Tricks and tweaks for Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager

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Tweaks and tricks For Google Tag Manager and Google Analytics

@SimoAhava | #GAUC15 | 17 June 2015

Simo AhavaSenior Data Advocate, Reaktor


Google Developer Expert, Google Analytics

Blogger, developer, www.simoahava.com

Twitter-er, @SimoAhava

Google+:er, +SimoAhava

Plug-and-play AnalyticsStop. Stop doing it. Stop it now.


Google Analytics is a tool designed to work for

9,352,458* different businesses.

* Author’s estimate, not an official figure


It is thus conceivable Google doesn’t know what your business

objectives are.@SimoAhava | #GAUC15 | 17 June 2015

23.75 %@SimoAhava | #GAUC15 | 17 June 2015

23.75 %Dear CMO, last month, the Ecommerce Conversion Rate on our site

was…

…which is an uplift of 3.45% compared to the previous month!


2,342,566Dear CMO, last month, the number of sessions to our site was…


Digital Analytics Café 20-May-2015 | @SimoAhava

Definition of a Session• Group of interactions that takes place on a website…

• That expires after 30 minutes of inactivity…

• Or at the end of they day…

• Or when acquisition campaign changes…

• Unless the referral is in the Referral Exclusion List…

• Or traffic is cross-domain, and cross-domain tracking is implemented…

• Unless it’s implemented incorrectly…

• Which is likely since it’s so !#/%(“% difficult…

• Unless you’re using Google Tag Manager…

• Except if you’ve implemented THAT incorrectly…


All metrics and dimensions used by a platform subscribe to the schemas of said platform!

GPeC Summit 11-May-2015 | @SimoAhava

All metrics and dimensions used by a platform subscribe to the schemas of said platform!

GPeC Summit 11-May-2015 | @SimoAhava

Sessionization Schema

This has two major implications on how we collect, process, and

analyse the data.


Stay away from aggregate metrics.1


Stay away from aggregate metrics.Combine, segment,visualize, predict.1


Plug-and-play metrics are crap. Data must be collected and reported in a meaningful way.2


Tweaks & TricksTo improve data quality at data collection time.


Trick 1: Add true hit timestamp


Create a Custom Dimension

GA


Custom JavaScript Variable to calculate ISO time

GTM


Add the Custom JavaScript Variable to your tags

GTM


http://goo.gl/fA8d0f

Trick 2: Add client Id as a dimension



GA


Setup the GA tracker in a Custom HTML Tag

GTM


Add the client ID to the Tag, and fire with the Custom Event

GTM


http://goo.gl/dkkgZr

Trick 3: Add session Id as a dimension



GA


Custom JS Variable to return random ID

GTM


Add the Custom JS Variable as a Custom Dimension

GTM


http://goo.gl/fA8d0f

Trick 4: Track dwell and scroll


Custom HTML Tag fires on DOM Ready

GTM


Event Tag fires when dwell & scroll recorded

GTM


http://goo.gl/AYXiki

Trick 5: Track scroll depth


Custom HTML Tag to setup the listener

GTM


Bunch of Data Layer Variables to capture the data

GTM


Event Tag to send the data to GA

GTM


https://github.com/sahava/content

Trick 6: Track content with Ecommerce


Setup Enhanced Ecommerce in the GA View

GA


Figure out the terminology

GTM


Connect interactions with the data layer

GTM


Create Tags for the individual events

GTM


Enjoy the awesomeness

GA


GA

http://goo.gl/pkQmqU

Trick 7: Block Internal Traffic



GA


Create the View Filter

GA


Create a URL Query Variable

GTM


Add the Custom Dimension to a Tag

GTM


WEB

http://goo.gl/gTauIV

Trick 8: Create custom event handlers


Custom HTML Tag to setup the listener

GTM


Custom JS Variable to work as a generic handler

GTM


GTM

http://goo.gl/IViqTG

Trick 9: Track weather as a dimension


How it works


Create Custom Dimensions

GA


Custom HTML Tag to collect the data

GTM


Event Tag to send weather data to GA

GTM


http://goo.gl/3todBm

Trick 10: Track page visibility










http://goo.gl/RgA1Zh


http://goo.gl/80o1ml

BONUS: Inject semantic data for crawlers


Custom HTML Tag to inject Meta Descriptions with

GTM

http://goo.gl/1gB762


Custom HTML Tag to inject Structured Data with

GTM

http://goo.gl/YAXonr

Data is difficultIt’s supposed to be. Stop complaining.



Rule of Data Passivity

Data does nothing. Data beats nothing. Data is a passive medium that requires

an active agent (analyst) to interpret.

Rule of Data Subjectivity

Interpretation of data requires a well-formulated hypothesis. The same data set can be good for one hypothesis and

bad for another.



Rule of Data Scarcity

You will never have all the data. An arbitrary line must be drawn in data collection, and you must be aware of

this limitation at all times.

Data quality is directly proportional to how well you understand the data

collection mechanism.


2,342,566Dear CMO, last month, the number of sessions to our site was…


Digital Analytics Café 20-May-2015 | @SimoAhava

Thank [email protected]

www.simoahava.com

Twitter: @SimoAhava

Google+: +SimoAhava


Data & Analytics

Tricks and tweaks for Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager