I got into a discussion of Google Analytics with a group of home improvement dealers a few weeks ago. I was talking through a slide in my presentation that showed the Google Analytics Dashboard, with a view of some of the metrics that Google and the rest of the online world use to judge performance.
Phone calls, leads and appointments are always the best judge of a Web site’s effectiveness, and I made that point. Nonetheless, we had a lively discussion about what the different metrics Google displays actually really mean. On this point, I sensed a great deal of confusion.
So over my next several posts, I’m going to share what basic Google Analytics metrics mean to home improvement companies.
Okay, take a look at this screen snap:
It’s the Dashboard view from Google Analytics of a Web site for the month of October, 2010
Google reveals six key metrics on this page:
- Visits
- Page Views
- Pages Per Visit
- Bounce Rate
- Average Time on Site
- New Visits
In the world of Web Site professionals, these terms are common. But for home improvement companies, their significance is generally not as clear. After all, no one ever made a dime from a simple Web site visit, or a page view. The revenue trail begins with the phone calls or lead forms that come from the Web site.
Over the next several posts, I’ll explain what these terms are, what they mean, how they can mislead, and how you should consider them as indicators of your Web site’s performance.
