Google Analytics Customizations & Advanced Features

After the main view for reporting has been created in Google Analytics, determine which additional functions can be useful to data collection for the website. These functions include:

• Custom Event Tracking

• Goal Setting and Tracking

• Content Groupings

• Basic Ecommerce or Enhanced Ecommerce

Custom Event Tracking with Google Tag Manager

After the foundation of Google Analytics is onsite, event tracking can be added to supplement the out-of-the-box data. Custom event tracking allows you to track and record data that isn’t generally recorded in Google Analytics. Custom event tracking with Google Analytics gives you access to data otherwise unmeasured and adds value to website tracking.  

There are several different custom event tracking templates; it is easy to follow these step by step to add additional tracking components to Google Analytics. Typically, this involves Google Tag Manager, but traditional, hard-coded custom events with Google Analytics do exist. Additionally, third-parties communicate well with Google Analytics. For example, Shopify sends custom event and eCommerce data to Google Analytics with little setup or effort 

Events are just user interactions with content that can be tracked independently. These hits are different from a traditional web page or a screen load; these include downloads, video plays, outbound link clicks, and many more. Developing a strategy mapping KPIs to different items tracked by Google Analytics or through Custom Event Tracking will help determine what additional events need to be monitored.

Goal Setting in Google Analytics

Goals in Google Analytics allow you to track a valuable user action on a site. These user interactions can be anything from form submissions and transactions to collecting leads and more. When a website visitor hitsa goal, Analytics records that as a conversion.  Google Analytics also factors goals into a website’s conversion rate, which is a valuable KPI to track.

Conversion tracking with Google Analytics is one of the most powerful features of the platform, especially if there are multi-channel marketing campaigns generating traffic to the website. Analytics conversion tracking is useful for data analysis, especially in terms of attribution. 

Content Groupings in Reporting

Content groupings can also be a valuable analysis tool for sites with lots of traffic that frequently post new content. Website analytics can be segmented by content groups to evaluate traffic, conversions, and page value based on the custom categories you define in Google Analytics.

Consider setting up content groupings by site section, domain, or event content-type to assist with reporting on the website. 

Content groupings can add valuable dimensions and segments to analytics reporting on the website. These segments can isolate trends between traffic, engagement, and event goal completion. As you set these segments up in the platform, follow best practices for Google Analytics content groupings.. 

Tracking Ecommerce in Google Analytics

If the website has any sort of shopping component, setting up Google Analytics for eCommerce will help generate current usage data. Usage Data includes information like transactions, revenue, and shopping cart behavior, among many other eCommerce based metrics. Marketing and sales efforts can also be defined in this section of analytics to help determine transaction attribution and more. 

 

Customizations and advanced features of Google Analytics can help take tracking and measurement to the next level on a website. If you have any issues with setting up advanced components of Google Analytics, feel free to schedule a free consultation with the team at Third and Grove.