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Guide to set up Google Analytics - New customers
Visiolab introduction
This Guide will help you set up your Google Analytics account. At the same time, it will help you understand how Visiolink applications work with Google Analytics and how we at Visiolab recommend ways in which you can benefit from your data from this point forward.
Visiolab is an independent business unit within Visiolink. Our focus is Business Intelligence and data-driven decision-making. In this context, we aim to assist all Visiolink clients who have an ambition of utilizing the many possibilities for e-paper optimization, which lies within an intelligent use of data.
To understand the basics of how we work with Google Analytics, please note the following statements:
- The Visiolab Customized Google Analytics tracking events are the most reliable metrics for determining the actual performance of your e-paper.
- The global Google Analytics metrics (such as Users or Sessions) are defined and controlled by Google – Visiolab has no control. Therefore, the customized events are very important in order for you to track fully reliable data in your e-paper.
We use Google Tag Manager, which will allow for easier future maintenance and standardization of the data-gathering process. In order to exploit the possibilities of Google Tag Manager, a few customizations have to be implemented in your account. Please read and follow this guide, before you start to use Google Analytics with your Visiolink application.
The guide includes:
- How to create an Account in Google Analytics - How to create a Website View and an App view - How to create 5 new custom dimensions - Visiolab data recommendations
- How to set up a customized tracking event in Google Analytics - Visiolab product sheet
Once these Customizations has been made, you will be ready to use Google Analytics to track the performance and development of your e-paper.
Any questions, consulting requests or wishes of help with the optimization of your e-paper may be addressed at the Visiolab team of consultants – visit www.visiolab.com for more information. A brief overview of what Visiolab has to offer is presented at the end of this guide.
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How to create a Google Analytics account
With one property and two views
To be able to integrate Google Analytics tools in your Visiolink product(s) you need to follow these steps. At the end of this guide, you will have created a Google Analytics account, a property and two views. You have to send Visiolink the tracking ID and add Visiolink as user of the account. Here is how to do it:
1. Go to www.google.com/analytics 2. Press ’Create an account’ or ’Sign in’
3. Fill in the form with your personal information and press ‘Next step’ – accept the Service Agreement. You might be asked for verification by e-mail or text message.
4. Now you need to set up the account. You need two separate tracking views: One for website and one for Mobile app. The guide will start with the Website and move on to the Mobile-app. Fill in as follows:
o Start by creating a new account for Website
o Account name: Please include the name of your publication in the account name, e.g. as below ‘The Daily News’. Please avoid special characters like ‘æ, ø, å, ä, +. –‘ o Website’s URL: www.e-pages.dk
Page | 4 5. Please provide Visiolink with the tracking ID
6. You have now created a Google Analytics account. Now you need to give Visiolink access to the account. Press ‘User Management’.
7. Add permissions for: visiolink.analytics2@gmail.com. Allow this user to read and analyze. Check the ‘Notify this user by email’-box.
Page | 5 9. You will now see a list of (at least) two users of the account; you and
visiolink.analytics2@gmail.com
10. Now it’s time to set up tracking for mobile app, which is almost the same procedure as with website tracking.
o Go to your admin page and make sure you are looking at the correct property (for your tracking of the digital paper)
Page | 6 11. Choose to track Mobile app
o App name: Please include the name of your publication or your app in the reporting view name. In our example, our digital publication is called ‘The Daily News’ and we therefore include ‘The Daily News’ in the app name. Please avoid special characters.
12. Now you should be able to see both your Website tracking (All Web Site Data) and your Mobile App tracking (All Mobile App Data) on your Home Screen. If they both show up, you are done!
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Creating custom dimensions in Google Analytics
Securing data quality in the future
This guide assumes you have recently moved to a new version on either Web, iOS or Android. By adding the new Custom Dimensions, you will continue to be able to track the data, which previously has been stored under Custom Variables (Platform, App version, Publication Date, Orientation).
1. Go to www.google.com/analytics 2. Press ’Sign in’
Page | 8 3. Sign in with your Google Analytics information.
Page | 9 5. Press ’Custom Definitions’ and choose ‘Custom Dimensions’.
Page | 10 6. You are now ready to create the new custom dimensions. Press ‘New Custom Dimension’.
7. You are going to create 5 new custom dimensions. It is important to create them in the same order and with the same names as this guide to ensure the data quality. The first dimension is Client, which requires ‘User’ as Scope. It has to be set to active.
Press Create and you will be shown a code example. Simply ignore the code example and press ‘Done’.
Page | 11 8. You have now created the first Custom Dimension. It should look like this.
9. It is time to create the next Custom Dimension. It must be named ‘App version’ and should have Session as its Scope. It must be set to active. Press ‘Create’ and then ‘Done’ when the code examples are shown.
Page | 12 10. The next Custom Dimension is ’Publication title’ and is created the same way as the two first
dimensions. Be sure to set the scope to ‘Hit’.
11. The next dimension is Orientation and it is created the same way as the preceding ones. Be sure to set the scope to ‘Hit’.
Page | 13 12. The last dimension is Section and it is created the same way as the preceding ones. Be sure to
set the scope to ‘Hit’.
13. You have now created all the Custom Dimensions and you should be able to see them all in the table. If your table does not look like the image, delete the dimensions and repeat the process. If it still does not work, contact Visiolab for further information at
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Optimal Publication Tracking
Optimizing your data
The E-paper solution is not similar to a standard App/Website, which makes it important to use the correct metrics for tracking a publication. This is why we have implemented our own metrics. A large part of the standard metrics can still provide insights but others are inflated and cannot be used to determine the general readership of a publication. We have established a set of customized events in Google Analytics to make sure the right data is tracked. This allows you to report the correct data to your organization.
In order to increase awareness concerning the correct use of our customized events, we have developed a set of Business Intelligence recommendations.
Recommended measure for publication readership:
Publication (Openings) will tell you exactly how many times a publication has been
opened
*Openings on Android is under development at the moment The next page will show you how to create a custom report for Publication (Openings) in Google Analytics.
Other key metrics include:
Download – Lists the number of publication downloads (includes automatic downloads)
Interstitial metrics – Impressions, Clicks, Conversion Rate
Clickable Ad metrics – Impressions, Clicks, Conversion Rate
Article metrics – Article View, Article Name, Number of bookmarks
Searches – Queries from local and archive searches
To use the Publication event and other events, a custom report has to be created in Google Analytics. You can find more information on how to create custom reports in our Google Analytics Guide on www.visiolab.com or contact us on labsupport@visiolab.com.
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Publication (Openings)
The Publication (Openings) event is created in the customization tab in Google Analytics. Press ‘Create New Report’.
It will take you to the screenshot below, where you have to fill out the fields exactly as the image.
You have now created the Publication (Openings) event. It will be accessible in your
customizations tab in Google Analytics. More customized tracking events can be found in the Visiolab Google Analytics Guide on www.visiolab.com .
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Visiolab Product Sheet
Increasing ROI through data driven decision-making
To give you an idea of what Visiolab offers, have a look at our product sheet. It describes our offerings, which can help provide a solid foundation for data supported decision-making.
Surveys
Our surveys are a valuable tool in understanding the readers’ attitude towards the e-paper. They examine both
demographics and consumer habits regarding the e-paper through a set of precise questions.
High-level strategic performance reports
A precise communicative tool in the form of a report that will make it easy for you to communicate the overall performance of your e-paper to the rest of your organization. Delivered each month, the report will be customizable to your publication and can be benchmarked against previous performance and the industry.
Ad performance consulting
The importance of advertising cannot be underestimated, as it is a primary revenue generator. We have worked with dozens of publications and helped them gain larger revenue by
utilizing industry information and new advertising possibilities, such as interstitials and clickable ads.
Data cases and analysis
Both data quality and data accessibility have become a competitive necessity. We can help you dive into your publications data and find valuable information.
Dashboard
Data visibility helps an organization strive towards common goals. We have developed a dashboard to increase the overall visibility to help you focus on your e-papers performance.
