How to set up Google Analytics and monitor your traffic - Virtual Assistant Forums

Codehead · #1 (**permalink**) 08-14-2007

Google Analytics is a great tool and will help you monitor your traffic effectively - it even shows you where on earth your users are coming from.

In my experience it is more precise than other similar services and provides nicer reports with many more details.

To get started go ahead and make an account here:
http://www.google.com/analytics/

You will have to click "Sign Up Now" and fill out the form.

Once you are done registering, Google will send an email to you and all you have to do is click a link to activate your account.

Then, log in to your Google Analytics account here:
http://www.google.com/analytics/

You will have to make a profile first, so click the "Sign Up" button:

In the next step fill in your website's or blog's URL without http://, I wrote www.hamidof.com

It will automatically fill the account name section for you, now click "Continue"

In the next step fill in your name and choose your country: (Phone number is optional)

Click "Continue" and check the box in the next step which means that you are agree with Google Analytics TOS (Terms Of Services)
Then click "Continue" and you will see a little HTML code which you have to copy and paste into your website's HTML code.

I recommend pasting this code in between your head tag.

Here is a simple HTML page:

HTML Code:

<html>
<head>
 
</head>
<body>
 
</body>
</html>

There are loads of HTML tags and text in between these tags.
So you will have to copy and paste the code in between <head> and </head> tag.

After that click "Continue" and you are all set.

This all it takes to set it up - after 2 or 3 days when Google Analytics collects enough data about your visitors, you can login and see detailed reports of your visitors.

Please don't hesitate to reply to this thread with your question if you have any problem with any of these steps.

I will write about how to use the control panel and read the stats in another thread soon

Lia-VSS · #2 (**permalink**) 05-22-2008

wow, thanks about this!! There is a new code that you will have to add, this will enable you to access newer info about your site

I hope my site gets recognised!! :O

A Novel Space · #3 (**permalink**) 05-22-2008

This is great. Thanks so much.

I'm looking forward to the next thread.

katiebva · #4 (**permalink**) 05-22-2008

Thank you so much for the detail. I kept thinking about trying it, but put it off. Now I don't have any excuses!

TracyR · #5 (**permalink**) 05-23-2008

My site is built in WordPress so how do you post the code on a wordpress blog?

Tess · #6 (**permalink**) 05-23-2008

Tracy, there's an easy plugin for that available from WP.org - click here for more info.

TracyR · #7 (**permalink**) 05-23-2008

Thanks Tess,
I figured there was something like that. Appreciate the assist.

Tracy

#8 (**permalink**) 05-29-2008

Has anyone been successful in utilizing this with Yahoo Site Builder? I may have to call in ask their techincal people to do it for me?...This is what I am thinking...

VagabondetteVA · #9 (**permalink**) 05-29-2008

Is there a way in GA to see what outlinks people clicked on while visiting your site? I know you can do the overlay view where they put the % of clicks on top of the link, but that's annoying and I'm not sure it's accurate. On wordpress.com their general stats included a "people clicked on the following links" section and I found it HUGELY helpful. I liked knowing where I was sending traffic...

Thanks

#10 (**permalink**) 05-29-2008

Well, I need to do some more digging. But as I am digging on the yahoo site builder, there is a view pages dedicated to site statistics, access logs, and it generating reports. Maybe this will give me some detailed information. I am going to have to keep digging and see what I discover.

Tess · #11 (**permalink**) 05-29-2008

Originally Posted by VagabondetteVA

Is there a way in GA to see what outlinks people clicked on while visiting your site? I know you can do the overlay view where they put the % of clicks on top of the link, but that's annoying and I'm not sure it's accurate. On wordpress.com their general stats included a "people clicked on the following links" section and I found it HUGELY helpful. I liked knowing where I was sending traffic...

Thanks

Yes, log into your Google Analytics account, click on the site you want to view stats for, click on CONTENT in the main sidebar menu

Then choose OVERVIEW
Then SITE OVERLAY

Wait for it to load, voila

(mouse over the little percentage blocks for more details)

VagabondetteVA · #12 (**permalink**) 05-29-2008

Thanks Tess,

Like I said, I know that method and I don't trust it or like it. I get different % on different pages and it's a pain to have to click on each blog post/page to see what people clicked on that page rather than just seeing a summary of all of the links clicked on the entire site.

Is there another way?

Tess · #13 (**permalink**) 05-29-2008

You can always install something like Sitemeter that just lists clicks in and clicks out by link.
I don't know if there's a similar readout on Google Analytics, I've never looked for one.

VagabondetteVA · #14 (**permalink**) 05-29-2008

Yeah, that's what I thought I might have to do. meh...one more thing to think about.

I'm surprised they don't have something like this. I find it really useful...

Codehead · #15 (**permalink**) 05-29-2008

From my experience you can trust the stats Google Analytics provides it's not 100% accurate but it's good enough