Google Analytics enables users to dig deep into the numbers of how their website and online content is connecting with visitors. Regardless of the key performance indicators (KPIs) that matter most for your business, you’ll find what you need. But with so much information at your fingertips, how do you know which metrics are most telling?

The following are the top 5 metrics in Google Analytics that all users should monitor:

  1. Traffic — All metrics begin with total website traffic. How many people are visiting your site? Is the number of visitors trending up or down? Does certain types of content draw more traffic than others? These are all questions you can answer by reviewing total traffic numbers.
  2. Bounce Rate — You may be getting a ton of traffic, but how quickly are those visitors going away? Bounce rate lets you know the number of people who come to your site but immediately leave. If you have a high bounce rate, you need to determine why visitors aren’t sticking around.
  3. Traffic Source — Where are your visitors coming from? With Google Analytics, you can see if visitors are coming to your site organically — from general search, directly because they typed in your URL, via referral from other sites, or from social networking channels. Understanding how people reach your site lets you know what areas to better focus your efforts.
  4. Conversion — If you provide products through your website, or want visitors to complete a step, conversion rates let you know the percentage of success. Low conversion rates may indicate your site isn’t compelling visitors to act or buy. You can study conversion to find methods of increasing your rate.
  5. Total Pageviews — Digging into your traffic numbers in Analytics can show you which pages on your site are drawing the most interest. Perhaps one set of items or topics on your site gets a substantially greater number of pageviews. You can use that information to find ways to increase opportunities to draw more traffic.

Are you using Google Analytics on your website? What results are you seeing? To talk to us about how you can better leverage this tool, contact us today.