Google Analytics
Definition
Free software from Google that tracks who visits your website, where they come from, and what they do. Essential for understanding if your marketing is working.
What is Google Analytics?
Google Analytics is a free tool that tracks everything happening on your website – how many visitors, where they come from, which pages they view, and whether they convert.
Why You Need It
Without analytics, you're guessing. Analytics tells you:
- Is your website actually getting visitors?
- Where are they coming from?
- Which pages do they like?
- Where do they leave?
- Is your marketing working?
Key Metrics to Track
Users & Sessions
How many people visited (users) and how many times (sessions).
Traffic Sources
Where visitors came from:
- Organic search (Google)
- Direct (typed your URL)
- Referral (links from other sites)
- Social (social media)
- Paid (advertising)
Behaviour
Which pages they viewed, how long they stayed, where they exited.
Conversions
Did they complete your goals (form submissions, purchases, calls)?
Google Analytics 4 (GA4)
GA4 is the current version, replacing the old Universal Analytics in 2023. It's event-based and more privacy-focused.
The interface has changed significantly – if you learned the old version, GA4 takes some relearning.
Getting Started
- Create a Google Analytics account
- Add the tracking code to your website
- Set up goals (conversions you want to track)
- Wait a week to collect data
- Review your reports
Most CMS platforms have simple plugins to add GA4 without touching code.