Google Analytics™ Third Edition

Chapter 15. Analyzing Visitors

One section of Google Analytics reports that many users seem to take for granted is the Visitors section. This group of reports contains lots of information about your visitors, including where in the world they are located, how many visits and unique visitors have been to your site, and how much time those visitors spend on your site. There's a lot more, too, but you'll find out all about the Visitors section as you read through this chapter.

One thing you should know going into this chapter is the difference between a visit and a unique visitor, as well as the difference between visits and page views. These metrics were covered back in Chapter 7, so if you don't remember the details you might want to flip back for a short refresher.

When you know the difference between the various measurements and how Google Analytics arrives at those measurements, then the reports in the Visitors section offer a lot of insight about your web-site visitors. These reports are your key to "getting inside their minds" to figure out what you are doing right with your web site (from the visitors' perspectives) and what you might be able to do better.

Visitors Overview

The Visitors report section is where you can find all the information you'll want to know about your visitors. This includes reports that show where your users are located, how they connect to the Internet, and how often they return to you.

The opening page for this report section is called Visitors Overview ...