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Web Analytics Recap: Seller Chat in the Virtual Labs
Story by kutty, TechUpdates
Published on March 13, 2009 in How-To 		Photo by

BlueCakeAndButtercup

Recently, we held a Virtual Lab on the topic of Etsy Web Analytics, which enables sellers to do tracking with Google Analytics.  We had a great turnout, with over 100 sellers in attendance.  If you were not able to attend, I wanted to recap the top questions and big ideas from the talk.

The big talking point concerned what Google Analytics can do for sellers.  It is a powerful tool, but at the end of the day the real power comes from helping you make better decisions about your Etsy shop.

Think of Google Analytics as the pulse of your shop, with the pulse equating to the number of visitors viewing your items.  A higher pulse rate means more visitors, and in general more visitors would correlate to more sales for your shop.

Over time your shop will get more or less the same amount of traffic, but what you can do is start to experiment with some basic marketing efforts and use Google Analytics as the yardstick to measure success.  Marketing efforts could mean, for instance, using a better set of Etsy tags to describe your item, creating a blog, actively using services such as Twitter or Facebook, or even buying some online advertising.  The key question to answer is — which marketing efforts pay off for me?  By looking at Google Analytics, it can provide historical data and trending that show you how your marketing efforts drove traffic to your Etsy shop.

Also, to recap the top questions from the talk:

  1. Excluding My IP Address
    Many sellers wanted to know how to exclude their own IP addresses from Google Analytics.  This is useful since for smaller sellers you yourself are likely to be a top viewer of your own pages.  Here is a helpful link on how to exclude your IP address from Google Analytics.  If you need to know your IP address, here is a free online tool that shows you your IP address.  Note however that for many internet users, their IP address changed periodically (otherwise known as DHCP).  Check with your internet service provider if you have a static or dynamic IP address.
  2. Showing Pageviews by Hour
    Another popular question was to see how many pageviews a shop got hour by hour.  Normally Google Analytics shows views by day.  To view by hour, go to the main page (your “Dashboard” view), on the left hand menu click on Visitors, and under Visitor Trending, select Visits.  On the right hand side above the graph, you will see gray text that reads “Graph By:” and icon options to click on. The default view will be by “Day,” or the second icon. Select the first icon to the left, which is the “Hour” view.
  3. Referral Traffic
    Another popular question was the breakdown of traffic that a user sees as referrals.  There are three basic types.  The first is "direct" — in other words, traffic that comes directly from a user.  This could be a link in an email, or a saved bookmark.  The second is "referral" traffic, and this is an actual link on another website that linked to your shop.  The third is "search engines."  In this case your shop or item information was displayed in a search engine such as Google or Yahoo and that's how the visitor found you.
  4. E-commerce Tracking
    Sellers asked if Etsy would enable e-commerce tracking through Google Analytics.  While this is on our road map, we are evaluating exactly how this would work in Etsy's marketplace.  Remember that during checkout a buyer can purchase from many different sellers, so the tracking of e-commerce is more complicated than just one shop.

Lastly you can download the presentation that was reviewed during the labs called Google Analytics For Sellers Guide.

Thanks to all the sellers who attended. Post in the comments below if you have more helpful tips!

Seller Handbook | Statistics Posts

Tags business, data, Google Analytics, How-To, HOW-TO, information, metrics, resources, Seller Handbook, selling, statistics, stats, Tech Updates, tools, tracking, traffic, Web Analytics
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60 comments     Login to add your own!

March 13, 2009 at 12:10 p.m. dropofsunshine

Can't wait until you guys can find out how to track sales!! Everything is awesome so far, thanks!

March 13, 2009 at 12:11 p.m. gloilocksandbody

I love my google analytics! Thank you etsy :D

March 13, 2009 at 12:11 p.m. uncharted

Thanks for the info... I'm so happy we have analytics now!

March 13, 2009 at 12:15 p.m. KellesKitchen

Thanks for the update...I agree - analytics has really helped me to figure out if my advertising dollars are well spent - by looking at the information from the people coming in (bounce rate, time spent, page views) it gives me an idea on if that ad is reaching its target market. I'm so glad that we have this tool now!

March 13, 2009 at 12:17 p.m. ArtMind

Thanks heaps for the update, I missed the chat because I was in bed already! Greetz from over the ocean! :)

March 13, 2009 at 12:22 p.m. gildem

This virtual lab was very informative. Thank you Kutty!

March 13, 2009 at 12:30 p.m. EJPcreations

Soooo Sooo helpful!!!!

March 13, 2009 at 12:31 p.m. bebeandalice

check my analytics almost daily.
love it...helps my research dramatically!
thanks!

March 13, 2009 at 12:32 p.m. elizabethwrenvintage

SO helpful. thank you!

March 13, 2009 at 12:45 p.m. dogties

Great stuff!!!
GA Rocks.

March 13, 2009 at 12:50 p.m. christinakober

definitely helpful. I didn't really get how to use them before, just a bunch of numbers and graphs but now I know what I am looking for! Thanks!

March 13, 2009 at 1:09 p.m. Mwilson

Superior update~ Thanks oodles!

March 13, 2009 at 1:19 p.m. FlanneryO

Thanks for that. Missed the virtual lab and always appreciate a recap.
Cheers!

March 13, 2009 at 1:21 p.m. EpicBones

yes!! i love Google Analytics, great suggestions :)

March 13, 2009 at 1:25 p.m. isewcute

I appreciate the update! Thanks!

March 13, 2009 at 1:50 p.m. zombuki

Helpful, thanks! I need to exclude myself ;3 lol

March 13, 2009 at 2:40 p.m. worksandfinds

I missed the virtual lab and was so sorry. Thanks for update.

March 13, 2009 at 2:47 p.m. FrucciDesign

VL was great!
thank you!!

March 13, 2009 at 2:55 p.m. babyjewlz

Awesome info. Thank you.

March 13, 2009 at 3:47 p.m. lucybluestudio

I love Google Analytics and I'm so glad Etsy incorporated it.

March 13, 2009 at 5:11 p.m. Yokoo

Very very helpful!

March 13, 2009 at 6:05 p.m. BlueTerracotta

Thanks. This is great for those of us who missed the Virtual Lab.

March 13, 2009 at 6:18 p.m. moondogtreasures

googleanalytics rox!

March 13, 2009 at 6:54 p.m. nfall2rt

Thank you, I missed it. This unfortunately is one of those things I've been putting off...

March 13, 2009 at 7:02 p.m. Waterrose

I missed the lab...thanks so much for the review.

March 13, 2009 at 7:59 p.m. NicoAndMooMoo

WOW good stuff guys!

March 13, 2009 at 8:03 p.m. dragonhouseofyuen

thank you, very informative!!

March 13, 2009 at 8:09 p.m. KimmareeJewelree

Guilty. I missed the meeting. Great. You have it right here for me. Love the Google Analitics and thank you for more information!

March 13, 2009 at 9:05 p.m. LuckyAccessories

I was so excited when I saw the Etsy analytics link-up. It was one of my biggest regrets about my Etsy shop. Great job all!

March 13, 2009 at 9:35 p.m. bhangtiez

sounds great, thanks 4 da info....

March 13, 2009 at 11:24 p.m. olivehuedesigns

Thanks for the info, mucho helpful!

March 13, 2009 at 11:29 p.m. blackelm

Super great stuff. Thank you!

March 14, 2009 at 12:43 a.m. HouseHoldWords

Thanks so much! I enjoy the analytics!

March 14, 2009 at 8:18 a.m. chetart

Thanks for the follow up with a recap. Very valuable information.

March 14, 2009 at 8:59 a.m. roseredrose

Thanks!

March 14, 2009 at 9:09 a.m. LeftHandHats

Thanks so much for the info. I did it! I gave my notice at work and am going to devote myself full time to my craft and Etsy shop. This info is exactly the kind that I need to make this work. THANKS!!!

March 14, 2009 at 1:27 p.m. beckybrocato

great info. I think google analytics is a great tool.

March 14, 2009 at 2:40 p.m. sherrisscentsandsoys

Great info. Thank you so much.

March 14, 2009 at 2:58 p.m. LovMely

Thank you so much for the info. I'm signing up for it today ;)

I <3 ETSY

March 14, 2009 at 3:47 p.m. beadartjewelrysupply

Thanks for the recap...I was unable to attend...this answered many of my questions

March 15, 2009 at 6:58 a.m. BayMoonDesign

Thanks for posting this information so that those who couldn't make the vitual lab, can still learn.

March 15, 2009 at 10:36 a.m. elisasherejewelry

Google analytics are awesome, they've been so helpful. Thanks for the recap, I can't wait to go check out my stat by hour.

March 16, 2009 at 11:29 a.m. emetalworks

thank you so much for this article - i can promise you i would have never figured this out on my own!

March 17, 2009 at 11:31 a.m. girltuesdayjewelry

Thanks for this article. I love all the information and help that is available on Etsy!

March 18, 2009 at 10:16 a.m. MiMisJewelryDesigns

Due to the nature of our site I'd imagine our bounce rates will be higher than average. Any suggestions of what's average for an etsy site or what's too high?

March 25, 2009 at 3:08 p.m. bprdesigns

I had been mucking my way through on my own and had only figured out how to use about half the information. I had to miss chat but the document provided was great. Thanks for the help....I love this info!

March 25, 2009 at 5:10 p.m. whimsicalpokadot

thanks....

March 26, 2009 at 7:03 p.m. MaggieHallam

Huge thanks. I check it daily. Very inspiring for some reason.

April 10, 2009 at 5:13 p.m. PhotosbyKymm

Great info thanks this helped alot

April 15, 2009 at 11:40 p.m. beckykazana

Thanks so much! Downloading the guide now. I've been relying on the data from my project wonderful account since it offers me direct links to the way new visitors found me. I need to make better use of my analytics account.

Cheers!

April 21, 2009 at 5:50 p.m. lilacpopphotography

Awesome tips! Thanks! I just posted an article on how to get your shop more searchable in google, yahoo, msn, etc on my blog if anyone is interested. I learned so much today about it that I felt like I'd taken a class! I decided to share and break down what I learned to apply it to etsy shops.
http://lilacpop.blogspot.com

April 21, 2009 at 6:37 p.m. VintageRoseClothing

Very, very, interesting article! The part about finding out the trends by hour was extremely helpful! My guess on when I had the most visitors was right, now I will try to keep items posted at or near that time!! Thanks <3

http://VintageRoseClothing.blogspot.com

April 21, 2009 at 7:24 p.m. Chinapainter1

I didn't realize I had to exclude my IP address. I would think that should be built into the program, but I got with the program instead. I check it daily and now want to know more about advertisting. Thank you.

April 21, 2009 at 8:22 p.m. moncy3

I followed the instructions to exclude my IP address, though it would be more complicated pretty easy.

April 22, 2009 at 2:22 a.m. LavenderField

Showing Pageviews by Hour
Another popular question was to see how many pageviews a shop got hour by hour. Normally Google Analytics shows views by day. To view by hour, go to the main page (your “Dashboard” view), on the left hand menu click on Visitors, and under Visitor Trending, select Visits. On the right hand side above the graph, you will see gray text that reads “Graph By:” and icon options to click on. The default view will be by “Day,” or the second icon. Select the first icon to the left, which is the “Hour” view.

UNDER "GRAPH BY", MY ICON OPTIONS ARE "PER DAY" "PER WEEK" AND "PER MONTH" - I DON'T HAVE A "PER HOUR" OPTION!!! HOW CAN THAT BE????? HELP ANYONE?

April 22, 2009 at 2:13 p.m. Deaney

This info is really timely. I want to learn more about tracking my shop sales. Thanks.

May 31, 2009 at 7:55 p.m. SocialButterflies

Very informative. Thank you!

July 15, 2009 at 7:43 p.m. AJewelryObsession

So far I've had nothing show up in my Google Analytics account page. Is it because I haven't sold anything?

Oct. 15, 2009 at 10:09 a.m. poppycottage

THANK YOU, great article. June Moon

Nov. 7, 2009 at 10:26 a.m. nauli

Thank you for this informative article. It learned a lot!

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