videos Retrieved 11 November 2013 from http://thenextweb.com/socialmedia/2010/07/13/shirtless-old-spice-guy-replies-on-twitter-with-hilarious-personalized-videos/

Ecommerce vs. Storefront

Before the advent of ecommerce, was it easier for a business to monitor the opinions of its customers? It went something like this: A customer walks into a store and asks an employee if they carry a certain product. When the employee responds “no,” the customer leaves.

Another scenario: A customer walks into a store, after 15 minutes of wandering around the store confused, they ask an employee where to find a certain product. They proceed to complain, “This place is like a maze, I can’t find anything.” After the customer finds the product and proceeds to checkout, he has to ask the employee to repeat herself several times because the music in the store is too loud.

With storefronts like these, you are able to see how customers interact with your store firsthand, and how all the various elements of your store influence the path to purchase. This sort of information is extremely valuable from a marketing perspective. Figuring out what makes your customers tick in an online setting can be a little bit more difficult in certain aspects.

You can’t have employees present every step of the way to field questions, and address complaints. Luckily, there is a variety of analytics software available to help better understand how customers interact with your site.

One of the most interesting tools I came across for monitoring the ecommerce process much like you would do in a real life store situation was a program called ClickTale. ClickTale enables you to view videos of users as they navigate your website, and actually view the visit as if you were right there with the customer.

“It’s as if you were looking over their shoulders. You can even see their cursor and their keystrokes” (Conversion, 2013).

Clicktale is an innovative program that can provide valuable insights for a business. But the ultimate goal of web analytics is not to reproduce the real-life store front scenario where employees can watch the whereabouts of customers and answer questions, its goal is to create an even more trackable, more measurable commerce environment that is far more efficient than a storefront. In a storefront, you might see some benefits that come from face to face transactions, but the Internet is inherently structured for in depth measurement and analysis. And the fact remains, “online sales are growing at approximately 10 times the rate of brick and mortar.” (Forbes, 2013)

It is no secret that more and more customers are purchasing online, and gaining insight into the online customer group is instrumental in optimizing resources both online and offline. Here’s why:

Let’s say a custom fit fishing rod has been selling extremely well in store but poorly online. Research has indicated that the exit rate is high on the product description page of the custom fit rod. In addition, in store managers have reported that customers have been having a great deal of questions about the rod before purchasing it. In response, you decide to implement a live chat function to the online product description page of the rod. Consequently, online sales go up significantly, and the work-load is decreased in-store.

This is just a small example of the far-reaching benefits that web analytics can provide for a business both online and in-store.

Conversion Rate Experts. (2013).14 tools that reveal why potential customers leave your website. Retrieved 3 November 2013 from http://www.conversion-rate-experts.com/understanding-your-visitors/

Arthur, L. (2013) Which is better for retail sales? Online or offline engagement.Retrieved 3 November 2013 from http://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaarthur/2013/03/12/which-is-better-for-retail-sales-online-or-offline-customer-engagement/

Clicktale. (2010). Clicktale Customer Service Analytics Demo. [Video File]. Retrieved 3 November 2013 from www.youtube.com/embed/DjtrbZO_8eo Embed: <iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/DjtrbZO_8eo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>