It’s no secret we
love data, especially when that data is actionable and allows us to be better
marketers, web developers, and content creators. Enter: marketing analytics!
Luckily, there are a
host of marketing analytics tools out there -- we here at HubSpot, for
instance, offer closed-loop analytics and reporting to give you a comprehensive
understanding of your buying cycle. But there are also free tools out there you
can use as either standalone tools, or in conjunction with paid tools.
The most popular?
Google Analytics. It's easy to use if you're willing to roll up your sleeves a
bit, and provides a wealth of data on the people coming to your website. With
just a few easy steps that I'll outline in this post, you can get you up and
running with this powerful tool in no time.
Why
Install Google Analytics?
Knowing things like
where your website visitors are coming from, how they found you, what content
they viewed, and how long they stayed on parts of your site can provide you
with infinite insight into your buyer personas and provide countless
data-backed optimization opportunities. Combine this information with a
closed-loop analytics platform that connects data on site visitor behavior with
lead intelligence and customer data and you, my friend, are in prime position
to take your marketing effectiveness to the next level. And who doesn't want
that?
First
Things First: Make Sure You Can Edit Your Website
Before opening up
this proverbial can of worms, please do yourself a favor and make sure you have
access to make edits to your website through a content management system (CMS).
If not, you’ll need to work with someone else, probably a web developer or
someone in IT, who can install the tracking code for you.
If your website is
hosted on HubSpot, you're in luck! Just follow these quick steps to get
started.
Without access to
your website’s back end, you’re not going to make much progress, so hold off on
reading any further until you've successfully met one of these two conditions.
Access
Your Google Analytics Tracking Code
Once you’re sure you
will be able to make edits to your website, we can move on to securing the
appropriate Google Analytics tracking code. Log into your Google Analytics
account and click ‘Admin’ in the upper right hand side of the page. Select the
appropriate Account and Property, then click ‘Tracking Info’ in the middle
column labeled ‘Property’.
Click ‘Tracking Code’
under ‘Tracking Info’ to access the website tracking code you’ll need to
install on your website. On this page, you’ll see a box with multiple lines of
code. Be sure to copy the entire tracking code, beginning with <script>
all the way through to </script>.
Note: Some
CMSs have certain themes that include a built-in Google Analytics plugin. These
plugins only require you to enter in your Google Analytics Tracking ID to
complete analytics setup. If this is the case, you only need to copy the
Tracking ID beginning with ‘UA-’ located at the top of the page. Each Google
Analytics property created in your account will be assigned a unique Tracking
ID. Make sure to use the appropriate Tracking ID or code for each domain.
Add
Tracking Code in the Right Place
With your
tracking code in hand, you’re ready to install!
Log into your CMS and
access your site’s HTML code. The script must be placed at the top of your
website page, immediately before the </head> tag that appears on each
page you want to track. As I mentioned earlier, some CMSs, including HubSpot,
have a separate section where you can easily add either your tracking code or
tracking ID. Make sure you look into your CMSs setup to ensure proper
installation.
For HubSpot
Customers
If you’re already a
HubSpot user, you can follow these quick steps to install your Google Analytics
tracking code on all HubSpot-hosted website pages. Just remember, following
these steps will allow you to gather, access, and manage this data in Google Analytics
only, not in your HubSpot account.
And We’re
Off to the (Tracking) Races!
Basic analytics
tracking is now installed on your website. You’ll notice that most of the
reports under ‘Standard Reporting’ in Google Analytics will be delayed in
populating data (up to 24 hours), but you can check the ‘Real Time’ tracking
section in your Google Analytics account to start seeing data immediately.
Be sure to verify
your installation is properly set up by revisiting the Tracking Code section --
located at Admin >> Tracking Info >> Tracking Code -- a few hours
after you install the code. You’ll see a section labeled ‘Tracking Status
Information’ at the top of the page. You want the status to read ‘Tracking
Installed,’ which tells us the code is working as designed and data is being
pulling into Google Analytics accurately. If the status reads ‘Waiting for
Data,’ Google Analytics has found the tracking code on your homepage and is
still working to gather the data into reports. In short, just give it some more
time.
If the status is
‘Tracking Not Installed’ or ‘Not Verified,’ follow Google’s recommendations to
troubleshoot the problem to ensure proper installation.
Knowing what visitors
are doing on your website is essential to making smart, data-driven marketing
decisions. With Google Analytics, you can begin to understand how people are
navigating your website and respond appropriately to the story the data is
telling you.
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