There are many things you can review when it comes to how your website is performing, from hits and visits, to what is the directing source of your web traffic. The great thing is that Alley Kat Web Consulting can help you figure it all out, and in this post, we're going to start with an introduction to Google Analytics as part of a 5-part series we're writing!
Google Analytics History
As a bit of background, uncommon as it may be, the service known as Google Analytics wasn't always the way it is now. Google Analytics originated from another software known as Urchin on Demand by a company named Urchin Software Corporation. Google acquired Urchin Software later in 2005 and formed into what it has become.
Before Google Analytics became more widely used, hosting providers offered open-source applications directly in their hosting dashboards. These free installations analyzed their log files, such as AWStats or Webalizer, and offered graphical chart reporting. If we go back even further, you would also be able to use your logs in combination with page hit counters as a way of seeing how many visitors you were getting on your website — think of how far we have come!
15 Years of GA
Now, 15 years later, Google Analytics is launching its 4th version, shortened to GA4. The service offers features like session duration, pages per session, and the visitor bounce rate on those pages. Without any definitive number provided by Google, the number of websites estimated to use Google analytics is between 30-50 million!
What's Coming Next
We will be honest here. This writing about Google Analytics will not be a singular post, nor will it be a light reading topic or discussion. Our target here is to share some of the key defining factors that some small businesses haven't thought of or weren't aware of to get conversations started. We hope to inform you with details that you may not have considered to help you ask the right questions.
Our goal is to change our conversations with our clients from "I've never heard of Google Analytics" or "I didn't think I needed GA4" to "How can I benefit from all the goodness that is Analytics on my Website" or "How do I learn to understand what I'm seeing?
In the upcoming series of articles, Alley Kat Web Consulting aims to shed light on the topics of Who, What, When, and Why of Google Analytics. Are you already ready to begin that conversation? Why wait for the articles to drop and contact us today to schedule your FREE consultation!
Keep watch for our next post in this series about Who Needs Google Analytics!