Advanced Google Analytics: Conversion Goals (Part Two)
May 23, 2008 in Analytics, Expert AdviceLast time we discussed the basics of setting up goals in Google Analytics. Something so easy and valuable, everyone should be doing it.
Today we're going to cover funnels.
Funnels
Funnels are optional when setting up goals, but again, it's very valuable information and it's not hard to set up, so why not do it?
A funnel is the series of pages that a visitor passes through to accomplish a goal.
An example: Let's say your goal is for someone to create an account. You might have a promo page, then a two-page signup process, with your goal page being the final "You're now a member!" confirmation page.
Enter the page URLs (without domain) and give each one a name (this name will only appear in your reports). Put the first step at the top.
Like this:
Another common example would be to track an e-commerce conversion. i.e. adding to cart, checkout - shipping, checkout - billing, review order, receipt page (as goal).
Note, the "Required Step" checkbox to the right of Step 1 only impacts the funnel visualization report. If you check that box, then you'll only get a funnel visualization report on conversions that touch that page prior to converting. That said, the conversion will be tracked whether you check it or not. (Useful, for example, if you only wanted to visualize funnels for conversions that came from a certain landing page.)
Why is this valuable?
The key value of tracking funnels is to know how many people start the conversion process, but don't ultimately convert. This can be extremely useful information. With this data, you can examine your pre-conversion process and determine if it's hurting or helping you, and test optimizations to increase your conversion rate. (And the funnel visualization report tells you the abandonment rate for each step of the funnel.)
Once you have your funnels defined, inside your Google Analytics reports, you'll now have two new reports.
1) Abandoned Funnels. Here you'll find your funnel abandonment rate, broken down by month, week, day or even hour.
2) Funnel Visualization. This helps you visualize each step of the funnel process, and what percent of visitors progress from step to step, all the way to your final conversion rate.
Again, I hope this helps motivate you to take better advantage of this wonderful free resource for improving the way you do business on the web.
Wow, excellent tips you post here. Thanks God I stick to your feed all this time despite your long inactivity. I hope the next one will not take so long time to be posted
Posted by: ifan | May 24, 2008 2:57:13 AM
I'm such a fan of Google Analytics, but recently when checking advertisers stats Vs google stats I noticed that the advertiser website said I had more clicks than Google said I received. Any idea's why this happened?
Posted by: Carrie | May 24, 2008 1:00:49 PM
Hi Carrie - with so many (unknown) variables at play, it's pretty hard to say.
Posted by: Carson McComas | May 24, 2008 3:00:19 PM
I Just set it up!
You're the man!
Posted by: Online Sports Betting | Apr 27, 2009 2:55:56 AM
I want clearly know Talk me through the process of setting conversion goals?
please reply me. i am waiting for your reply.
Thanx
Posted by: JOSEP_MARCK_DON | Jun 19, 2010 1:42:16 AM