The goal of any ecommerce business is to increase conversions and maximise sales. But how do I do this? I hear you ask…
A: You learn how to track and understand your ecommerce analytics.
Ecommerce analytics are imperative as not only do they outline HOW your products are selling but they also outline the path and variables that lead to the purchase decision/successful conversion. I.e. WHY your customer decided to purchase and WHERE they came from.
1. Why Every E-commerce Website Needs Ecommerce Tracking
Back in 2017, The Economist published a story titled, “The world’s most valuable resource is no longer oil, but data.” And while this might be troubling for some, data is one of the greatest advantages that ecommerce businesses have over brick-and-mortar storefronts.
Basically, you should think of tracking your data as your secret super power into the minds of your consumer. With Google analytics you have the ability to see where your customers come from, what sections of your website they interact with and pause on and even what they do before and after they purchase.
These insights can be used to optimise your website’s user experience and ultimately drive more sales.
“If you’re running an e-commerce store, you should be using Google Analytics. Few tools rival its importance.”
– Neil Patel
“The goal is to turn data into information, and information into insight.”
– Carly Fiorina Former CEO of HP
2. How To Set Up Google Analytics Ecommerce Tracking
Setting up Google Analytics on your website for ecommerce tracking is relatively straight-forward.
All it takes is a Google account and some time to implement the tracking code onto each page of your website.
Step 1: Create an Analytics Account for Your Ecommerce Website
Open up Google Analytics in a separate tab and follow along.
Begin by setting up a new account, if needs be. During this process you will be prompted to enter your website’s URL. Paste your ecommerce site here.
After completing your data settings a button will appear labelled “Get Tracking ID” click here.
Step 2: Install your Analytics Tracking Code into your Ecommerce Website
Once you have received your Tracking ID it’s time to get your code on.
This code will be implemented into the <head> tags on your website. You will need to paste this code into all pages of your website that you want to track. Some CMS like WordPress allow you to download a plugin that will do this automatically for you.
Step 3: Enable Ecommerce Analytics Tracking
After your Analytics tracking code is installed correctly you now need to enable this in your settings you do this by,
Navigating to Admin > View Settings > Ecommerce Settings. In this menu, enable “Ecommerce Settings” and “Enhance Ecommerce Reporting.”
Step 4: Start Measuring Enhanced Ecommerce Data
In order to gain full control of your new found super power, you are going to want to measure purchases and shopping behaviours. To do this you will need to delve deeper into the platform with Enhanced Ecommerce Data.
You will need to get your code on again by configuring Javascript. Namely gtag.js, these scripts will enable your website to send impression data, product data, promotion data and action data to Google Analytics.
If you find yourself confused by the amount of information required to get things started or simply don’t have time on your side, don’t worry. Gekkoshot can help set up Google Analytics ecommerce offerings on your website in no time.
3. Set Goals and Measure your Ecommerce Store in Google Analytics
Once Google Analytics is successfully installed it’s time for the fun part. Establishing how and in what way you want to read your customer’s mind, in other words, which goals and behaviours you want to track.
There are a variety of goals that you can set within Google Analytics so things can get a bit overwhelming if you’re not precise.
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How to Set Up Ecommerce Analytics Goals
Step 1: Select the Admin panel from the pinwheel in the bottom left
Step 2: Select “Goals” from the right column
Step 3: Fill out Goal description and Goal details
Step 4: Reports
Once you have completed these 3 steps, it’s time to venture into the robust reporting realm of Google Analytics. This is the stage that will make sense of everything occurring on your site and supply you with actionable insights on how to improve your site and maximise conversions.
4. Analytics Ecommerce Reports
Google Analytics provides you with a variety of reports depending on the insight you require You can access these by navigating to Reports > Conversions > Ecommerce.
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Ecommerce Overview
Your ecommerce overview is your overview of high-level data, namely: revenue, ecommerce rates, transactions, average order value, marketing campaigns and top sellers.
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Shopping Behaviour
The shopping behaviour report is your report for understanding your customers behaviour at different stages throughout the buyer funnel. These include, Ecommerce Conversion Rate, Transactions, Average Order Value and other metrics.
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Checkout Behaviour
The checkout behaviour report allows you to understand how users navigate your checkout process on a step-by-step basis.
This tool is key for ensuring your checkout process is as seamless as possible. I.e. If a certain step has a large abandonment figure then it should be improved or removed.
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Product Performance
Google Analytics Product Performance report allows you to easily track how your products are performing in regards to shopping behaviours and sales. This report includes: Revenue, Purchases, Quantity, Average Price, and Average Quantity by SKU & Category.
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Sales Performance
This report enables you to analyse your ecommerce sales by transaction and date.
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Product List Performance
Product lists are products that you have grouped together based on tags across your website. These can include catalog pages, category pages, cross-sells, up-sells, related and more.
5. Best Practices when using Google Analytics for Ecommerce
It might be tempting to install basic Google Analytics Ecommerce tracking on your site and call it a day. However data is made to be analysed, validated and understood.
Google Analytics should answer business questions with meaningful data.
“As you gain fresh insight from your data, it opens the door to new questions. As you have new questions, you need to update your instrumentation and analysis. Saying the process is “done” is saying you understand everything there is to know about your users, product, and channels.”
– Brian Balfour, Founder and CEO of Reforge
“Your metrics influence each other. You need to monitor how. Don’t just measure which clicks generate orders. Back it up and break it down. Follow users from their very first point of contact with you to their behavior on your site and the actual transaction. You have to make the linkage all the way through.”
– Lloyd Tabb, Founder, CTO at Looker
When operated correctly, Google Analytics is the super power every ecommerce business needs to analyse success, develop new strategies and ultimately drive revenue.
If you still feel like you require more guidance or simply don’t have the time to spare, contact Gekkoshot today and we will help optimise Google Analytics on your ecommerce site so you can maximise your conversions. Find out more about our services here.
