Find Marketing Gold in the Google Traffic Sources Report
The Sprocket Report
While your website should be the ultimate source of information, other people’s sites can be invaluable traffic-drivers. Learn about these referrers from your Google Analytics reports.
From a search engine point of view, having your site linked to from another (good quality) website gives you Google algorithm points. But your organization is also getting in front of a new group of real people, which is even more important than scoring with the algorithm. Digging into the statistics of those referrers and then acting on that info can be richly rewarding. Here are some of the questions you can answer:
Are our news releases working?
Keep track of when you post at online news outlets or send releases to news organizations that have websites and remember to include your website in the content. Check your analytics to see whether your release prompted readers to go to your website for more information and take notes. Which news outlet sent the most traffic? Do you need to write more compelling content? Is your timing appropriate? Use this info to formulate your game plan for the next news release.
Is our social media helping or distracting?
Do you have a lot of activity on your social media page but little activity on your website? If you are actually fulfilling your sales goals on social media, super! But if transactions need to take place on your website, then it’s important to drive folks there from your social media platform. Yes, you need to keep the party going on social media, but be sure to link back to your website frequently.
Who are our best partners?
Which websites show up in your analytics over and over again? How are they linking to you? Maybe you are seeing links from directories such those from you chambers of commerce or industry resources. Be sure you have created the best profile possible on those sites. You may also be getting traffic from review platforms like Yelp or Angie’s List which could prompt you to try advertising with them.
Are there new partnerships to be forged?
While you’re looking at who is linking to you, you may be surprised to find the websites of unfamiliar organizations. Be sure to check them out and see why they are linking to you. If it’s a site you really don’t want to be associated with, you’ll want to address that, pronto! On the other hand, websites you’ve never heard of before could become great partners. For instance, your community events may be included on non-English news websites, reaching a whole new audience.
Where can we find more partners?
After making a list of the websites that are referring traffic to your sites, do a little research to find organizations similar to those on the list. Contact them to see if they would like to share your info in the same way. Businesses that offer complementary services make especially good partners since you can promote each other.
Studying numbers and charts doesn’t appeal to a lot of people, but if you know what to look for and what to do with the information when you find it, delving into your website analytics is just another tool for improving your marketing and your sales. Contact us if an hour or so of coaching would make you more comfortable with how to read your analytics. We’d be happy to help!
Kate Gingold
I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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