Google Analytics Health Check Laying the foundations for successful analytics and optimisation Google Analytics Property [UA-1234567-1] Domain [Client URL] Date of Review MMM YYYY Consultant [Consultant Name] [Consultant Email]
Recommendations Summary As an initial setup, apart from some minor implementation recommendations, Google Analytics is deployed and working correctly. Analysis of the performance of the account, as well as insight generation for any CRO activity is possible, but some of the more advanced features are not being used meaning detailed understanding of the customer journey may be missed. Additional configuration and custom set up is required to tailor the Google Analytics reports to meet the specific reporting or analysis requirements of [Client] Advanced Segments and Multi-Channel Funnels (Custom Channel Groupings and Custom Conversion Segments) are not currently being used. When Advanced Segments are used alongside Enhanced Ecommerce reports, valuable and actionable insights are much easier and quicker to uncover. Based on conversations with [Client] we would recommend further input from AWA Digital to demonstrate how our training courses can help you set up and fully understand key Google Analytics features and as a result understand your online visitors to a greater degree. In addition to this we can provide additional services which turn these Google Analytics insights into an actionable optimisation plan to improve revenue. Understanding this Report These settings have either not been configured or could be significantly improved. An attempt has been made to configure these settings, but they have not been accurately implemented or could be improved. These settings are configured correctly or require no action. 1
1 Duplicate Data Duplicate transactions in ecommerce reports Only unique transactions Duplicate transactions inflate many metrics across the account and give a false impression of performance. Other than addressing the root of the problem with [ecommerce platform], these transactions need to be deducted from the account. Using the software we recommended, export and identify all duplicated transactions. These need to be placed into a duplicate receipt page, using the addtransaction and additem function, which are sent to Google Analytics when the page is run. Negative values are to be used for transaction total, shipping and item quantity. Using just addtransaction in this very simple example to illustrate the process: Original transaction code (sent when the product was bought): ga('ecommerce:addtransaction', { 'id': '45645 - GBP', 'revenue': '24.99', 'shipping': '2.99' }); Reverse transaction code to be added to a duplicate receipt page: ga('ecommerce:addtransaction', { 'id': '45645 - GBP', 2
'revenue': '-24.99', 'shipping': '-2.99' }); NB additem also needs to be reversed. This creates another entry in the transaction data effectively removing the duplication. If there are instances where GBP is not appended to the transaction ID this process will not work as both transactions will be removed. Also, before this is done additional consideration is needed as the date of the reversal cannot be applied to past dates, only by transaction ID. Depending on the number of transactions, this will quickly become unfeasible as a manual task. This can be implemented relatively quickly programmatically. We would recommend this is completed by one of our GA specialists and our developer team. Care must be taken to ensure only the duplicate transactions are removed. 3
2 Presence of Google Analytics Tracking Code (GATC) Tracking Code Present on all pages Tracking Code Present on all pages just after opening <BODY> tag Incomplete tagging will give inaccurate data and break your campaign attribution reports. See Google Tag Manager section. 3 Google Analytics Tracking Code Version Asynchronous Asynchronous The new code, placed at the top of each page, will result in webpages loading faster and Google Analytics data being more accurate. See Google Tag Manager section. 4 Google Tag Manager Deployed at bottom of page Deployed at top of page Google Tag Manager allows you to quickly amend the Google Analytics code and add new custom events as required without the need for a developer The code is currently implemented via Google Tag Manager at the bottom of the page; for reasons stated previously (and if technically feasible) consider placing code at the top of the page. Move Google Tag Manager container code to the top of the page. Immediately after the opening <BODY> tag. This will ensure: 1) Compatibility with older versions of Internet Explorer. 4
2) That header tags are properly loaded, which are needed for the pageview call. This is included to ensure the Google Tag Manager snippet is not placed in the header. NB Also place the data layer call before the Google Tag Manager snippet. 5 Advanced segments None used Dependent on business goals / needs but see Action / Recommendation. Advanced and custom segments allow you to isolate specific set of data based on, for example, where the visitor has come from or their behaviour once they arrive. Multiple segments can be used at once to compare, say, conversion differences between mobile and desktop users. Suggested segments that you may find useful: 1. Count of Visit + Conversion 2. High spenders 3. Cart abandonment by source 4. First time visits that buy 5. Return visits that buy 6. Visits by channel 7. Logged in vs. guest 8. Device These are just general suggestions, the real value comes from specific questions you have about [Client URL] s audience and answering these via advanced / custom segments. Note, segments are View specific meaning different users can have different segments set up, however they can be shared between 5
users. For example, if you click - https://www.google.com/analytics/web/tem plate?uid=nhsj1jmnr9qh2mze2tkd-w - while you have your Google Analytics account open, it will share with you a custom segment that isolates sessions where visitors have visited the store locator page. Behaviour / performance of this segment of visits can now be compared with other segments. Or it can be used to see how much visitors who use the store finder spend. 6 Views 4 Views +2 additional views (and dependent on needs) Views allow you to see a subset of your data with conditional filters and settings applied. At this level of the account, once a filter has been used, that data has been discarded and cannot be recovered. The only filter being used at present is to exclude visits from within [Client]. We recommend the following Views (in addition to the other views present in the account): 1. Raw 2. Test These can be implemented by copying the main [Client URL] view (with any filters or settings subsequently removed for the new views). However, a Raw View should always be setup to safeguard against any loss of data (for example if a filter 6
is incorrectly applied). This Raw view should not include a default page, exclusion of query parameters or removal of search query parameters as part of the view settings. A Test View should be setup to test changes before applying to Main View. 7 Filters 1 filter applied to the main view to remove [Client] s own traffic. 4 additional filters for the main view Filters allow you to control what data is flowing into individual Views. For example, you do not want to include traffic from your office in your traffic reports. We recommend the addition of the following standard filters to the main View: 1. Ensure all URLs are lowercase; this removes duplication caused by capitalisation. Filters also allow you to clean the data before it arrives in your reports. For example, setting all URL s to lower case. As a reminder of the previous recommendation, do not apply filters to the new Raw view and test filters on the Test view before applying to the main view. 2. Exclude visits to images via Google Images and Google Translate 3. Append landing page details to visitors arriving with keyword (not provided). This provides useful insights for encrypted search visitors. 4. Assign referrers to the correct channels. E.g. assign webmail referrers to the email channel. 8 Exclude query parameters Query parameter q excluded. Enabled Excluding query parameters from your Google Analytics reports makes them more readable and actionable. No action required. 7
9 Social Event Tracking Enabled Enabled Capturing onsite social actions such as Likes and Tweets can give you insight into levels of engagement and the impact of social interactions No action required. 10 Custom alerts None configured 6 custom alerts Custom alerts can be set to alert you any changes in site activity. Usually these are used for large variations in website activity, e.g. surges or troughs in visitors or transactions. We recommend the configuration of 8 standard daily alerts. 1. More than 50% increase in visits 2. More than 50% decrease in visits 3. More than 70% increase in transactions 4. More than 70% decrease in transactions 5. More than 50% increase in visits on mobile domain 6. More than 50% increase in transactions on mobile domain 7. More than a 50% drop in Google referrals. 8. No data being received 11 E-commerce enablement Enabled Enabled Allows you to track sales and orders received through the websites. You can be more or less selective about the alerts you use any changes to any metric across any dimension can be used. No action required but see Enhanced Ecommerce below. 12 Horizontal Funnels Not Configured Goals set up to track each stage of conversion (checkout) funnel. Horizontal Funnels allow you to view you the fallout rate per stage of the funnel for different visitor segments side by side. E.g. New vs. Returning Setup and configure horizontal funnels. OR 8
13 Enhanced Ecommerce Visitors. Note, regular goal funnels in Google Analytics cannot be segmented. Not configured Configured Enhanced ecommerce reports are very detailed funnel reports which allow segmentation. Other metrics such as look-to-book and add-to-cart vs purchase are also included. Shopping report shows the user journey across the whole site. Checkout Behaviour shows the user journey through the checkout. The shopping reports also allow you to drill down to individual product performance even down to the performance of product listing pages. See Enhanced Ecommerce below. Install the additional tracking code required for Enhanced Ecommerce. Please note, the Enhanced Ecommerce code has to replace the existing ecommerce code, they cannot be used together. We recommend assistance from one of our Google Analytics specialists to guide the process. This is the built-in facility to achieve the horizontal report described above. Enhanced Ecommerce and Advanced Segments (mentioned earlier) used together can provide very detailed insights. 14 Annotations 1 visible annotation (3+ years old) Annotations used to record key events Annotations should be used to record key events on your website. For example, major changes to your Create annotations to record important events. 9
website and/or the data or any other external event which will impact the analytics. 15 Enhanced Link Attribution Off On Enhanced link attribution you to report on clicks on links that lead to the same page. For example, it would allow you to determine how people reach the store finder by the link in the header or the link in the footer on each page of [Client]. Add the additional code required to enable enhanced link attribution. 16 Goals 9 used Appropriate use of goals. Goals are a way of measuring website performance against actions that you want website visitors to take. Goals are best used for processes or user journeys. For instance [Client URL] already has checkout completion configured. Other appropriate uses would be: 1) Newsletter signup 2) Login / Registration Goals such as Store locator would be better tracked as an event as all that is currently tracked by this goal are visits to the page (of course the data can also be found in the All Pages reports. In general, consider goals for behaviour relating to a conversion or something with a monetary value (purchase or mailer signup). Consider events for specific behaviour you want to track. Please note, it also appears that the Store 10
Finder goal is set up incorrectly. The store locator is present on two URLs but it appears only one is tracked as part of this goal: 1) /store-locator/page/storelocator 2) /page/storelocator The Begins with condition will only catch one of these URLs along with the URL store variables once a search has been done. Also, as store locator usage is of interest, it may be better to use the goal with a start and end page to gauge usage of the store locator itself and not visits to the page and usage of the locator all combined. 17 Funnels 4 funnels configured. n/a Funnels are linked to Goals. Correctly configured funnels will allow you to see which steps are causing visitors to drop out as they move through the process to complete a Goal. The goals we would recommend are already in use, however it is unclear why Goal 3: Desktop Site: Purchase includes Login Error and Password Reminder as part of the checkout process. We would recommend this be reviewed. 18 Additional tracking with Events 17 custom events Additional tracking for key actions and events. By deploying additional tracking code you can capture important events that would not automatically be tracked in Google Analytics. Many events are already tracked. As mentioned in the Goals section it would be better to track Store Locator as an event, unless the Goal setup is changed to track if the Store Locator is actually used, rather than just the store locator page being visited. Many of the other recommendations we 11
make for event tracking are already implemented for instance navigation use. Any remaining recommendations would be better implemented though Enhanced Ecommerce. 19 Google Webmaster Tools / SEO reports Not Enabled Enabled Google Webmaster Tools is the only way to get data into the Queries section for the Search Engine Optimization report. Sign up for Web Master Tools. Visit the Property Settings page in Google Analytics to edit the Webmaster Tools setting and link the data. As most keywords are now (not provided), which accounts for 85% of [Client] s keyword data, this is the best way to see which keywords are bringing visitors to the site and which pages they are visiting. 20 Default page Not set [Client URL] Your Analytics View Settings page contains a field in which to specify your default page in order to prevent duplicate pages being recorded. There are instances of [Client URL] and [ClientURL]page/home being tracked causing duplication in the content reports. Additional information is needed before this is changed to determine the use of /page/home in the URL as it seems to be used for some paid campaigns. 21 Cross Domain Tracking Not Configured Site activity occurring across other [Client] web properties. For example: - URL - URL If cross domain tracking is not implemented GA will over count the number of visits and unique visitors to the site If desired, [Client] may want to track user behaviour across their various domains. Focusing on just the priority web properties cross domain tracking can be implemented to achieve this. 12
22 Multi-Channel Funnels: Custom Channel Groupings None used Custom Channel Groupings created for each key traffic source Custom Channel Groupings allow you to understand how specific traffic sources interact with all other traffic sources. For example, custom Channel Groupings can allow you to understand if visitors, who came to your website through a Twitter campaign, later returned and made purchases. We recommend including Channel Groupings focusing on each of your key traffic sources, including: 1. Email Identifying individual Email Campaigns 2. Social Media Identifying individual social media sites 3. Referrers Identifying individual referrers 4. Paid Search Identifying keywords 5. SEO Identifying keywords (needs Google Webmaster Tools) 23 Multi-Channel Funnels: Custom Conversion Segments Non used Custom Conversion Segments created to match each channel in the Channel Groupings Conversion Segments allow you to define specific segments of visitors, based on their interactions with multiple channels, for you to study in detail and compare against All Visitors or other segments For each Channel within the Channel Groupings, we recommend creating the following Conversion Segments 1. First interaction is Channel name 2. Last interaction is Channel name 3. Assisting interaction is Channel name 24 Site search Enabled Enabled with failed search data and force search terms to be lower case. 25 404 trapping Not tracked Custom report configured to track requests that led to Forcing keywords to lower case will ensure that Michael kors and Michael Kors are captured as one search term. Capturing failed searches will identify keywords that require optimisation. With a small change to the Tracking Code on the 404 template you can identify pages that have been requested but not found on your Add code to enable the tracking of failed searches e.g. no matches found. Create filter to ensure all keywords are forced to lowercase (but do not place the filter on the raw view). Add additional GA code to the 404 template We recommend that a custom report is 13
the error 404 page website, helping to identify dead links and increase visitor satisfaction. configured to track URL request which result in an Error 404 message. 26 User id Not enabled Enabled Implemented via your account / login authentication system, use of User ID allows the tracking and analysis of visits across devices. Add the necessary tracking code to the authentication system across all devices (desktop, mobile and tablet). 27 Content Grouping None Used Define content groupings depending on business needs. Content Grouping allows categorisation of the content on [Client]. Aggregate performance of those groups can then be analysed. This can give insight into how those types of content are consumed and performance associated with those groups. For instance grouping the content in Insider separately to category pages, homepage, product pages etc. Identify the groups of content that exist on [Client] and configure these in Google Analytics. This also requires a small piece of code to be placed in the tracking snippet. 14