Google Analytics must be great, right? It’s hard to think of a better free solution. For this reason, it’s the most popular analytics platform. However, many people use it incorrectly, resulting in inaccurate data and a lack of visibility of their website traffic.
The agency and I see hundreds, if not thousands, of ways people misuse or misconfigure Google Analytics. But there are a few main ones we always see. I mean, all the time. But don’t worry, as many of these problems can be resolved by following simple steps if these common Google Analytics errors cause pain during the setup process.
Without further ado, I present to you the five most common Google Analytics mistakes and their solutions…
Self-referrals
Google Analytics accounts are plagued by self-referral issues, which is when analytics report traffic coming from your site. These data are typically gathered through the Google Analytics referral traffic segment and can result in an incorrect attribution of which channel is driving traffic and conversions. It is more common to see this when subdomains are used for blog posts, landing pages, shopping carts, etc.
Two simple steps can be taken to resolve this problem. You need to understand the cause of self-referrals, whether it’s due to a lack of referral exclusions or unfiltered subdomain traffic. Create a filter to show the full URL of the referring URL if you have subdomains. If the only view you have in your analytics profile is “All Website Data,” you’ll want to create another view before you implement a filter. This will ensure that you don’t tamper with the raw data. You can then create a filter using the picture you made.
Field A: Hostname Extraction A: (. Field A: Hostname Extract A: (. Field B: Request URI Extract B: (.
It was so easy! If only I could click the Staples button every time I created that filter. Once the filter is created, you can check if self-referrals are coming from subdomains for further diagnosis.
The next step is to add the domain that you are referring to as a referral exclusion. This can be done by adding the field to the “Referral Exclusion list” in the “Tracking Information” section of your property settings.
Add the self-referring domain to the Referral Exclusion Interface. You will then need to wait 24 to 48 hours before the exclusion starts working. You deserve a pat on your back.
Use UTM internally & externally.
UTM tracking is a way to track campaigns online and gain more insight into their performance, including traffic, conversion metrics, and behavior. This data is extremely valuable, as you can imagine! This functionality is often misused in the following ways.
- Use UTM tracking for external campaigns.
- Use UTM tracking to track internal campaigns.
Start by not using UTM tracking for external campaigns. It’s a no-brainer, as you should utilize this functionality for all of your external drives in order to gain more insight. If you haven’t been using this functionality because you didn’t know it existed, now you do! If you don’t use it because it takes too much time to set up, then that is your fault.
Google’s URL Builder can help you create these links. Fill out the fields below with the variables to make the URL you will use for your campaign.
This URL will redirect visitors to your intended URL and give you additional data. This sounds awesome!
We also see people use UTM tracking to track internal campaigns. This could be done by using UTM tracking for a sales promotion. Stop thinking about it. This is because using UTM codes strips the traffic source from your website, which can skew the data.
Unusually low Bounce Rate
Your website is kicking ass because its bounce rate is so low, like 2%. Sorry to tell you this, but the bounce rate of your website is probably not to blame. Two instances of Google Analytics firing up on your site are usually the cause of extremely low bounce rates. These two common errors in the implementation of the code are usually to blame.
- Two codes for analytics
- Google Analytics Code & Google Tag Manager
The reason for this is that the first instance of code fires when the visitor visits the site, but then the second instance fires, making Google Analytics believe an action has been taken and not a bounce. This error may give you a false impression of how your visitors are using your website.
Start with two Google Analytics codes. This can be found in your site’s source code. Use CTRL + F in the source code to search for a string of characters. Find your GA TrackingID, which is usually in the format UA-XXXXXXXXXX. You will need to remove the second code if you see it twice.
Next, we will need to have a Google Tag Manager and Google Analytics code. The same as before, you’ll want to look for your Google Analytics Tracking ID. Then, you will want to search your source code for the Tag Manager code by trying to find the string “www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.” If you see both, then you’ve found your issue and removed the instance of the code that you do not need.
The Ecommerce data is not showing up in a particular view
It can be frustrating. But the solution is easy. This happens when someone creates an entirely new idea but does not realize they have to enable eCommerce tracking for every suggestion that they wish to track. You can turn on eCommerce tracking for the notion that you require. To do this, go to the eCommerce settings.
Admin > View settings > eCommerce Settings
You will likely see a button with the word off. You can click the button to activate eCommerce tracking. Then, press “Next step” and “Save”. If you wish to start Enhanced eCommerce, you must do some additional work to your website.
Reports Show Internal Traffic
Most companies distort their data when they only use the “All Website Data” and do not create a filter to exclude their internal IP address in order to eliminate traffic coming from your internal users. This is a simple process.
Please create a new view and then label it as you wish. I like to place the brand or company name in parenthesis, followed by the filter designation. Here’s a generic example:
View Name: Brand Name or Company Name
Click on “Filters” under the view settings and then “New Filter” to create the filter. From there, you can implement the following steps to eliminate one IP from your traffic.
Filter Type: Predefined filter Excludes traffic from IP addresses that are equal. Insert IP address
If your office has only one IP, this works. But if you need to filter out multiple IP addresses, you’ll want to use the following:
Filter Type: Custom Filter Exclude Filter Field- IP Address Filtering Pattern- Insert Multiple IP Addresses
Viola! This is it! You have now excluded all internal traffic from your data, and you will be able to get more accurate information about how your customers or other businesses use your website.