3 Tips To Master Google Analytics

Google Analytics can illuminate the path to success in digital campaigns by providing insight into what’s working and what’s not.  The problem is, many people don’t know how to use Google Analytics to find these valuable insights. They add the Google Analytics code to their site and then wait for the insights to find themselves.

Obviously, that approach is destined to disappoint.  If you want to manage Google Analytics effectively, there are 3 ways to go about it:

1. DIY Google Analytics Management
2. Hire a Google Analytics Agency
3. Get a Google Analytics Dashboard

All three approaches can deliver great results, unearthing data insights that lead to smarter decisions and more successful campaigns.  The solution that works best for you will depend on your resources and your needs.

1. DIY Google Analytics Management

Google Analytics is free, but it’s also powerful. Which means that if you have the time and expertise, it can provide you everything you need to successfully manage your own analytics.

If you’re interested in DIY Google Analytics management, check out this article, in which we share our expertise on identifying key metrics.

2. Hire a Google Analytics Agency

Let’s face it, Google Analytics can be a painfully complex tool. Even if you have Google Analytics installed, you might not have the time or know-how to dig into the data and find the campaign insights you need.  Bringing an analytics agency on board helps ensure that you’re tracking and measuring the right metrics for your business.

A good Google Analytics agency will tease out the insights that matter to you. Whether it’s e-commerce, content marketing or IT data, professional analysts know how to identify and isolate the information that matters to you.

What’s more, an expert agency knows how to present data in a way that is useful to the marketers, analysts, producers, and communications managers who are responsible for digital campaigns.

If you need a solution that saves you time but dramatically improves the quality of insights you derive from Google Analytics, definitely consider the services of a specialist agency.

3. Get a Google Analytics Dashboard

If you think managing Google Analytics yourself is too much work but you don’t like the idea of handing it all to an agency either, an analytics dashboard might be what you’re after.

Unlike managing Google Analytics yourself, a dashboard takes the effort out of searching for the right metrics. Those metrics are already identified, aggregated and presented in a simple format, which means your time is spent analyising your data rather than trying to find it.

Unlike a full agency analytics reporting service, a dashboard provides real-time data, which can foster fast and informed decision-making.

Perhaps the greatest advantage of the dashboard however, is that by making your analytics simple and accessible, you’re beginning to spread a data-driven culture in your organisation.

Which solution should you choose?

There is definitely no one-size-fits-all solution to Google Analytics management.  Whether you’d be better off handling your own analytics, hiring an agency or building a dashboard depends on many factors which only you can weigh up.  But one thing is for sure – not tapping your Google Analytics data for insights into your digital campaigns is a huge missed opportunity.

If you want to speak to Datalabs about Google Analytics Reporting or Analytics Dashboards, call us on +61 3 9415 9283 or send us an email via our Contact page.