Google Analytics is one of the most powerful free tools that Bloggers can use to gain insights about the flow of traffic on our blogs. We can see where people are coming from, how long they stay and what page they're on when they leave. We can even use Google Analytics to do experiments and run split tests (for free).
In a nutshell, Google Analytics can play a significant role in evaluating the success of our websites because of this:
We are able to determine outcomes.
We can find out if people are taking us up on our Calls to Action. We spend lots of time carefully crafting those CTA's but do we know how effective they are?
Why Bloggers Don't Use Google Analytics
Even with the fountain of information provided in the Google Analytics interface, most bloggers fail to explore even the tip of the iceberg. If you're guilty as charged, I don't blame you. You've got a lot on your plate!
You've got Facebook, Twitter, and oh my goodness, now you even need to figure out what to do with Google+. You're swamped!
I'm willing to bet that many of you haven't even signed up for a Google Analytics account yet.
But the real problem is that most of the Google Analytics tutorials out there are overwhelming and it's hard to weed through all of that excess information just to find out what you need to get valuable insights for your blog.
That's were this young lady comes in (over on the left). 
She's cute, isn't she?
Google Analytics – Just for Bloggers
I think it will be a good idea to offer some training that is specifically geared towards bloggers who want to get more out of the reports and learn how to use Google Analytics more effectively. It's a critical part of blog promotion that more bloggers should take advantage.
Let's tackle those Traffic Reports one by one until we become familiar with them and navigate through them with ease.
The first installment in the series is a SlideShare presentation, here's the link:
Getting Started with Google Analytics – Just for Bloggers
Please share the presentation on Twitter by clicking this link.
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Bonus Material on YouTube
It's important to know where your traffic is coming from, so you can discover where to get more of it!
- Step #1 : Setting up your GOALS on the Admin Panel
- Selecting the Goals Tab
- Your first URL Goal is the “Thank You” page
- Step #2: Connect Google Webmaster Tools to Google Analytics
- Where do people go on your blog
- Finding popular post/pages on the Site Content Reports
- Learning where your traffic comes from on the Sources Report
- Social Conversion Tracking By Goal
Be sure to watch the video for an added bonus tip that will save you time (and perhaps it will save your sanity too)! If you want more GA Training that's dedicated just for bloggers, be sure to sign up for my mailing list so you can get notified when more tutorials become available.