Advanced Web Metrics with Google Analytics, 3rd Edition

Book description

Get the latest information about using the #1 web analytics tool from this fully updated guide

Google Analytics is the free tool used by millions of web site owners to assess the effectiveness of their efforts. Its revised interface and new features will offer even more ways to increase the value of your web site, and this book will teach you how to use each one to best advantage. Featuring new content based on reader and client requests, the book helps you implement new methods and concepts, track social and mobile visitors, use the new multichannel funnel reporting features, understand which filters to use, and much more.

  • Gets you up and running with all the new tools in the revamped Google Analytics, and includes content requested by readers and users especially for new GA users

  • Covers social media analytics features, advanced segmentation displays, multi-dashboard configurations, and using Top 20 reports

  • Provides a detailed best-practices implementation guide covering advanced topics, such as how to set up GA to track dynamic web pages, banners, outgoing links, and contact forms

  • Includes case studies and demonstrates how to optimize pay-per-click accounts, integrate AdSense, work with new reports and reporting tools, use ad version testing, and more

Make your web site a more effective business tool with the detailed information and advice about Google Analytics in Advanced Web Metrics with Google Analytics, 3nd Edition.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Praise for Advanced Web Metrics with Google Analytics, Third Edition
    1. Praise for Advanced Web Metrics with Google Analytics, Third Edition
  4. Copyright
  5. Publisher's Note
  6. Dedication
  7. Acknowledgments
  8. About the Author
  9. Foreword
  10. Introduction
    1. Who Should Read This Book
    2. What Is Covered in This Book
    3. Google Analytics Individual Qualification
    4. How to Contact the Author
  11. Part I: Measuring Success
    1. Chapter 1: Why Understanding Your Web Traffic Is Important to Your Business
      1. Website Measurement—Why Do This?
      2. Information Web Analytics Can Provide
      3. Where to Start
      4. Decisions Web Analytics Can Help You Make
      5. The ROI of Web Analytics
      6. How Web Analytics Helps You Understand Your Web Traffic
      7. Where Web Analytics Fits In
      8. How Is Google Analytics Different?
      9. Where to Get Help
      10. Summary
    2. Chapter 2: Available Methodologies and Their Accuracy
      1. Page Tags and Logfiles
      2. Cookies in Web Analytics
      3. Understanding Web Analytics Data Accuracy
      4. Improving the Accuracy of Web Analytics Data
      5. Privacy Considerations for the Web Analytics Industry
      6. Summary
    3. Chapter 3: Google Analytics Features, Benefits, and Limitations
      1. Key Features and Capabilities of Google Analytics
      2. How Google Analytics Works
      3. What Google Analytics Does Not Do
      4. What Is Google Analytics Premium?
      5. Google Analytics and Privacy
      6. What Is Urchin?
      7. Summary
  12. Part II: Using Google Analytics Reports
    1. Chapter 4: Using the Google Analytics Interface
      1. Discoverability and Initial Report Access
      2. Navigating Your Way Around: Report Layout
      3. Summary
    2. Chapter 5: Reports Explained
      1. The Home Overview
      2. Top Standard Reports
      3. Understanding Report Sampling
      4. Summary
  13. Part III: Implementing Google Analytics
    1. Chapter 6: Getting Started: Initial Setup
      1. Creating Your Google Analytics Account
      2. Tagging Your Pages
      3. Back Up: Keeping a Local Copy of Your Data
      4. Using Accounts, Web Properties, and Profiles
      5. Agencies and Hosting Providers: Setting Up Client Accounts
      6. Integrating with Your AdWords Data
      7. Integrating with Your AdSense Data
      8. Integrating with Your Webmaster Tools Data
      9. Integrating with Feedburner
      10. Tracking Mobile Visitors
      11. Common Pre-implementation Questions
      12. Summary
    2. Chapter 7: Advanced Implementation
      1. _trackPageview: the Google Analytics Workhorse
      2. Tracking E-commerce Transactions
      3. Campaign Tracking
      4. Event Tracking
      5. Customizing the GATC
      6. Summary
    3. Chapter 8: Best Practices Configuration Guide
      1. Initial Configuration
      2. Goal Conversions and Funnels
      3. Why Segmentation Is Important
      4. Choosing Advanced Segments versus Profile Filters
      5. Profile Segments: Segmenting Visitors Using Filters
      6. Report Segments: Segmenting Visitors Using Advanced Segments
      7. Creating Custom Intelligence Alerts
      8. Summary
    4. Chapter 9: Google Analytics Customizations
      1. Why Customize an Existing Product?
      2. Custom Reports
      3. Customizing the List of Recognized Search Engines
      4. Labeling Visitors, Sessions, and Pages
      5. Tracking Error Pages and Broken Links
      6. Differentiating Pay-Per-Click Network Partners
      7. In-Page Analytics: Differentiating Identical Links
      8. Matching Transactions to Specific Referral Data
      9. Tracking Campaign Links to File Downloads
      10. Changing the Referrer Credited for a Goal Conversion
      11. Roll-up Reporting
      12. Summary
  14. Part IV: Using Visitor Data to Drive Website Improvement
    1. Chapter 10: Focusing on Key Performance Indicators
      1. Setting Objectives and Key Results
      2. Selecting and Preparing KPIs
      3. Presenting Your KPIs
      4. KPI Examples by Job Role
      5. Using KPIs for Web 2.0
      6. Summary
    2. Chapter 11: Real-World Tasks
      1. Identify and Optimize Poor-Performing Pages
      2. Measuring the Impact of Site Search
      3. Optimizing Your Search Engine Marketing
      4. Monetizing a Non-E-commerce Website
      5. Tracking Offline Marketing
      6. An Introduction to Google Website Optimizer
      7. Summary
    3. Chapter 12: Integrating Google Analytics with Third-Party Applications
      1. Extracting Google Analytics Information
      2. Working with the Google Analytics Core Reporting API
      3. Example App Case Studies
      4. Demographics within Google Analytics
      5. Call Tracking with Google Analytics
      6. Video on Demand Tracking with Google Analytics
      7. Mobile App Tracking with Google Analytics
      8. Integrating Website Optimizer with Google Analytics
      9. Summary
  15. Appendix A: Regular Expression Overview
    1. Understanding the Fundamentals
    2. Regex Examples
  16. Appendix B: Useful Tools
    1. Tools to Help Audit Your GATC Deployment
    2. Browser Add-ons
    3. GATC Plug-ins
    4. Desktop Helper Applications
  17. Appendix C: Recommended Further Reading
    1. Books on Web Analytics and Related Areas
    2. Web Resources
    3. Blog Roll for Web Analytics
  18. Index
  19. Google AdWords Coupon

Product information

  • Title: Advanced Web Metrics with Google Analytics, 3rd Edition
  • Author(s):
  • Release date: April 2012
  • Publisher(s): Sybex
  • ISBN: 9781118168448