Many think if they build a website, visitors will come. Well, yes… they will, if you’ve done a few key things:

·        Set up your meta tags.

·        Submitted your domain name to search engines.

·        Posted a robot.txt file.

·        Advertised your web presence through paid search engines like AdWords, Yahoo Marketing and AdCenter and online social networks like Twitter, Facebook LinkedIn, MySpace, MyLife, or Classmates.

·        Talked about your business until you are out of breath.

(Don’t know what all of these things are? Contact us, we can help.)

Once you’ve got all these ducks in a row, you’ll be sure to get lots of visitors. But, where are they coming from and what are they doing? Webmaster tools, like Google Analytics, can help you measure the traffic to and from your site – and track the effectiveness of your website at delivering on business objectives. The best part is that a Google Analytics account is FREE!

There are numerous reasons for having a website. Lead generation, supplying customers with important information and updates, providing 365/24/7 customer service, selling product… the list goes on. But how will you know if your site truly delivers on all of your objectives?

Analyzing your traffic reveals many things regarding your business practices, marketing campaigns and overall Internet presence. Google Analytics will specifically chronicle:

·        New visitors and returning visitors

·        Keywords used to find your site

·        Top Content – the web pages most visited

·        Landing Pages – the first page visited

·        Exit Pages – the last page visited

·        Bounce Rate – the percentage of times a visitor lands and exits on the same page

·        Where your visitors live

·        How visitors found your site

And this just scratches the surface of the reporting power behind Google Analytics. Don’t worry, you don’t need to own a pocket-protector to interpret trends because Google Analytics offers visual charts that quickly identify peaks, valleys and drop offs. The tool’s Dashboard summarizes web site activity and hyperlinks help you to drill down into more detail.

If you already have a Google Analytics account, get familiar with the many features and check your stats regularly. It will provide valuable insight into your website’s content and design and the behavior of your Internet visitors.

If you don’t currently use website analytics, OpenMoves can help you set up a Google Analytics account, and our expert team can provide web site search engine optimization (SEO) recommendations to better position you within your industry and competition. Contact OpenMoves for a consultation.