All SABMiller websites, as defined in this document should have Google Analyitcs implemented as a mandatory requirement.

Transcription

1 Analytics version 1

2 Introduction Web analytics is used to track, measure, collect, report and analyse web data in order to understand and optimise usage of web properties. These properties could include a website, mobile site, mobile application, online shop and/or a blog. Web analytics allows website owners to optimise a brand s web presence to grow visitor numbers, inform strategy to enhance the online brand experience for the audience and support broader objectives of the business. Most web analytics tools use JavaScript tags, which are small segments of code that can be added to each page of a website to be tracked. When a visitor arrives on the page, the tag sends browsing data to the collection server as the page is loading. Reports include how visitors arrive on the site (traffic sources), what they do (content and conversions) and where they leave. There are many different analytics vendors that offer both free and paid for tools. However, this document will focus on using Google Analytics to track a website. Google Analytics is the mostly widely used web analytics tool and is SABMiller s vendor of choice for the following reasons: It s free It offers extensive custom reporting It has an intuitive, easy to use interface It provides extensive support It s secure as it uses first party cookies Google Analytics is a pagetagging web analytics solution. With pagetagging solutions, set up is very important. Mistakes made when collecting and processing data can t be retrospectively rectified, so proper planning is vital to gathering data correctly. It is important to note that the data that is tracked and recorded by Google Analytics is kept anonymous and not tied back to a particular individual. With Google Analytics, there are two key areas that can be customised: Tracking code customisations, to make changes or enhancements to the data that is collected. Account and profile setup customisations, to make changes to the data that is shown in the reports. This will affect the way that data is processed. All SABMiller websites, as defined in this document should have Google Analyitcs implemented as a mandatory requirement. 2

3 This document will cover the tracking code and implementation on the site as well as customisations to the account. There is also a section covering reporting inline with business objectives. True analysis should go beyond measuring online traffic to measuing business intelligence. Web analytics tools provide data that can be used to establish Return on Investment (ROI) and offer powerful consumer insights. 3

4 1. Analytics set up 1.1 Getting started A Google account is required to authenticate and set up a Google Analytics account. It is important that there is a dedicated address to this account. This will ensure the login is not tied to an individual working on the brand and create continuity of access via this address. A Google account for the brand should be set up for this purpose e.g. ststefanus.analytics@gmail.com. However, if this is not possible, an existing address needs to be converted to a Google account. The address will remain unchanged but Google Analytics will recognise the address so it can be used to create the account or be added to an existing account. This can be done via the Google create an account page. During the set up process, confirmation of the address will be required via an . Once the Google account has been set up, the first step to setting up Google Analytics on a web property is to create an analytics account via (see Figure A). Figure A Google Analytics home page 4

5 Select Create an account on the homepage of Google Analytics and follow the on-screen prompt to Sign up (see Figure B). Figure B Google Analytics sign up steps During the setup, you will be required to specify whether a website or an application is being tracked. The option to track a website is not limited to the traditional definition of a website and includes most other properties (e.g. mobile site, blog or online shop). It doesn t include Android or ios apps. Select the relevant Industry Category. This selection doesn t affect tracking or data collection (see Figure C). Under Reporting Time Zone, select the country or territory to be used in the Google Analytics reports. If the property is a global site, select the time zone country or territory from where most of the visitors will likely be visiting. If it is a local site, select the local time zone. This selection can be updated at a later stage, but it will only affect data going forward as it is not applied retrospectively (see Figure C). Data Sharing Settings are optional opt-in items in the setup and can be edited at a later stage too. It is recommended that you select the option to opt-in to sharing data with other Google products, as this will allow for integration with products such as AdWords. By choosing to anonymously share data, you will allow Figure C Google Analytics tracking set up Google to contribute your data to their anonymous benchmarking reports. Please note you must allow Google access to your data in order to view these useful reports (see Figure C). 5

6 Once the setup information is completed, Google Analytics will generate the tracking ID for the web property. When agreeing to the Terms of Service, select the country / region of residence - this can differ depending on the country or territory selected for your reporting time zone. The Tracking Info page will show the unique tracking ID for the property that an account has just been created for, as well as the tracking script (see Figure D). Figure D Google Analytics tracking information Checklist No. Title Icon Measured Google Account has to be set up for every brand / entity. Mandatory Active Standards Dedicated analytics address for the brand / entity. Mandatory Manual Google mail account for the website. Good practice Manual References Further reading 1. Optimise your business with Google Analytics 2. Terms of Use for Google Analytics 3. Getting started with Google Analytics 4. An introduction to Google Analytics - video tutorial 6

7 1.2 Account Structure A Google Analytics account is the access point for Analytics and a way to label and organise the web properties being tracked (see Figure E). Figure E Organising web properties It is important to create a new web property for each unique property that requires tracking. The brand s website, campaign microsite and online shop should each be set up as different web properties within the same account. Each web property has a unique UA number to be installed on the web pages of the corresponding property in order to collect data. When a new account is setup, a web property will be created automatically. If additional web properties need to be created, this option is under the Admin tab (see Figure F). 7

8 Figure F Admin profile Profiles are the access point to view reports. A number of profiles can be created within a web property to show distinct views of visitor data - e.g. one profile that only shows AdWords traffic data. When a new web property is created, Google Analytics will create one profile. Additional profiles can be created under the Admin tab and distinct subsets of data viewed in the reports by applying filters. Please keep the following in mind: If a profile is deleted, the view of this data will be lost forever. A maximum of 50 profiles can be set up in one web property. Profiles will not show historical data from before the date they were created. One profile in the web property should be a master profile. This profile should have no filters applied and be the first profile set up when the web property is created. Additional profiles can be created to include certain data using filters to meet particular objectives. The visual below shows the overall set up for the St. Stefanus account (see Figure G). 8

9 Account 2. Web property 3. Profile Figure G Example St. Stefanus account Checklist No. Title Icon Measured Create a new web property for each unique property to be tracked. Mandatory Manual As a minimum there should be a master profile (containing the raw data) this should never be deleted or altered. Mandatory Manual References Further reading 1. Optimise your business with Google Analytics 2. Understanding accounts, users, properties and profiles 1.3 Access levels There are two levels of user access in Google Analytics: Administrators have full account level access to all the profiles in an account. They can make changes to both the administrative functions and view the reports. 9

10 Users only have reporting access to selected profiles in the account. They do not have access to the settings of an account so cannot add, edit or delete profile or change the account setup. An administrator can change access levels at any time. It is recommended that the address used to create the account should remain an admin, as well as any other agencies working on the web properties being tracked in the account. Internal individuals from SABMiller should be added as users to relevant profiles. It is important that the number of administrators on the account is kept to a minimum, with a maximum number of 3 at any one point. If there are too many administrators on the account, it is not possible to track who made changes to the settings. Checklist No. Title Icon Measured The account creator and / or owner of analytics shoud be an administrator. Good practice Manual Appropriate agencies should be given access. As a default all should be set up as users. Good practice Manual Appropriate staff In SABMiller should be given access. As a default all should be set up as users. Good practice Manual There should be no more than 3 administrators of the account. Good practice Manual References Further reading 1. Optimisation your business with Google Analytics 2. Understanding accounts, users, properties and profiles 3. Managing accounts and users 1.4 Filters Filters are applied to the data that comes into a profile to create a distinct view of the information and make it easier to find what you are reporting on. The purpose of a filter is to control the information that comes into a profile such as excluding visits from selected IP addresses or focusing on traffic to a specific section of the website. There are 2 different types of filters, namely predefined filters and custom filters. 10

11 The following filters are included in the predefined filter section: Include/exclude traffic from the domains Include/exclude traffic from the IP addresses Include/exclude traffic to the subdirectories Include/exclude traffic to the hostname A custom filter will allow more flexibility to manipulate the data going forward. This tool should be used if the filter is not found in the predefined filter section. Filters are applied to the raw data as it comes into the database on the Google Analytics servers. A new filter can t reprocess historic data, so it is advised that one profile is kept as a master profile and left unfiltered. A second profile should be created that excludes traffic from offices that are working on the site e.g. SABMiller internal IP addresses or agencies that work on the brand. The profile should be labelled reporting and figures quoted for site performance should be from this profile as it provides a more accurate reflection of visitor traffic. An administrator can set up filters under the sub-tab Filters, under the Admin tab, where all other settings are updated (see Figure H). To exclude the traffic from an internal IP address (see Figure H): Give the filter a name (e.g. exclude SABMiller internal traffic). Select the Filter Type as Predefined Filter. This filter should exclude traffic from the IP addresses that are equal to. The IP address should be added in the space provided. Should the IP address be dynamic or a range, a custom filter with regular expressions needs to be used. Figure H Adding a filter to a profile A second useful filter would be to only include traffic to certain parts of the site - e.g. setting up a country specific profile where this content sits on a subdirectory of the global site. St. Stefanus is an example of this. The website sits on the domain and is tracked using one web property. However, the English version is on the subfolder: and the French version is: Creating new profiles for each, with a filter to include only traffic to the respective subfolders will create reports showing only data to the relevant pages (see Figure I). 11

12 Give the filter a name (e.g. include United Kingdom pages). As above, the Filter Type is a Predefined Filter. It should include traffic to the subdirectories that begin with. The information to include in the subdirectory should be the file/source details everything following the host/server id. The host/server id is and the file/resource detail is/en. Checklist No. Title Icon Measured Comment A reporting profile must be created in additional to the master profile and exclude SABMiller, agency and other non-consumer traffic sources. Mandatory Manual Human must create and apply filters to one of the profiles. References Further reading 1. Optimise your business with Google Analytics 2. Understanding profile filters 3. Understanding profile data filters 4. Implementing Google Analytics filters - video tutorial 12

13 1.5 Goals Within the field of analytics, a goal is a specific, desirable user action on a web asset. Setting up goals in Google Analytics helps measure business objectives for the website. A goal should be a measurable action that website visitors perform - e.g. complete a contact us form. Like filters, only administrators have access to set this up under the Admin tab. An objective for St. Stefanus may be to drive traffic to bars in Paris. A measureable action is the number of users who search for St. Stefanus in Paris using the map functionality on the website. Goals cannot be deleted, but can be made inactive if no longer relevant. This selection can be updated at any stage should any goals need to be paused or reactivated. They are set up on a profile and there is a limit of 20 active and inactive goals per profile (4 sets with 5 goals each). If more than 20 goals need to be tracked, this must be set up in another profile. There are 4 different types of goals in Google Analytics, which can be explained by the following examples: Business Objective Goal Type Action on Web Property Goal Generate leads URL Destination Complete contact us form /contact.us/thank.you Increase engagement Visit Duration Visitors exploring content Visit duration is greater than 2 minutes Increase awareness Pages/Visit Visitors engaged with various types of content on the site Number of pages visited is greater than 4 Drive advocacy Event Like the Facebook brand page Define event tracking parameters for action Figure I Example of specific page set up as a goal If there is any form of data collection on the website e.g. a newsletter signup form, this must be setup as a goal in Google Analytics. For this, you need to define the URL of a specific page as a goal - e.g. the thank you page once a user has submitted their details via a form (see Figure J). 13

14 When setting up a new goal, enter a Goal Name that can be easily recognised in the reports - (e.g. Subscribe to Newsletter). Other users must be able to easily understand the label assigned to the goal (see Figure K). By default a new goal will be set to Active. Figure J Setting up a goal Under Goal Type, select the URL Destination. There are three different Match Types that can be used to choose a URL Destination goal: 1. Exact Match is used for standard, fixed URLs. Google Analytics will match each character in the URL exactly to what is on the site. 2. Head Match will match the characters specified in the Goal URL field as well as additional parameters at the end of the string to be excluded. This goal type should be used if the website has dynamically generated content such as session identifiers or query parameters as it will leave off the unique values but still record the goal - e.g: In order to match this page, the URL would be /en/newsletter/thank-you. 3. Regular Expression Match is used with special characters to offer more flexibility with multiple criteria. If the goal to be set up has unique trailing parameters and/or different file/resource details, use this option - e.g. a goal on the site may be if users view a specific subdirectory of the site, such as the blog. The same blog may serve both the UK and US markets but use different subfolders such as: and A regular expression match should be used as follows: ^/blog.* - The ^, * and. are special characters used in regular expressions throughout Google Analytics. When setting up any of the goal types, it is possible to assign a goal value to each completed conversion. This is an optional item in the setup but will assist in understanding the ROI of visitor interaction on your website. If there are multiple steps in the path a user takes to perform a desired action, a goal funnel must be set up to show how users reach the goal. A visitor may arrive on the homepage, browse the product page and then navigate to complete the contact us form to enquire about St. Stefanus product distribution in France. The sequence of steps the users take before submitting a form is known as the goal funnel. The thank you page is the actual goal as this corresponds to the measurable action. Setting up a goal funnel helps us to understand how users are 14

15 interacting with the site before completing a desired action; highlighting areas of improvement that will further optimise the site s goal conversion rate. A goal funnel can be set if you are using the goal type URL Destination. The option to set this up is below the goal detail fields (see Figure L). Figure K Setting up Goal Funnels Select Use funnel and enter the URL for the first page in the funnel for Step 1 (see Figure L). There may only be one step in your defined funnel - e.g. the page on which users complete their details to subscribe to the newsletter (/en/subscribe), as is the case in the example above (see Figure L). Certain steps in the funnel can be selected as required. If it is not set as a Required Step, there will be entrances and exits from the goal funnel that may not follow the expected path users take - i.e. a user entered a defined goal page via a page not set out in the path. Checklist No. Title Icon Measured Goals should be set up so as to reflect the website s objectives. Mandatory Manual Funnels should be set up so as to inform where users are dropping out of the process. Mandatory Manual References Further reading 1. Optimise your business with Google Analytics 2. Understanding Goals 3. Planning your Goals with Google Analytics 4. Defining Goals video tutorial 15

16 1.6 Internal site search Google Analytics reports show the source used by a visitor to arrive on the site - e.g. via a referral site. If the source is search (either paid search or organic search), the reports show terms/keywords that are driving the most traffic. It is also possible to set up internal site search as a report in any of the profiles, if the site has this feature such as the St. Stefanus site (see Figure M). Figure L St. Stefanus site search tool Site search is a powerful tool as it indicates users intentions on the site if they can t find what they are looking for. The reports include how many visitors used the search function, the search terms they used and whether visitors navigated further on the site following the search results. This information can guide improvement to the information architecture and usability of the site and help inform the blog strategy. When a visitor uses the search function, their search term is submitted in two possible methods, namely through a GET request or POST request. Using a GET request, the form data is encoded by the browser into the URL. If Grand Cru is searched for on the St. Stefanus site, the URL will show the search terms after q=: and the search result will be as follows (see Figure N): Figure M Search results display However, the POST method means that the search term will not appear in the URL, but rather the message body of the HTTP request. Internal site search in Google Analytics can only be set up if the site passes the search term as a GET request. It cannot be setup if it is passed as a POST request. Only administrators can set this up and site search is tied to 16

17 a profile, not the overall account or a web property. It is best practice for this to be set up in the profile labelled reporting, and used to filter internal traffic. Under the admin section of the profile, select the tab Profile Settings (see Figure O). Figure N Profile Settings tab Under the Site Search Settings section, select Do track Site Search (see Figure P). Figure O Site Search Settings In the field labelled Query parameter, input the query parameter that designates a search on the site. This could be a term such as search or query or just a letter (see Figure P). The easiest way to identify the query parameter is to make a search on the site. The URL will show both the search term and the query parameter. As above, searching for Grand Cru, the URL will be: The query parameter for the internal site search is q as it sits between the? and the search term. This is the parameter to be used when setting up site search in Google Analytics. Checklist No. Title Icon Measured Collect internal site searches and use to hone the website s content and user experience. Good practice Manual 17

18 References Further reading 1. Optimise your business with Google Analytics 2. Creating internal site search reports video tutorial 1.7 Data protection and privacy Google Analytics uses the unique IP address of a computer or device for IP geolocation. This allows website owners to identify where in the world their traffic is coming from. The tool has a strict privacy policy and is explicit about protecting users data. No Personally Identifiable Information is gathered which could track an individual s name, or billing information. Data protection and privacy policies differ from country to country. The global debate on this issue includes whether an IP address is considered personally identifiable information. Germany considers it as such and so any local sites built for a German audience should use a method know as IP masking. This will conceal part of the IP address to protect users. It is a customisation made to the standard tracking code generated by Google Analytics. By default, the entire IP address is used for tracking, but this customisation will instruct Google Analytics to use only a portion of the IP address. The last octet of the IP address is removed before the data is processed and stored. The implications of masking a user s IP address will be a small loss of granular data in the location report. References Further reading 1. Opting out of online behavioural advertising 2. Understanding cookies and Google Analytics on websites 3. Understanding privacy policy by Avinash Kaushik 4. Google Analytics Cookies - Infograph 18

19 2. Code implementation 2.1 Standard Google Analytics code layout The basic Google Analytics tracking code is sufficient for most purposes; however it can easily be customised to suit brands specific objectives. The asynchronous code is the latest version of the tracking code and ensures improved data collection and accuracy, faster code load times as well as elimination of tracking errors. It is mandatory that all new SABMiller sites are built with the asynchronous code for tracking. It is best practice that any sites using the old, traditional version of the tracking script are migrated to the latest, asynchronous code. Instructions for migrating can be found on the Google Developers site. When a new web property or account is set up, Google Analytics will generate the standard JavaScript tracking code. It is unique to each web property and can be viewed at any time under the Tracking Information tab (see Figure Q). Figure P Tracking Information tab It is advised that if the individual generating the code is different to the individual implementing the code, that the code be copied and pasted into a.txt file and not into a.doc file. This will minimise the margin for error as any unnecessary spaces or additional characters in the code will stop the data from being collected and sent to the Google Analytics servers. 19

20 The standard format of the Google Analytics code is as follows, where the UA-XXXXX-X applies to the unique ID of the web property: <script type="text/javascript"> var _gaq = _gaq []; _gaq.push(['_setaccount', 'UA-XXXXX-X']); _gaq.push(['_trackpageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createelement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = (' == document.location.protocol? ' : ' + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getelementsbytagname('script')[0]; s.parentnode.insertbefore(ga, s); })(); </script> As explained in the previous section under Data Protection and Privacy, some countries require website operators to implement IP masking. The customisation to the standard snippet is as follows, where the only addition is the line: _gaq.push(['_gat._anonymizeip']); <script type="text/javascript"> var _gaq = _gaq []; _gaq.push(['_setaccount', 'UA-XXXXX-X']); _gaq.push(['_gat._anonymizeip']); _gaq.push(['_trackpageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createelement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = (' == document.location.protocol? ' : ' + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getelementsbytagname('script')[0]; s.parentnode.insertbefore(ga, s); })(); </script> The above customisation is a mandatory requirement on any local German sites built as well as sites where the majority of the visitors are from Germany. 20

21 Checklist No. Title Icon Measured All new websites should use the asynchronous code. Mandatory Active Standards Use IP masking for any website serving the German market. Mandatory Active Standards Where possible existing websites should migrate to asynchronous code. Best practice Manual References Further reading 1. How to track site activity 2. Help analysing Google Analytics data 2.2 Implementation guide The tracking script should be implemented onto each page of the site to collect data on visitor activities. This should be done through the website template and placed before the closing </head> tag of the page. This position will ensure best performance across all browsers. Checklist No. Title Icon Measured All tracking coes should be placed before the closing </head> tag. Mandatory Active Standards References Further reading 1. Optimisation your business with Google Analytics 2. Help analysing Google Analytics data 3. How to set up the web tracking code 21

22 2.3 Code checks It is important to ensure that the tracking code has been implemented correctly and that data is correctly pulling through into the Google Analytics reports. 1. To ensure the tracking code has been implemented and that it is in the right place, view the page source code on the site. On the page of the site chosen for testing, right click and select view source to see the page source code. The JavaScript snippet should be pasted into the source code of every page to be tracked and should appear at the top of the page before the closing </head> tag. To easily find the Google Analytics tracking code in the source code, use the search function to find UA. Check that the unique UA code is correct it should match the unique ID for the relevant web property. The Chrome/Firefox plug-in called Tag Assistant, can assist in verifying if Google tags have been correctly installed. Using this tool shows which Google tags are found on any page of the site and, if there are errors, provides suggestions on how to fix these. 2. Data can take up to 24 hours to appear in the Google Analytics reports once the tracking code has been implemented on the site. The Tracking Status information under the Tracking Information tab in the Admin settings will show a status for the tracking as follows: a) Tracking Not Installed or Not Verified The Google Analytics tracking code hasn t been detected on the website's homepage. b) Waiting for Data The Google Analytics code has been detected on the website s homepage and data is being aggregated to populate the reports. c) Receiving Data The Google Analytics tracking code has been detected on the homepage, it is working correctly and data is being populated in the report. 3. The code may be implemented on the site, but you should check the data is being pulled through to the reports in Google Analytics. This is a final check to ensure the web property is receiving data for your website and the tracking is working. If the tracking isn t working, please see the Google Analytics guide to troubleshooting. Checklist No. Title Icon Measured Check that the Google Analytics code is present. Mandatory Active Standards Check that the Google Analytics code is placed before the closing </head> tag. Mandatory Active Standards 22

23 2.2.3 Check that data is puling through into the reports. Mandatory Manual References Further reading 1. Optimise your business with Google Analytics 2. Help analysing Google Analytics data 23

24 3. Mobile analytics Mobile analytics isn t as advanced as traditional web analytics, but it s still possible to track a range of mobile sites and applications. Tracking for a mobile site can be implemented on Google Analytics in the same way as a desktop website, as detailed in the previous sections. If a brand doesn t have a mobile or responsive site, it is important to keep track of the growth of users accessing the website via a mobile device. This information can provide valuable insight and inform decisions around building a mobile site, optimising the current website for mobile usage or building a responsive site to cater for both desktop and mobile users. It is important to note that mobile analytics differs from web analytics as the traditional ways to collect data pose certain challenges. The following limitations apply when tracking mobile: Reports will only show data where the mobile browsers used to access the site can execute JavaScript. Most smartphone mobile browsers support JavaScript, but feature phones don t. A user s IP address is used to identify the location of where a user is accessing a website via a desktop. However, some mobile devices will use the IP address of the phone provider. Cookies allow us to identify unique visitors to the site and are standard capability for all desktop browsers. Most smartphones support cookies, but feature phones don t. Mobile users also have the ability to disable cookies on their browsers. Google Analytics not only tracks mobile sites, but also offers a mobile analytics platform for tracking mobile applications (aside from web applications). The platform allows tracking for Android and ios applications. When building a mobile site, it is mandatory that Google Analytics code be implemented on the site. Checklist No. Title Icon Measured Apply Google Analytics code to all mobile websites. Mandatory Manual References

25 Further reading 1. Optimise your business with Google Analytics 2. Understanding Mobile Analytics 3. Understanding Google Mobile App Analytics 4. Setting up Mobile App Analytics 5. Understanding Analytics Collection 25

26 4. Reporting Creating a data-driven culture helps businesses to spot new strategic opportunities. Setting up web analytics will allow SABMiller brand teams to support key decisions with data. The first step to reporting is an understanding of the different reports available in Google Analytics. Reports are the main output of Google Analytics, accessed via the various profiles in a web property. Google Analytics offers a variety of reports, therefore it is important to ensure that reporting is aligned with business objectives so that analysis can be used for actionable insights. When reporting, identify the business objectives for the web property - e.g. generate new leads Setting up goals, as explained above, will help measure business objectives e.g. newsletter sign-ups Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are the chosen metrics to measure and report on e.g. conversion rate It is also important to set targets to determine what defines a success or failure at the end of the reporting period or campaign e.g. >5% conversion rate Web analytics guru, Tim Wilson suggests the following guide to setting effective KPIs (see Figure R): Figure Q Setting up KPIs 26

27 Checklist No. Title Icon Measured 4.1 Ensure reports and reporting reflects the objectives and set appropriate KPIs. Best practice Manual References Further reading 1. Analytics tips from Avinash Kaushik 27