(Sort of) Quick Guide to Interpreting Website Analytics

Effective marketing can spark the transition from part-time agent to full-time agent in no time at all. To make your efforts as profitable as possible, you must understand and interpret the metrics on your reports.

Data from analytics can be intimidating, especially if you don't feel like you're a math person. We can help you single out what matters and how to use it.

First, a few basics:

Know your lingo. Being able to read a chart or a graph simply isn't enough, as you've already figured out. It helps to familiarize yourself with data jargon that gives you the proper context for what you're seeing.

Filter your data. Not all data is equally important for your purposes. Many reports come with filters, allowing you to focus on what you need and set the other info aside. Which metrics are needed? Our recommendations are below.

Give yourself time. You can't properly identify a trend in a month. Give yourself at least three months to chart the success of any digital marketing or social media initiative.

Now you're ready to look into some key metrics!

Bounce rate

Bounce rate measures the percentage of visitors that make it to one page on your site—and stop. They didn't feel like your content fit their needs, so they left. You want a low bounce rate, denoting compatibility between content and visitors.

Traffic source

How visitors find your site is called the traffic source. Direct traffic means that they typed your site directly into the address bar. Referral traffic comes to you through a link on another site. Search engine traffic is the result of Google searches and the like. If you see that much of your traffic flows in through Twitter, for example, you may want to focus your efforts there especially if you've got a high click-through rate.

Click-through rate

What keywords and queries draw the most people to your site? Are these a reflection of what you offer? If you're getting a high click-through for "best dressed in Tulsa" but not "rental properties in midtown Tulsa," you need to refocus your keywords and tags. Check out our guide to keywords and meta tags for real estate.

Also, if you're getting queries and click-throughs for applicable phrases that you don't use often, integrate them into your marketing. It shows you've already got the market on those keywords. Run with them!

Goals and conversions

The two terms are synonymous. When a visitor adheres to your call for action—be that subscribing via email, signing up for an open house or similar—you've accomplished a goal or converted a prospect to a lead. High conversion rates mean that your funnel is leading them in the right direction. If not, re-evaluate your funnel. Get a few non-agent friends to visit your site. Does poor design distract them? Are they overwhelmed with info? Do they not feel compelled by your call to action? Make changes accordingly.

ROI from AdWords

Is your AdWords campaign at least paying for itself? If you're losing money, look beyond your CTR data and then make adjustments.

What resources have you found helpful for interpreting analytics? Share them in the comments below!

To view the original article, visit the Point2 Agent blog.