I purchased a hosting package, did a one-click install of WordPress, and chose a placeholder theme to get started on my website.

What do you think I did first?  Update my company name?  Add content?  Put a logo in the header?

Nope!

Google Analytics

The very first thing I did on my own website was install and configure Google Analytics tracking.

Why I Give a Fox About Google Analytics Tracking On My WordPress SiteWhy I Give a Fox

I installed Google Analytics before I did anything else because it is literally the best tool available to help measure and understand the ROI of marketing efforts I undertake for my own business.  It’s also free.

That’s also why it’s the first thing I help my clients do.

How Can Google Analytics Help You Measure ROI?

With a properly configured Google Analytics account (including goal and conversion tracking), you can:

  • see how leads and customers found your company so you can repeat or double down on those efforts.
  • understand what content leads and customers found most valuable on your site so you can do something similar again and get more results.
  • see a clear picture of what doesn’t work, so you can stop spending time and money on it.

Those are the most vital aspects of any online marketing you do.

Tools I Used to Configure Google Analytics on My Site

Here is a list of the tools I needed to install GA, make a lead form on my website, and get it tracking properly:

  • A free account at google.com/analytics, set up with the gmail address I use for my business
  • Google Analytics Dashboard for WP, a sweet little plugin with an easy interface
  • Contact Form 7, a plug-in that can be used to make a trackable lead generation form
  • Contact Form 7 – Success Page Redirects, a plug-in that adds on Contact Form 7 to create a goal conversion page

All of them are free, but the plug-in creators do take donations if you use their tools to help your business.

I’ll cover how to set up these tools in future posts.  If you need one-on-one help getting Analytics configured on your WordPress site, I’m here for you.