Google Analytics: Don’t confuse free with cheap!
A common mistake we see clients making when choosing their analytics provider is confusing the fact that Google Analytics is free with it being ‘cheap’ or second rate.
Google Analytics is powerful, enterprise level, intuitive, user-friendly, feature rich, reliable, secure, fast and responsive.
Stop and think – what do you need from your analytics software?
You should be investing in analytics software to better understand your website, improve its performance and make more money from it.
If this is your goal then the criteria for a good analytics package is one that gives you the business intelligence to make improvements and increase conversions. Google Analytics ticks this box.
Google’s dirty little secret.
Although GA is free, that doesn’t mean it isn’t profitable for Google. They’re spending £’millions on research and development because they understand one hugely important point:
‘Good analytics software helps you make more money from your website.’
Sooner or later if you’re making bigger and bigger profits from you’re website and a better return on investment you’ll invest more into it. Google are confident that Adwords advertising will form a decent slice of this extra investment as the product is so effective.
We’ve seen it time and again with our own clients:
1) Website profitability rockets
2) The client is super happy with the results
3) The client can track where every penny of advertising spend goes and how effective it is at delivering results
4) Sooner or later they reach the conclusion ‘if my sites so darn good at turning visitors into paying customers and I can track my advertising budgets down to the penny, isn’t it time I got more visitors?
Not only does analytics software help you make more profits from your website it also helps you understand what parts of your ad spend delivers the best return on investment. Making decisions on where best to invest your advertising budget become less of a risk and more of a sure thing.
Aligning your goals
Google’s unique way of making money from the software they provide is good news for site owners:
Google’s primary goal is for you to make more profit from your website. In the long run this will benefit them through increased ad revenues.
Wow, what a web analytics partner! They’re not worried about charging you for upgrades, bolt-on modules or extra functionality. Google want to give you everything they have in their analytics arsenal and make sure it’s as good as they can possibly make it.
Unlike traditional analytics software providers you’re not being charged for upgrades or additional functionality, it’s all there and its all free for you to use. Plus when future upgrades are released those will be free as well.
Website analytics software is a waste of money
Read more about why website analytics should be about investing money in analysis and brain power, not in software licensing.
