Extra! Extra!

During the initial phase of an engagement and during the post launch optimization, we’re always looking for simple methods for improving a sites ability to hit specific goals.  Below is a fairly simple process for bringing your users closer to what they are looking for and hopefully gaining a couple conversion points in the process.

1. Start by estimating the value of a conversion event on the website. Let’s use lead generation as our primary goal.  If we have an average web lead / converted customer ratio of 4% and our average value of a web customer is $7,500, then the average value of a web lead can be estimated (roughly) at $300.00. 
2. Next, in your analytics tool associate the value ($300) with the conversion event (Lead Generation).  Most Analytics tools will help you do this if you can associate a dollar value with your conversion event.  For our demonstration, we will assume that there is a Thank You (and next steps) page after each lead form.  Users that reach the Thank You page are worth an average value of $300.  The way to do this in each analytics tool is a little different.  For example, if you are using Google Analytics this would be the $Index value. 
3. For the next step, log in to your analytics tool and decipher which content is most highly valued to your converted users.   Again, this will be different depending on which analytics tool you use.  Sticking with our Google Analytics example, go the Reverse Path report see which pages are viewed before conversion events and go to the Top Content report to see the value of those pages.
   
4. Now you know which content your web leads are looking for and which content is most influential to them!! !  Update the link structure on your homepage by adding prominent links to the most valued content and eliminating links to the least valued (or least visited content). 

2 Notes

* First: Be sure to measure your average conversion of the event (lead generation) both before and after the homepage has been optimized.

** Second: Use common sense when optimizing links on the homepage. Some links require context before you put them in front of a user.  For example, just because terms and conditions on a home loan application are highly valued and highly visited by customers that convert, doesn’t mean that it is the first page a visitors wants to see on your homepage. Customers looking for home loans may need to see rates first in order to put the terms into context.

If you have questions about how to implement this process, please contact us at 650-212-3900 or info@extractable.com

Over the years we have written several applications that integrate with Google components through open APIs.  We’ve used Google maps to show office locations, Google CSE for internal search engines, and even Google Charts to show graphs.  Last month, my favorite Google API was launched.

Google Analytics announced an API to their popular analytics service.

The first implementation we are working on ties Google Analytics into a content management system that we are deploying for a client.  For many organizations, the CMS is used daily to make updates to the site while the analytics are viewed less frequently.  This gives all CMS users the ability to analyze the page(s) they are working. 

CMS users will have the ability to know valuable information about the content they are editing, such as:

1. how people get to the page they are working on  (entrance, visitors, pageviews)
2. and how many leave after viewing it (bounce, abandonment)
3. are people reading this page (time on page)
4. if the copy they are spending so much time on only gets viewed by 1% of the site audience

Content owners / marketers that are aware of this data will improve overall site performance by being aware of how specific pages impact site goals.

I’m excited about our first implementation of this new, simple channel for getting analytics data in the hands of the web team. 

For more information, check out the Google Analytics Developer Docs.