Internet Marketing Digital_marketing_for_dummies | Page 382

Measuring Your Performance: Data and
Analytics
Plenty of vendors claim to have the application that can end all your data and analytics
problems. Luckily, most of the best tools have free solutions made available by Google.
These tools are easy to use and provide the level of functionality that meets the needs of
most businesses. (For more on analyzing your data, turn to Chapter 12.)
The best data tools are
Easy to use: The right report at the right time can make all the difference to your
business. Look for analytics and data solutions that allow you to find what you need in
an intuitive interface.
Free: Larger enterprises likely need to shell out big dollars for an analytics solution,
but most businesses can get by with low- or no-cost solutions like Google Analytics.
Robust: Choose an analytics application that contains a wide range of available data.
Although you may not use it all today, the data is being captured and will be available if
you need it.
Try the following data analytics applications.
Google Analytics
www.google.com/analytics/
As described in Chapter 12, Google Analytics tracks and reports website traffic. We’ve
tried the more expensive analytics solutions, and we keep coming back to good old
Google Analytics.
Google Data Studio
datastudio.google.com/
Use this application to create stunningly beautiful and informative, interactive reports and
graphs that you can share with others. Pull data from sources like Google Analytics,
Google AdWords, and Google Docs.
Google Tag Manager
www.google.com/analytics/tag-manager/
Update website tags and add scripts to your website even if you aren’t a code monkey.
Google Tag Manager has a bit of a learning curve, but after you get the hang of it, you’ll
wonder how you ever lived without it.