"Web analytics is a thermometer for your website--constantly checking and monitoring your online health."
--Brian Clifton, Advanced Web Metrics with Google Analytics
How do I measure my website performance?
Your Puget Sound website can be analyzed via Google Analytics, a free service that tracks site performance by adding trackable code into the site structure. This trackable code can also be added to related Web tools we offer, such as blogs through the university's WordPress installation.
What can Google Analytics measure?
Although there is a wide range of metrics offered, the first-level metrics Google Analytics offers include:
- Number of daily visitors
- Top visited pages
- Average visit time on site
- Frequency of user visits
- Average visit depth
- Referrer information
- Geographic visitor distribution
- Bounce and exit rates
How do I get into Google Analytics?
To access the university's Google Analytics information, you must create a Google account and send that account ID to the Web Manager. If you use Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, Blogger, or similar Google applications, you already have a Google account you can use. Alternatively, you can create a Google account tied to your university e-mail address.
Once you have registered a Google account with the Web Manager, you can visit www.google.com/analytics. Click on the Access Analytics button to access the Google sign-in screen. Use your Google account information to log in. (Note: If you have more than one Google account and you are already logged in under an account that is not associated with Google Analytics, you will need to log out and log back in using the Google account you provided to the Web Manager.)
Once in Google Analytics, you may need to click the View Report link next to the entry for www.pugetsound.edu with a green checkmark in the Status column, indicating that it receives tracking data.
More Information on Google Analytics
See the links at the right for a glossary of Google Analytics terms, information on basic report statistics, and a look at some additional features available in Google Analytics.