Every year, we are surrounded by more and more data.
This is an undeniable asset for companies: the analysis of this data enables them to optimize their marketing strategy.
Communicating with the right target, at the right time, with the right product: that’s the goal of every company today!
However, data is not always put to the best possible use. Companies exploit it, but the analysis remains too superficial to be fully effective.
In this guide, we’ll focus on 2 essential digital marketing tools: Google Ads & Google Analytics.
These high-performance tools enable companies to collect a vast amount of data, but the evidence is clear: this data is under-exploited.
First, we’ll explain what data you’re likely to collect with these two tools.
Secondly, we’ll give you tips on how to optimize the use of the data you obtain from Google Ads and Google Analytics.
What data does Google Ads collect?
If you own a website, especially an e-commerce site, you’re probably familiar with Google Ads.
With just a few clicks, this tool enables you to create advertising campaigns that appear in the SERPs: the results pages of the Google search engine.
Here, we’re talking about SEA, not SEO: site referencing is not natural, but obtained through a bidding system.
So, in order to appear in a good position in the Google Ads inserts that are displayed each time a web surfer makes a query, ads must meet a number of criteria:
CPC, also known as cost-per-click: the higher the CPC set by a site in relation to its competitors, the greater the chances of the site appearing in a good position.
Ad quality: certain rules laid down by Google must be respected by advertisers
Landing page quality: in particular, the landing page must be consistent with the subject of the ad.
For e-commerce sites, tracking Google Ads campaigns is essential.
Thanks to this tool, you’ll always know what each keyword, each ad and each campaign is bringing in and costing you.
Google Ads campaigns are optimized on a daily basis to improve conversions and meet targets.
That’s why it’s essential to analyze the data obtained through the Google Ads tracking and management tool.
Here are some data that may be important for an e-commerce site seeking to improve conversions:
The click-through rate (also known as CTR)
The number of times the ad is displayed
The keywords used by web users who have purchased from the e-commerce site after clicking on a sponsored ad
The location of web users and their profile who have clicked on the ad
All this data can be analyzed. The most important is undoubtedly the CTR.
If, after analysis, you realize that the CTR of your campaigns is low, it’s because you need to optimize them: your ads display well in the SERPs, but web users click on them relatively little.
In such a situation, you’ll probably have to rethink your strategy: modifying the ad with a catchier or less advertising text may be a solution to consider.
What data does Google Analytics collect?
Google Ads isn’t the only tool for collecting data.
Google Analytics is just as essential.
However, it doesn’t work in the same way as Google Ads:
Google Ads lets you analyze the data obtained from your sponsored ads
Google Analytics lets you analyze the performance of your website through statistics
Note that these two tools can be combined, which is very useful for e-commerce sites.
But more on that later. First, let’s take a look at the data that can be obtained using Google Analytics alone!
Here is a non-exhaustive list of data you can collect and analyze with Google Analytics in addition to the number of visits and page views over a given period:
Data related to the website audience:
Demographics (age, gender, etc.)
Geography (language, country)
Site behavior (new or repeat visitors, frequency of visits)
Technology used (operating system, browser, mobile)
Data related to the acquisition of the website audience:
Traffic sources, referral sites…
Google Ads
Social networks
Data relating to the behaviour of Internet users on the website:
Most viewed pages
Viewing time
Bounce rate
Destination page
Exit page
Site speed
Site search
Data linked to conversions…. provided that objectives have been defined beforehand!
For an e-commerce site, it’s essential that this part be parameterized: your analysis will then be more complete.
So, if you find that certain pages of your website have a very high bounce rate, it’s because the strategy in place isn’t the most optimal.
You’ll probably have to think about modifying the content of the page to make it more attractive or more relevant to the search of web users.
Similarly, demographic data will help you to better understand the visitors you are attracting to your website.
If you realize that a target is spending a lot of time on a category on your e-commerce site, you can take this into account when setting up Google Ads.
Analyze project performance by combining Google Ads and Analytics
If you use Google Ads and Google Analytics separately, it’s a good idea to combine the two tools.
In this way, you’ll be able to analyze the performance of your campaigns and e-commerce site in a much more detailed and comprehensive way.
In particular, you can retrieve cost-per-click data from Google Ads, as well as conversion data from Google Analytics.
By merging these two types of data, you’ll obtain unprecedented information that will enable you to make strategic decisions in the future.
So, for each conversion, you’ll know which product was clicked on and which was sold. In this way, you’ll be able to compare the gain from selling a product on your website with its cost.
All the data you obtain from combining Google Ads and Analytics will give you a better understanding of your website’s traffic and conversions.
This information is extremely useful for improving your e-commerce site and your Adwords ads: with the right data at your disposal, you can make strategic and optimal decisions!
But how do you combine these two tools? Find out how:
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Start by logging in to your Google Ads account
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Click on Settings, then choose “Associated accounts” from the menu.
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Display the details by clicking on “Google Analytics”. You should then see a list of all the Analytics properties you can choose to associate.
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Choose one of the properties. Click on “Configure association”.
If the selected property has only one view, its name appears. Then click on “Import site statistics”.
This is the step that gives Google Ads access to your Analytics data.
If the selected property has multiple views, the methodology is a little different. You can choose between 2 parameters. The one we recommend is the import of site statistics.
But you can also choose the second method, “Associate”. In the latter case, you can associate as many views as you like.
- Validate the information and repeat the operation for each property you wish to associate between Analytics and Google Ads.
Once set up, you’ll be able to import Google Analytics goals and transactions, view all Analytics data in Google Ads reports, and import Analytics remarketing audiences.
Of course, you can also view Google Ads data in your Analytics reports.
Personalized attribution models: a winning strategy?
You can go even further in analyzing the data provided by Google Analytics and Google Ads. This involves setting up personalized attribution models.
Are you unfamiliar with the concept? Here’s some information to help you make sense of it:
The personalized attribution model is a set of rules that the statistics tool (Google Analytics) automatically applies to assign conversions to the various channels, i.e. traffic sources on your website.
The attribution model allows you to monitor your website in a much more detailed way, which is particularly interesting for e-commerce sites.
Indeed, when a sale takes place on your website, you don’t just want to know from which source it came.
In fact, you also want to know which were the decisive clicks that enabled the Internet user to buy on your website: it’s not necessarily the same click!
Note that if you don’t set up a custom attribution model, the default model will only give you information on the last click.
And yet, it’s not necessarily the most important one, the one that was decisive in the purchasing process.
Let’s talk about the different clicks for a better understanding:
The first click: as the name suggests, this is the first click that brought a visitor to your website. This could be a click on a sponsored ad, in natural results, from a Facebook page, from a link in a blog, etc.
Intermediate clicks: these are clicks made by the visitor to your site, after the first one, which were not decisive for a purchase. So, if the first click comes from a sponsored ad, the second click may well come from natural results, and the third from your e-commerce site’s Facebook page.
Let’s talk more about the last click.
As explained above, this is the default click used by Google Analytics.
Let’s take an example: a visitor arrives on your website from a sponsored ad.
He doesn’t buy anything, but comes back to the site the next day from the natural results by typing your company’s name into the search engine to buy the product he’s interested in and that he’d spotted the day before.
In Google Analytics, this sale will be attributed to the “Google/Organic” channel: true, but not in full!
Don’t forget the importance of first and intermediate clicks.
Ideally, in Google Analytics, you should be able to trace the various stages that lead to a conversion: they’re all important!
And that’s exactly what the personalized attractiveness template allows you to do.
We therefore advise you to assign a custom attribution model, preferably the one that best suits your e-commerce site.
In fact, there is no single model, but many. For example, you can define a model that attributes all your conversions to the first interaction with your website.
Towards ever-better use of data?
To fine-tune your marketing strategy, it’s essential to use data.
The most effective technique is still to use the tools available to you and exploit them to the full.
So it’s important to take the time not only to set up Google Ads and Google Analytics, but also to combine them.
In the end, you won’t necessarily get more data, but data that makes more sense.
And it’s precisely this meaningful information that will enable you to fine-tune your marketing strategy, improve your ROI and achieve your business objectives.
E-commerce sites: don’t neglect the analysis and personalization of Google Ads and Google Analytics data! These are invaluable tools for the long-term success of your business.
