MARKETING

You’ve done it! Hours and hours of work have finally come to an end and your brand new website or mobile app is now live. Much like a first-time parent, you want to show off your new ‘baby.’ But will this pride and joy of yours truly be successful? And how will visitors engage with your site? Are the clicking points too tricky for them to find? Do they scroll down to the desired point on a page? Are users navigating between pages in the way you intended them? These interactions are known as events in Google Analytics. Granted, there are many different kinds of events, but in this article, we’re talking about button clicks when we refer to events. Web developers and business owners need to know the answers to the questions mentioned above. You see, understanding the success rate of these events helps you build a strong, reliable website that users find easy to navigate and achieves the desired result. Before we discuss tracking button clicks, let’s first figure a few things out: Is there any other software that I need to familiarize myself with before I can track button clicks? What are some examples of button clicks that can be followed? Which of these events or buttons are the most important ones I should follow? How do I start tracking them? So then, let’s begin with familiarizing ourselves with the software. Google Tag Manager Source: Pexels.com‍ Google tag manager is a Tag Management System (TMS) developed by Google and originally released in 2012. At the time of writing, the most up-to-date paid version of this software is Tag Manager 360, while the free version, Google Tag Manager, would be more suitable for small businesses. This software allows users to configure and immediately use tags on a given website. The free Google Tag Manager account boasts multi-user support, rule-based triggers, and support for Google and Non-Google Tags. However, it has a limit of three workspaces available for simultaneous tagging projects. Take the time to read about tag manager and study its features before setting up your event tracking parameters. (1) Pro tip: Tag manager works best when used in conjunction with Google Chrome, so make sure you adjust your browser settings if needed. What are some button clicks that I could track with Google tag manager? Source: Pexels.com‍ Depending on the nature of your business and the design of your website or app, there will be various button clicks available for tracking. If you have an e-commerce web page, you will focus your button tracking on call-to-action events. You want to track how many users follow through with a purchase or how far they browse on your site before they lose interest. Name your buttons appropriately – Add to cart / Get it now / Subscribe / Book Now / Submit button. By using the tag configuration setting in your Tag Manager, you’d be able to name each button click and understand your website visitors better. Not all websites would be tracking the same user clicks. That is because pages and apps are designed with different reasons in mind. A blog post geared heavily toward advertising would be tracking outbound link clicks or perhaps file downloads. You’d also want to track video engagement so you could set up an event tag that would let you know which video’s have success on your page and adjust accordingly. Source: Pexels.com ‍ How do I set up the tracking? Once you’re familiar with the Google Tag Manager, you can use it to track your button clicks. It’s a bit of a process to set it up, but the same steps are used for any new tag or click event you’ll set up in the future, so it’s not too painful. Here’s a step-by-step guide. Enable click variables in Google Tag Manager Once you’ve logged in to your Google Tag Manager workspace, navigate to variables and click on configure. Tag manager has a selection of built-in variables to choose from and they will appear on the pop-up page. For example, you can choose from any or all of the following: Click element Click Classes Click ID Click Target Click Url Click Test Pay attention to your selection here, as Tag Manager uses this to identify the click parameters for each button you intend to track. Configure Click elements as Triggers You now need to configure these click elements to create a trigger. Do that by navigating to triggers in your tag manager workspace. Click on add new trigger, select all elements and click on all clicks. It’s helpful to select all clicks at this stage, even though you won’t necessarily want to track all button clicks during your data sampling in Google Analytics. This is because you need to first identify the unique parameters of the individual button you intend to track. You can come back to this step later on and adjust as needed. Set a variable for the button click to be tracked Google tag manager workspace will now give you the option to preview the changes you’ve just made. Preview mode is a convenient feature in Tag Manager as it allows you to browse a site and preview all the changes you’ve made before you hit save and the changes are published. You can then use this debugging feature to inspect the order in which your tags fired. So, click on preview and then enter your domain URL values to begin the debugger. Your set button will then appear in the domain tab. Click on it. Once you click on it, you will see the debugger running. The debugger will then monitor all actions performed by the trigger fires. The intention of this exercise is to find and set parameters for each button click. Source: Pexels.com ‍ Adjust the trigger accordingly in Tag Manager Think of these triggers as listening to your website. It detects specific actions like submissions, button clicks, and page views. The trigger will then

Struggling to make sense of how Google Analytics impacts your SEO? You’re not alone. Many marketers feel overwhelmed by the endless data and unclear metrics, making it difficult to translate analytics into actionable SEO strategies. But what if I told you there’s a way to simplify this process and get clear, actionable insights? In this post, I’ll show you how to turn Google Analytics into your SEO secret weapon—and how Abralytics can make it even easier. To get the most out of Google Analytics for SEO, it’s crucial to understand the connection between your website’s data and your search engine rankings. Analytics isn’t just about tracking visitors; it’s about uncovering patterns that can boost your SEO strategy. However, without the right approach, you might miss valuable insights or get lost in a sea of data. Here’s what we’ll cover in this post to help you unlock the full potential of Google Analytics for your SEO efforts: Understanding Key Metrics: Learn which metrics directly impact SEO and how to interpret them Setting Up Custom Dashboards: Get the data you need at a glance with easy-to-use dashboards. Tracking SEO-Specific Events: Discover how to set up events that highlight SEO performance. Why Abralytics Is a Game-Changer: See how Abralytics can simplify your analytics setup, giving you the tools you need without the clutter of GA4. By the end of this post, you’ll have a clear understanding of how to use Google Analytics to supercharge your SEO efforts, making your data work for you instead of the other way around. Next up, we’ll dive into the specific metrics you need to focus on and how to use them effectively. Understanding Key SEO Metrics ‍ When Looking at GA4, Focus on Organic Traffic‍   Focus on Organic Traffic. This is the lifeblood of your SEO efforts. In Google Analytics, you can filter your traffic sources to see only organic visits. This helps you understand how well your site is attracting visitors through search engines. If your organic traffic is growing, your SEO strategy is likely on the right track. Monitor Bounce Rate for SEO Pages. A high bounce rate on key landing pages could indicate that visitors aren’t finding what they expected. Check the bounce rates of your top-performing SEO pages in GA and identify areas where content might need improvement to better engage visitors. Track Keyword Rankings with Analytics Goals. Set up goals in Google Analytics that tie to specific keyword performance. For example, you could track the number of conversions that come from visitors who found your site through particular keywords. This will help you see which keywords are driving valuable traffic. The metrics you focus on can either guide your SEO efforts or lead you astray. By concentrating on organic traffic, bounce rates, and keyword-related goals, you’ll be better equipped to refine your SEO strategy and achieve better search rankings. ‍ Setting Up Custom SEO Dashboards In Looker Studio This Google Search Console Report Was Created In Looker Studio ‍ Looker Studio (formerly Data Studio) is a powerful tool for creating highly customizable and interactive dashboards. Here’s a guide to setting up SEO dashboards specifically: Google Analytics: Connect your GA4 property using the GA4 connector to get data on website traffic, user behavior, and SEO metrics. Google Search Console: Link your GSC account to access keyword performance, impressions, and click-through rates Start by creating a new dashboard in Looker Studio. Give it a descriptive name. Add Data Sources to Reports: Create new reports within your dashboard and add the connected data sources. Select the relevant SEO metrics and dimensions you want to analyze. Some common examples include: Organic traffic, keyword rankings, impressions, clicks, bounce rate, average session duration, device, browser, location, landing pages, traffic source. Create Charts and Tables: Use Looker Studio’s various chart types (line charts, bar charts, pie charts, tables) to visualize your data effectively. Customize the appearance and formatting of your charts to match your branding and preferences. Implement looker studio filters to segment your data and analyze specific subsets. For example, you could filter by a particular time period, device, or location. Add controls like date pickers, drop-down menus, or sliders to allow users to interact with the dashboard and explore different data points. Branding: Apply your company’s branding to the dashboard, including colors, fonts, and logos. Annotations: Add annotations, text boxes, or images to provide context or highlight key findings. Share your looker studio dashboard with team members or stakeholders for collaboration and insights. Set up scheduled email reports to automatically send updates to relevant recipients. Setting Up Event Tracking in GA4 for SEO This Google Search Console Report Was Created In Looker Studio Google Analytics 4 (GA4) offers a robust event tracking system that allows you to measure user interactions on your website beyond pageviews. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to set it up: Understand GA4 Event Tracking Basics: Event: A user interaction on your website, such as a button click, form submission, or video play. Event Parameters: Additional data points associated with an event, like the button’s label, the form’s field values, or the video’s duration. Enable Enhanced Measurement: Go to your GA4 property settings. Under “Data Data Streams,” enable “Enhanced measurement.” This will automatically track common events like page views, scrolls, outbound clicks, and site search Create Custom Events: For more granular tracking, you can create custom events. In the GA4 interface, navigate to “Configure” > “Events.” Click “Create Event.” Give your event a name and optional parameters. ‍ Using Abralytics as a GA4 Alternative If you’re finding GA4 too complex or overwhelming, Abralytics offers a simpler, more user-friendly alternative. Streamlined Interface: Abralytics is designed with simplicity in mind, offering a clean and intuitive interface. This makes it easier to navigate and find the data you need without the clutter of unnecessary features. Privacy-Focused Analytics: Unlike Google Analytics, Abralytics emphasizes user privacy. You own 100% of your data, and there’s no need for cookie banners, which ensures compliance with GDPR and other

Site performance refers to the speed at which your site loads and displays on a user’s web browser or mobile device. This includes all content, such as text, images and videos. While it’s obvious that factors such as your industry and the product or service you offer will affect conversions, can the speed at which a page loads make or break your business? ‍ According to the latest statistics, the answer to that question is a resounding yes! ‍ Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich ‍ Below are 24 statistics that prove just how important faster page loading times are: #1 The first 5 seconds of page load time have the highest impact on conversion rates. Rates drop by an average of 4.42% with each second of load time between seconds 0-5. Website conversion rates drop by a further 2.11% with each additional second of load time between seconds 5-9. (portent.com) #2 According to a recent study by Deloitte, with just a 0.1s improvement in site speed, retail consumers spent almost 10% more, while lead generation and luxury consumers engaged more, with page views increasing by 7% and 8% respectively. (Deloitte) #3  Nearly half of all visitors will leave a mobile website if the pages don’t load within 3 seconds. (Think with Google) According to Statistica, mobile devices account for 48% of web traffic in the U.S., and 54% of web traffic worldwide. If your mobile page takes longer than 3 seconds to load, that’s a significant amount of potential customers that you’ve lost before they’ve even seen your product. #4 Transactional pages need to have the fastest loading times. Checkout, login, and product category pages are most important as traffic to these pages is most likely to convert into paying customers. To Improve transaction conversions, aim for a 0-2 Second Load Time. (Portent.com) ‍ #5 The longer the load time, the higher the bounce rates. The probability of bounce increases 32% as page load time goes from 1 second to 3 seconds, and by 90% when the page load time goes from one to five seconds. (Google/SOASTA Research, 2017) ‍ ‍Photo by Anna Tarazevich ‍ #6 Nearly 70% of consumers admit that page speed impacts their willingness to buy from an online retailer. (Unbounce) ‍ #7  Amazon would lose $1.6 billion a year if their site slowed down by just 1 second. (websitebuilderexpert.com) ‍ ‍ #8 The optimal time for a full mobile page load is less than 3.1 seconds. Anything less than 3.1 seconds would put you in the best 20% of sites we benchmark for time before full mobile page load, and less than 2.5 seconds would put you in the best 10%. Time before a full mobile page-load of more than 6.6 seconds would put you in the worst 20% of sites, and more than 8.3 seconds would put you in the worst-performing sites. (LittleData) ‍ #9 The optimal time for a full desktop page load is 2.8 seconds. Anything less than 2.8 seconds would put you in the best 20% of sites we benchmark for time before full desktop page load, and less than 2.2 seconds would put you in the best 10%. Time before full desktop page load of more than 6.1 seconds would put you in the worst 20% of sites, and more than 7.7 seconds would put you in the worst-performing sites. (LittleData) ‍ #10 88.5% say slow loading pages are the main reason why they would leave a website. (Review42.com) ‍ #11 39% of people will stop engaging with a website if images won’t load or take too long to load. (Hubspot) ‍ #12 Even if you’re not in the e-commerce business, mobile speed can still impact your sales. For example, after BMW revamped their mobile site to provide a reliable and smooth web experience even under poor network conditions, the percentage of visitor’s clicking through to the BMW sales site increased from 8% to 30%, 4 times higher than before. (thinkwithGoogle) ‍ Photo by cottonbro‍ #13 The majority of web users would be willing to give up animations and video if it meant site pages would load faster. When used correctly, video marketing can be a powerful part of our SEO strategy. But it could also negatively impact conversion rates if not optimized to load quickly and efficiently. (Unbounce) ‍ #14  A 1 second delay reduces customer satisfaction by 16%. (Abtasty.com) ‍ #15 In 2021, Vodafone improved its LCP by 30%, which led to an overall 8% increase in sales. The LCPis the amount of time it takes for a page’s main content to load.  (hobo-web.co.uk) ‍ #16 Website owners have only 5 seconds to catch a visitor’s attention. Most users would rather spend several extra minutes browsing fast-responding but irrelevant websites, than waiting for relevant pages to load. (kinsta.com) ‍ #17 Retail sites had a 9.2% increase in average order value when load time was decreased by just one-tenth of a second.  (Deloitte) ‍ #18 Over  45% of people admit they are less likely to make a purchase if an e-commerce site loads slower than expected. (Unbounce) ‍ #19 52 percent of online shoppers stated that fast loading pages are important to their site loyalty. (hobo-web.co.uk) Photo by Sora Shimazaki ‍ ‍ #20 When pages load in less than 1 second, the average conversion rate is almost 32%. At a 1-second load time, the conversion rate already drops to 20%. At 2 seconds, the conversion rate begins to level off at 12-13% and reaches its lowest at a 5-second load time. (portent.com) ‍ #21 Mobile sites that load in five seconds or fewer earn twice as much as sites that take 19 seconds to load. (blog.google) ‍ #22 79% of shoppers who have trouble with site performance say they won’t return to the site to buy again.(neilpatel.com) ‍ #23 It takes 50 milliseconds for a user to form an impression of your website. Page load time will be the first impression you make. (researchgate) ‍ #24 85% of users expect a

When it comes to heavy hitters in Website Analytics, few can pack a punch like Google Analytics and Hubspot. ‍ Hubspot is an end-to-end SaaS platform that offers Website Analytics and other tools, such as Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software.  In the words of Hubspot itself, helping customers and businesses ‘Grow Better’. (1) ‍ But Hubspot offers much more than web analytics. It’s an integrated marketing, sales, customer service, operations, and CRM software platform. When customers use the Hubspot Web Analytics tool in conjunction with all these other SAAS tools, the overall workflow of their company will improve. ‍ Google Analytics also allows a person to track interactions with a website or app, allowing the user to understand better how others respond to the content of their site. ‍ Both platforms have been around since 2005 and have helped millions of people track website traffic and performance. ‍ Let’s look at what these Analytics Tools have in common and where they differ. “If statistics are boring, you’ve got the wrong numbers.” Edward Tufte, Statistician ‍ But first, if you’re new to the world of Website Analytics, you’ll find several terms often repeated. Here’s a brief explanation of a few of them to help you better understand our article: Landing pages The first page on a website that a visitor “lands” on after clicking on a link or ad Organic search Visitors to a site who chose to navigate there after an internet search. They aren’t there as a result of paid advertising or something similar. Paid search The traffic that arrives on a website as a result of paid means only. For example, they might have landed on your page by clicking an ad that popped up in search results. Traffic sources Refers to the origin from which people found your website. This could be from a Google search, clicking on an ad, social networks, or directly typing your site’s URL into a search bar. Single session The time a user is active on your site or app. A session can end after 30 minutes of inactivity or when a user leaves your site. CTA clicks Call To Action clicks or buttons could be an image or line of text that prompts your visitors to take a specific desired action. ‍ What do HubSpot and Google Analytics have in common? ‍ Most analytical software share a few standard features. Here are 5 similarities that might interest you. Traffic Analytics Both Hubspot and Google Analytics allow you to track the number of visitors to your website. ‍ Screenshot: Hubspot Sample Site‍ ‍ Hubspot allows you to view your web traffic in a weekly, monthly, and yearly view. It makes good use of graphs and line bars to help the user visualize how many visitors reach a website. ‍ It also gives you a breakdown of how many users have arrived at your website as a means of direct traffic, paid social campaigns, paid searches, organic searches, and other means. ‍ The report is customizable, meaning that you can change the view to see where your users are based geographically. ‍ Google Analytics has an even more in-depth take on traffic reporting. For instance, it shows the user which type of devices visitors use and tracks new and recurring visitors. Page Views Hubspot enables you to check the metrics of individual website pages, such as your blog posts, landing pages, and white pages. You can also toggle your page views report to display metrics of all the pages together, which will give you an overview of the site as a whole. ‍ But it doesn’t end there. Hubspot also lets you see other important properties regarding your pages, such as the bounce rate, the exit rate, and CTA buttons. This helps dissect user behavior, allowing you to tailor individual pages to boost conversion rates. ‍ Google Analytics differentiates between page views and unique page views, which are explained in-depth in the article ‘Google Analytics Page Views by URL.’ ‍ GA offers the page views abilities as Hubspot and with the addition of unique page views tracking. Goal Setting Ability Source: Pexels.com‍ ‍ You set goals in your analytics tool to assess your website’s overall performance. This is especially important for e-commerce websites because you can see where people are more likely to click and spend money. ‍ Hubspot can set goals for specific pages or teams within your organization. You can rename a goal and set the category to best suit the description, such as sales goals. ‍ You can then track the progress in weekly or monthly reports. ‍ Google Analytics allows you to set goals for specific conversions, such as a form submission or video view.  You can then assign a value to these goals so that Google Analytics knows how much these actions are worth to your company. ‍ This, in turn, helps GA focus its reports according to what the user sees the most value in. Conversion Rates High conversion rates mean your website is doing well in the areas you want it to, while low conversion rates give you room for improvement. Source: Pexels.com‍ ‍ Hubspot allows you to set up goals on individual pages to track conversions, like CTA button clicks. ‍ While Google Analytics shows you the same metrics as Hubspot, it goes a bit further by allowing you to see every visitor interaction in a single session. Sources Question: Why is it important to understand the traffic sources arriving at your website? ‍ Answer: There are several reasons. For instance, you can check the diversity of your audience. This will allow you to make needed changes to ensure a site’s longevity, as you won’t be relying on visitors from only one medium, such as paid traffic. ‍ Another important reason to understand the true traffic source is that you can gauge the Return-On-Investment (ROI) of your marketing campaigns. You want to know if it’s worth the time and effort you put into individual

The straight-up answer Yes, Google Analytics is rather hard to learn. It’s not the type of platform you just sign up for and instinctively know how to use. ‍ The difficulty will depend on ‍ Previous experience How familiar you are with SEO strategies Which method you choose to learn ‍ Let’s take a closer look. Factors influencing how difficult it will be to learn GA: Previous Experience ‍ Do you have prior experience in traditional marketing? Do you spend your free time watching the latest keyword research videos on YouTube? ‍ Have you designed websites for friends and family as a hobby? ‍ All these interests and skills will make it easier for you to understand Google Analytics jargon and concepts. The better your foundation, the easier it will be to build on. Source: Pexels ‍ Knowledge of Digital Marketing and SEO ‍ General knowledge of SEO strategies will give you a running start in learning Google Analytics. It’s one thing to know how a program works, but quite another to understand how to use that data to make better decisions. ‍ You’ll also be more familiar with GA terms like metrics, KPIs, and Funnel conversions. All this means less time Googling terms and more time learning the tricks of the trade. Which method you choose to learn ‍ Can you learn Google Analytics on your own? ‍ If there’s one takeaway from this article, it’s this: DON’T! ‍ Trying to learn GA by simply watching a few YouTube videos and reading blog articles will take weeks. ‍ Don’t get me wrong, there are MANY quality articles and videos out there and you should absolutely take advantage of them to supplement your learning. ‍ But the best way to learn is to sign up for an actual Google Analytics course. This way, you know it will take X hours and can plan accordingly. Best Google Analytics training Google Analytics Academy: Google Analytics for Beginners ‍ Google designed this course for absolute beginners. It is best for startups, blogs and small business owners who are not ready to hire a digital marketer. ‍ Course duration: 4 – 6 hours ‍ Cost: Free ‍ Google Analytics for beginners includes all the analytics essentials: ‍ How to set up Google Analytics, as well as views and filters Understanding and sharing reports Basic reports: Audience, Acquisition & Behaviour Basic campaign and conversion tracking ‍ And once you’re done learning the basics, you can move on to the Advanced Google Analytics course.  To supplement your learning, there’s also the Google Analytics YouTube channel. ‍ Source: Pexels‍ Reliablesoft Academy: Google Analytics Course ‍ As part of the Digital Marketing course bundle, this course is ideal for beginners and those with prior knowledge of GA. ‍ If you want to learn how the platform works and get a well-rounded knowledge of SEO, this is the course for you. Recommended for small business owners and aspiring digital marketers. ‍ Course duration: 8 hours ‍ Cost: $119 ‍ Reliablesoft’s course includes: ‍ How to use Google Analytics for SEO purposes Advanced analytics, including creating goals and sales funnels Google Analytics 4 basics Google Analytics reports ‍ CXL: Google Analytics Intermediate ‍ This course is designed for those with a good foundation in Google Analytics. It can be described as a masterclass that helps you level up your GA skills. ‍ Course duration: 6 hours ‍ Cost: 7 day free trial, then +/- $140/month ‍ Google Analytics Intermediate includes: ‍ How to measure the customer journey funnel step-by-step How to create custom reports How to minimize spam in your data How to customize your marketing channels Can I get a Google Analytics certification? ‍ Yes – To do so, you’ll need to pass the Google Analytics Individual Qualification (QAIQ) exam. The exam should take approximately 1 hour to complete, and it’s recommended you first complete both the beginner and advanced GA academy courses before you do so. ‍ Note there are now 2 certifications – Universal and GA4. Should I learn Univeral GA or GA4? Google has announced that starting July 2023, they will no longer process data in UA. ‍ Although many principles and terms will remain the same, there are also considerable differences between the two platforms. ‍ So if you choose to learn how to use UA first, make sure to supplement your learning with content focused on GA4 as well. What makes learning Google Analytics a challenge? Source: Pexels‍ ‍ Google Analytics gathers an enormous quantity of information and compiles reports for just about anything you can imagine. ‍ Even if you want only basic data, it’s easy to be overwhelmed by all the information provided. The program also uses a lot of technical jargon, familiar only to those in the industry. ‍ This complexity means there is a steep learning curve. And the more complex the data you need, the more difficult it becomes to learn. Is Google Analytics worth learning? It depends.  ‍ If you want a career as a digital marketer, you’ll have very little choice but to learn how the world’s most popular analytics platform works. ‍ And knowing your way around GA will give you a very valuable skill that could land you some pretty cool jobs. In fact, the demand for people with web analytics skills will only increase going forward. ‍ On the other hand, if you are self-employed or a personal blog writer, it may not be worth the trouble. Also, as a small business owner, you probably won’t have much time to learn how an analytics tool works. Your focus will be on developing your product or service, hiring new staff or choosing the perfect office space for your company. ‍ Even though Google Analytics might be free, it doesn’t mean it’s the best option. There are other alternatives that deliver data reports for just a small monthly fee – minus the steep learning curve. ‍ So instead of spending hours wrapping your head around

In January 2022, the Austrian Data Protection Authority ruled that Austrian websites that use Google Analytics are breaching the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This recent ruling has its roots in a ruling known as Schrems II, which was made by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in 2020. The CJEU stated that US cloud service providers are not capable of complying with EU privacy laws, including GDPR. This non-compliance is inevitable due to US surveillance laws, which require US cloud service providers to hand over users’ personal data to the US authorities. Despite tech companies warning that this ruling would have severe consequences for companies and users on both sides of the Atlantic, many companies in both the US and the EU simply ignored the 2020 case. However, one Austrian business has now ended up in court as a result of ignoring the regulations. The company could be facing a fine of up to 20 million euros, as well as reputation damage. ‍ What Happened in the Austrian Case? The European Center for Digital Rights brought the case against the Austrian company. They found that IP addresses, which GDPR classes as personal data, were transmitted in cookie data to the US, in breach of the regulations. This illegal data transmission occurred as a result of the company using Google Analytics to monitor traffic to its site. The Austrian Data Protection Authority took the bold step of ruling that Austrian websites that use Google Analytics are breaching GDPR. According to Max Schrems, who is honorary chair of the European Center for Digital Rights, similar decisions could now occur in most EU member states. The organization has filed already filed over 100 complaints in almost all EU countries. ‍ What Does This Mean for EU Website Providers? Many website providers use Google Analytics to gain insight into how visitors find, navigate, and interact with their websites. However, for website owners in Austria — and perhaps soon in all other EU countries — continuing to use Google Analytics no longer remains a legal option. Any business currently using Google Analytics should remove it from their website immediately to avoid violating GDPR, which could lead to a significant fine and loss of reputation. ‍ Are There Legal Alternatives to Google Analytics? The good news for EU website providers is that there is no need to give up using analytics technology altogether. Analyzing website traffic is an essential part of understanding how visitors use your website and working out how you can improve your site to serve them more effectively. Thankfully, there are plenty of alternatives to Google Analytics that do not use cookies and are compliant with privacy regulations in the EU. Abralytics is a cookie-free and privacy-focused website analytics service. In addition to respecting the privacy of website visitors, Abralytics also focuses on delivering information to website providers that is jargon-free, easy to understand, and immediately actionable. It can even provide insights in as little as 20% of the time that Google Analytics takes. Abralytics works with all major website building platforms, such as WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, or Shopify. Most EU website providers who are currently risking breaking the law by using Google Analytics could quickly and easily switch over to Abralytics to keep their visitors’ data — and their own reputations — safe. Another alternative to Google Analytics is Plausible.io. This open-source web analytics software is lightweight, cookie-free, and fully compliant with GDPR. Plausible.io was created in the EU and is still hosted there, which means that it is a great choice for businesses that are keen to ensure compliance with all EU legislation. One advantage of using a cookie-free alternative to Google Analytics is that there is no need to obtain GDPR consent from website users. That means no annoying cookie banners — just a website working in the way it was designed to give a great experience to all visitors. ‍ Do EU Businesses Need to Act Now? As of January 2022, only Austria has ruled that Google Analytics is illegal — but similar rulings are expected to follow in most if not all other EU member states. Website providers in all EU countries must take action now to avoid fines and reputation damage. It is time for websites across Europe to ditch Google Analytics in favor of a privacy-friendly web analytics alternative. Sign up for a 30-day free trial of Abralytics today and protect your business.

Google Analytics has been setting the standard for analytics platforms since its launch on November 14th, 2005. ‍ It tracks website data which gives users the needed insights to improve their pages and optimize their conversion rates. Google Analytics soon grew into the most used analytics tool in the world, commanding an impressive 85% market share. (1) ‍ People have noted this success and since developed their own analytical software to rival it. ‍ Companies like Kissmetrics, founded in 2008, have provided users with viable alternative tracking tools. ‍ There are many reasons why you should switch to a google analytics alternative. But let’s take a closer look at both Kissmetrics and Google Analytics and help you figure out which platform would suit your needs. The similarities between Kissmetrics and Google Analytics Google Analytics helps users identify behavioral patterns of website visitors, telling you where they’re from, how long they stayed on a page, and what action was completed on a page if any before they clicked away. ‍ This conversion tracking helps users of GA adapt their pages to optimize results. ‍ Google Analytics tracks all the important metrics that users need to know about and offers a great summary of these in the form of a table, chart, and graph. Users are able to set up custom reports that are tailored to their goals and needs. ‍ Kissmetrics also helps companies understand customer behavior. They offer detailed customer delivery reports which help you track daily, weekly, and monthly users. ‍ It also allows you to see the most popular pages on your site, so you know where the most interest is. ‍ At first glance it might seem like both analytics tools do the same thing, right? ‍ Well, there are a few significant differences. Have a look at these: Differences between Kissmetrics and Google Analytics The kind of Data they track Google Analytics tracks anonymous data, meaning that they base their results on a large sample of visitors. So Google Analytics tells you about the overall traffic performance of a site and the top trends on a webpage. ‍ They make use of software called Google Tag Manager to track visitor interactions. The Tag Manager then allows you to set up certain event tracking, which when triggered will be counted in their report. ‍ Kissmetrics connects all their data to a specific person. This means that their reports are more personalized and focused on specific users. As can be seen in the screenshot below, this reporting tool allows you to hone in on individual visitors and track their interactions with your app or website. ‍ ‍Credit: Kissmetrics.com Data Accuracy Because Google Analytics makes use of anonymous tracking, they assume that each visit is a new person. This leads to inaccurate conversion rates. ‍ Kissmetrics knows when a single user accesses your website from different devices or browsers. Because it ties all this data together, conversion reports are more accurate. Customer Journey What is a customer journey? ‍ It’s the path of interactions an individual has with your product or services, from the moment they land on your first page, until after they’ve made a purchase or acted in a desired way, until the moment they leave your page. ‍ Google Analytics tracks sessions, not visitors, so you can’t build up customer journeys. GA helps a person understand what’s happening on their website before a purchase happens, but leaves many questions about the entire experience of individual users. ‍ Kissmetrics tracks the entire customer journey and shows you the drop-offs right throughout. This means that vendors know at which stage their potential customers have opted out of a purchase, including the time after they’ve added an item to the e-Commerce checkout cart. Marketing Funnels What is a funnel? A funnel is a series of steps or events that a user takes that lead to a conversion. ‍ It’s important to set up custom funnel reporting as it will help you visualize the steps that customers take to ultimately complete a task on your website. Knowing this helps you improve your site and reduce inefficient or abandoned customer journeys. ‍ Credit: GA4Bigquery.com‍ ‍ In your funnel reports, Google Analytics will show you important metrics such as Visitors, Bounce Rate, Time on site, and Exits. As seen in the image above, these metrics are tied to sessions, not individual visitors. ‍ As mentioned, Kissmetrics ties data to individual people, so their funnel report will give you data on one user source. This allows you to increase conversion rates over time. Support No matter how many white pages you study or how many tutorials you watch, sooner or later everyone needs a real human that can help resolve issues and give needed advice on the day-to-day use of the analytics tool. ‍ Even though Google Analytics has always offered support in the form of e-mail platforms and online Q&A they do not offer live support to those who use the free version. ‍ Kissmetrics offers live support with setting up their platform and also live communication with a real person (not a bot) when you need their help. ‍ E-commerce data tracking Google Analytics has long since been an attractive tool for small and medium e-commerce businesses. ‍ It offers some of the most important reports any vendor would need insight into, namely ‍ Enhanced Commerce Reports These consist of Campaign views, Campaign clicks, Product views, Product clicks, Product detail page views, Shopping cart additions, Shopping cart changes, Shopping cart abandonment, Coupon code activity, Purchase activity, Refund requests Average order value (AOV), and other metrics. ‍ Goal Flow Reports Helps businesses identify ‘stuck’ points for customers and leverage these points to better their return on investment. ‍ Users Flow Reports Helps you understand how visitors to your website are navigating their way through your web pages. By comparing the desired path to the actual paths, e-commerce managers can make user experience adjustments to better serve their prospective customers. ‍ Channel

Google Analytics helps you track your website traffic. The Google Analytics dashboard helps you see all your data in one place. Important metrics such as page visits, page views, and the average duration of visits to a page can all be determined by the software. It goes without saying then, that it is super important for all this traffic data to be up to date to reflect the latest site statistics, also known as data freshness. What is real-time data? Real-time data basically refers to what is currently happening on your website or app. Real-time reports show you where the traffic to your site is from and what path they followed to get there, like following links. However, Google Analytics can’t automatically retrieve information from your web browser. First of all, the data needs to be structured, grouped, and retrieved for viewing. This is a lengthy process and may delay updates. To resolve the problem, Google introduced Realtime Reporting technology. Real-time event tracking will update your statistics whenever users interact with one of your sites. It also helps you check how much time a site takes to load and which pages perform best. For real-time analysis of Google Data, you need to specifically state that you want the feature. To do this, click on Google Analytics, go through the “Report” tab then click on “Reality Time” and “Review.” How can real-time tracking help you? Source: Pexels ‍ Here are a few examples of what real-time tracking can be used for: Track the effectiveness of your content shared on social networks by tracking the ‘hits per’ rate. Follow up on e-mail campaigns and see the click rate. View new visitors to your site and which pages they visited. Monitor whether changes made to a site are reaching their expected goals. Ensure that a tracking code is working correctly. These are just a few of the advantages of having your Google Analytics update at the very least every 24 hours. Does Google Analytics support real-time alerts? No, Google Analytics does not support real-time alerts at the time of writing this article (May 2022) Google does however enable the user to set alerts to daily, weekly, and monthly. Is Google Analytics in real-time? According to Google, data is processed and analytics accounts are updated every 24-48 hours. Google has also reported that some standard accounts that send more than 200,000 sessions per day to analytics will only be refreshed once a day. But they have not specifically stated how long it takes to update other information that may be associated with your Google Analytics account such as commerce data. This would mean that reports could be delayed up to two days at most as data collected by your Google Analytics account first needs to be processed. So even though you might be viewing the latest site statistics update, your Google Analytics dashboard lags behind a day or two. The intra-day processing of Google accounts can however be toggled by reducing the number of hits your Google account sends to less than 200,000. By doing this you will track only the most recent data in your account and receive reports based on the last 24 hours. Pro tip: Abralytics is a Google Analytics alternative that shows your data instantly and in real time. ‍ Source Pexels‍ A final thought Anyone running a small business or company will know that missing out on the smallest opportunity can be detrimental to your success. Using Google Analytics or a similar analytics tool such as Abralytics is key to your success. So stay on top of your analytics data and make sure that every analytics update reflects current-day data collection. ‍

So you’ve heard that web analytics is key to the success of any website, and maybe you’ve spent some time trying out Matamo’s platform. And while Matomo is a fantastic product, perhaps you’ve realized it’s just not the right fit for you. Maybe it’s not user-friendly enough for newbies or you may be craving more advanced features that meet the specific needs of your business. We’re here to help! If you’re ready to discover the five best Matomo alternatives, read on as we discuss Matomo and its five best options; their differences, pros and cons, the best alternative for different user types and FAQs. 5 Best Matomo Alternatives 1. Abralytics ‍ At Abralytics, we love our product and will shamelessly include it as number 1 on our list – Because we believe it’s that good! Let me tell you why. Abralytics is a web analytics tool that measures, analyzes, and reports web data to optimize website usage so that you can make better data-driven decisions to achieve your business goals. As a digital marketer, Abralytics can help you see what to adjust on your marketing funnel for a better conversion rate. And you can also be sure of an analytics solution that stores data efficiently. The web tracking tool offers features such as: conversion tracking campaign and multiple site management site search referral source and  time-on-site tracking form analytics keyword and goal tracking 100% data ownership user interaction and pageview tracking Matomo vs. Abralytics  Matomo and Abralytics perform similar functions like data collection, storage, protection, and report generation. However, they have some features that set them apart from each other. Apart from their user interface and other features, the core differences are the pricing plans, trackable metrics, and loading speed. Pricing Plans For Matomo, you can choose between Matomo Cloud and Matomo On-Premise. Matomo Cloud: Just like Google Analytics, this version of Matomo is cloud-hosted. Matomo cloud price plan runs from $0 (free for 21 days) to $15,250. Matomo On-Premise: Matomo On-Premise in itself is FREE. But for better analytics, you can get some specific bundles at a cost. Examples of these bundles are SEO web vitals (from $86.67 per annum), multi-channel conversion attribution (from $86.67 per annum), and Roll-Up reporting (from $218.33 per annum), etc. Abralytics has three packages; Basic, standard, and Enterprise. And before you sign up, you have the option of running a 30-day free trial that allows you to test out the full range of features. Basic:  $19/month – best for small businesses & early-stage start-ups Standard:  $49/month – best for companies with significant traffic or web agencies Enterprise:  $149+/month – best for enterprises or  web agencies with large amounts of traffic ‍ Differences In Their Tracking Features ‍ Both platforms monitor metrics such as real-time users, referrers, user locations, top-performing landing pages, top exit pages, device and operating system, traffic sources, etc. But let’s take a closer look at their tracking limitations and see which of the two offers better-advanced tracking options. If you choose the Basic Matomo Cloud as your product analytics software, you can only add  30 users,  150 goals, 100 segments, 30 websites, and 30 custom dimensions. However, with Abralytics, you have Unlimited websites, 10m+ monthly events, unlimited users, email reports, data export, white-label, custom domain, and API access. ‍ Loading Speed ‍ The loading speed of a website is proportional to the size of the script. As a result, the smaller the script’s size, the faster the website is. Abralytics script weighs less than 4 KB, compared to Matomo’s 22.8 KB. This means it will load 6x faster than Matamo! So, if you desire a web analytics tool that loads with blazing speed, you should opt for Abralytics. Why Is Abralytics A Great Matomo Alternative? Source: Pexels ‍ User-friendly Interface With Abralytics, you can easily navigate its interface and dashboard to find out what’s working and what needs improvement within just two minutes of interacting with the website. Privacy Abralytics prioritizes privacy by replacing cookies with anonymous measurements. So if you’re concerned about user privacy, you need not worry because Abralytics is fully compliant with GDPR, CCPA, and PECR. ‍ Who Can Use Abralytics? In short – Everyone! From a one-person show to a vast enterprise, Abralytics is for you. Because of our pricing structure, small businesses on a tight budget won’t need to pay for unnecessary extras. While larger businesses or web agencies can choose a plan which allows them to access larger volumes of data and reports. 2. Google Analytics ‍Source: Google Analytics Why Is Google Analytics A Great Matomo Alternative? Users’ Segmentation ‍ Google Analytics segments your website users into different groups based on their characteristics. With this, you can understand your website visitors better by zooming in on a specific area of the user metric. ‍ You can create custom segments in addition to the system segments specified by Google Analytics to make better data-driven decisions. eCommerce Conversion Tracking ‍ With Google Analytics, you can easily set up eCommerce conversion tracking. Furthermore, this shows what happens after a user interacts with your ad. Who Can Use Google Analytics? ‍ According to W3techs, about 85% of all websites use Google Analytics to track website traffic. These include top companies like YouTube, Instagram, Zoom, etc. ‍ The free version, now known as GA4, is ideal for individual users and small businesses with less website traffic, while the paid version is best for big enterprises. ‍ However, those new to analytics might find a steep learning curve because of its interface and complex dashboard. Google Analytics is ideal for those with experience because of the jargon, the sheer number of reports, and other advanced analytics features it has. ‍ For a more in-depth article on how Matamo compares with Google Analytics, click here. 3. MonsterInsights ‍Source: MonsterInsights Dashboard ‍ Do you want a Matomo alternative for your WordPress website? MonsterInsights is a great web analytics tool for you! It allows you to track your website analytics without writing code.

Congratulations! You’ve successfully used the GoDaddy website builder to create a killer site. And now you need to know how to install Google Analytics on your site. Follow our easy step-by-step guide and we’ll get you there in no time. ‍ Photo by OVAN Why add Google Analytics to your GoDaddy website? Google Analytics is a free platform that enables you to check how your website is doing. Google Analytics reports give you insight into who your visitors are, what brought them to your site and how much time they spend there. Based on these reports, you can determine which of your paid marketing campaigns have been successful, if your content is engaging enough and if you’re targeting the right customers. How to install Google Analytics on a Godaddy Website? ‍ Step 1 ‍ Go to www.godaddy.com, login to your GoDaddy account and navigate to your Product Page ‍ Step 2 ‍ Open your site by scrolling to Websites & Marketing, and select Manage ‍ Step 3 ‍ Select Edit Website ‍ Step 4 ‍ Select Settings ‍ Step 5 ‍ Select  Google Analytics ‍ Step 5 ‍ If you haven’t already created a Google Analytics account, now is the time to do so. Then copy your unique Tracking I.D. (or Visitor Analytics tracking code) from your analytics Google Analytics account and paste it into the Tracking I.D. field. Need help finding your Tracking I.D? Follow the step-by-step instructions here. ‍ Step 6 ‍ That’s it! All that’s left is for you to publish your site and your Google Analytics tracking code will be activated. How soon can I start reviewing Analytics reports? ‍ Wait at least 24 hours for Google to gather enough data to compile a report. The longer the period it’s up and running, the more comprehensive the reports will become.  Your website will now be referred to as a Google Analytics property. ‍ If you’re a newbie and only just signed up for a Google Analytics account, check out our article on What is a metric? And see how they help you measure the success of your site. ‍ P.s for instant reports without the delay, try Abralytics, the simpler alternative that displays your website data instantly – no need to wait 24 hours! ‍ What is a Google Analytics Tracking ID? A Tracking ID is a unique code created by Google Analytics for your website. Once inserted into each of the web pages, it allows Google to track the activity on those pages and compile reports. Your Google Analytics code should look similar to this: ‍ Tracking ID UA-54516992-1 Feeling overwhelmed by the complexity of Google Analytics? Abralytics is an alternative website analytic tool that gives you all the best bits of Google Analytics in simple, jargon-free reports. Sign up for a 30-day free trial here. ‍ Happy Tracking! ‍