Ten years ago, it was enough for a business to create a website, cast it out into the wild and merely sit back while the traffic rolled in. But in today’s increasingly technical world with big data seamlessly flowing, it has become essential for small businesses to study their website analytics in order to personalize the experience for visitors, compete with industry behemoths and improve overall business.

For those of you that aren’t studying your website analytics to enhance business, the investment it took to build that website is destined to be a lost cause.

According to a recent study on small businesses’ online strategies, only 25 percent of small businesses use an analytics tool, such as the free Google Analytics service, to measure website performance. That means 75 percent of small businesses are missing opportunities to enhance website traffic, improve sales and drive business forward.

With this decade’s eruption in technology and big data, businesses that don’t know what their audience is doing online are simply flying blind.

Google Analytics is the most popular website statistics service, with a usership of more than 55 percent of the top 10,000 websites last year. This tool and similar services are seeing higher demand as more and more businesses realize the positive impact of using such data. What’s more, Google Analytics is available to businesses at no cost, meaning enterprises and small businesses can benefit just the same.

Small businesses competing with industry giants can leverage website analytics to cater towards particular audiences and direct messages appropriately.

A great example of a company that successfully studied data to increase appeal with its audience is BannerView. They sought to understand what keywords and topics listed in their bi-weekly newsletter most resonated with their subscribers. From the last 12 newsletters, BannerView discovered SEO and online marketing content racked up the most hits and comments, which allowed them to then tailor their newsletters to better fit their audience’s interests.

BannerView gained more responses and was able to develop new content marketing products based on the results of this data alone.

Undoubtedly, with the large volume of data flowing in each day, it’s growing harder to make sense of it all. However, website analytics can offer solutions to your company’s online Web woes. Whether you’re questioning the success of your blog content, wondering if specific content fits better on another page or looking to see which devices viewers use to access your site the most, website analytics are there for you.

Many think of website analytics as a tool that just tells you how many visitors your website receives each day, but that is only one small component of what Web analytics can tell you about the performance of your website.

Building a website and blindly casting it into the vast, expanding online sea is no longer enough. The key to your website’s online success now lies in your ability to unlock its rich user data so you can drive your business initiative – from branding and sales to customer service – through a deep understanding of your audience.

Analytics Photo via Shutterstock

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[Visua.ly Personalized Analytics Infographic Example]

Almost all businesses, regardless of size or industry, use Google in some form. Be it Google Calendars, Google Drive or trusty old Gmail, it seems as though everyone relies on at least one of Google’s products to support their work routine. That said, there are a few hidden treasures in Google’s toolbox that, at times, don’t seem to get enough credit.

Sure, Google has hundreds of apps, but there are some that can have a serious impact on your online marketing initiatives that seem to be flying under the radar. Additionally, Google’s products typically have “freemium” models, which offer the invaluable opportunity to experiment with a variety of different techniques and hone in on what serves your brand most.

We’re all for testing out the latest and greatest from the world’s most powerful Internet giant. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to give a few of these seemingly under-appreciated products a spin.

4 Powerful Google Tools For Online Marketing

Google Trends

If you’re looking to amp up your SEO strategy, Google Trends is a tool that shouldn’t be overlooked. It allows you to see how frequently a term is searched so you can get a gauge for its popularity.

Google Trends instantly creates a graph of the search volume by language, country, city or region, revealing how the term has evolved over specific increments of time. It also forecasts how those terms will trend over time, helping you to make more educated decisions.

Essentially, Google Trends makes it easy for you to stay current with your product’s marketing language so you can jump into conversations about topics relevant to your space.

Think With Google

We like to consider Think With Google as a creative brain-trust we can turn to when searching for inspiration for our online marketing strategies. The resource is loaded with valuable information on industry trends, research and statistics, tips on marketing techniques and unique insights to get your creative juices flowing.

When devising your online marketing strategy or quarterly and yearly plans, don’t skip Think With Google. We love visiting this tool when we’ve come down with a marketing writer’s block, too.

GoMo

Consider this: 67 percent of people say a mobile-friendly site makes them more likely to buy a product or use a service. In other words, you should tap into the mobile revolution or your business may soon be left behind with the fax machines and the pagers of the world—otherwise known as those that failed to innovate.

Luckily, GoMo makes the transition to the digital world a simple one. Free for the first year, GoMo instantly generates a mobile-friendly version of your website so you’re no longer deterring your on-the-go customers with a site that’s nearly impossible to navigate.

Google Analytics

This might seem like a no brainer to some, but studies show that Google Analytics is actually a terribly underutilized tool among small and medium sized businesses. Without Google Analytics, carrying out website online marketing strategies is like driving blindly in the dark. Website analytics reveal critical data about how existing and potential customers interact with you online. When evaluated properly, the analytics insights offer up ample opportunities for customer engagement and retention.

If you take away one thing from this article, let it be this: Install Google Analytics and learn to love it.

Quick tip: If you already have Google Analytics running on your site, check out Visua.ly’s personalized analytics infographics.  You can create visual infographics that include your site’s data so that you can track your site’s performance by viewing it in an infographic. (An example is pictured above.)

I make a concerted effort to explore each of Google’s online marketing apps and gather data on the impact they have. I’m always impressed with what I learn about our customers and marketing strategies. So while one of these four Google tools might leap out at you more than the others, my suggestion is to give them all a try and see what they churn up.

I think you’ll be pleased with what Google has going besides search.

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Regardless, many businesses still handle transactions with point-of-sale systems that look no different than they did over a decade ago. Payments are one of the last core business technologies that’s still begging for the mainstream adoption of a more mobile and user friendly alternative, and e-commerce has swooped in to alleviate the cashier’s pain.

Early returns from the 2012 holiday season indicate that e-commerce’s demand and potential is going exponentially. Cyber Monday pulled in a hefty $1.46 billion last year – more than any other year in history.

A reality where our nation does the vast majority of its shopping on screens is not far off, and we’re seeing systematic industry shifts that prove e-commerce will soon be ubiquitous. Almost all major corporations are already on board, but 2013 is teed up to be the year small businesses untether themselves from dated POS systems and bring their businesses to where their customers are most – online.

And here’s why:

Mobile Payments Open a New Realm for E-commerce

2012 yielded an explosion in the mobile payments services. This busy space is pioneered by Square, but apps like Google Wallet and ISIS are also popularizing the idea of ditching cash and plastic in droves of paying by screen. Many have speculated that the mobile payments space is fragmented and cluttered (and we can’t say we disagree), but there’s no denying that this new avenue for displaced purchasing has brought e-commerce further into the mainstream.

As major brands like Starbucks and Walgreens continue to push their remote payments solutions, the sheer prevalence of online purchasing will eclipse small businesses relying solely on the cash register. Customers are more comfortable than ever paying remotely, increasing the demand for e-commerce options across all businesses selling goods and services.

Sophisticated – Yet Simple – Web Tools

Developing a money-maker site is now easier and cheaper than ever. A host of online marketing technologies now offer freemium versions, and thanks to advancements in tag management, adding a ‘Pay Now’ button to your website is as easy as adding an app to your smartphone.

With simple website applications available at little to no cost, small businesses are running low on excuses for dated, stagnant sites that don’t serve their businesses. A few tools that make implementing e-commerce options fast and easy include:

• Shopify: With monthly fees starting at $30, Shopify provides the features needed to build your own complete online store, including beautiful design templates, hosting and marketing and SEO.
• Volusion: $15 a month gets you Volusion’s basic set of services, including e-commerce software for those starting an online business or already actively selling online, mobile compatibility and built in social media tools.

A Leveled Playing Field

We are now entering our third decade of the Web, and it continues to evolve at a neck-breaking pace, generally set by enterprises like Amazon. These companies continue to set the standard for the consumer online experience by enlisting strategies that not only drive traffic, but conversions.

This year will be the year that the small business takes advantage of these strategies in order to stay competitive. Website personalization, which includes tailoring the website based on things like age, location and interests; loyalty programs and unique offers will be easier and cheaper to implement than it ever has before. All of these strategies are important to a strong Web presence, and in unison, help you build a brand as professional and compelling as the giants in your space.

A few great options for getting started include LevelUp and Belly, great loyalty program apps, and personalization / optimization solutions Optimizely and Visual Website Optimizer.

While taking your business online was once a complicated process, we’ve reached a tipping point in website technology where it’s easier than ever for small businesses to have a robust, personalized online presence. These industry developments and the democratization of e-commerce tools have poised 2013 to be the year the emerging businesses meet their customers on the screen with a digital presence as dynamic as their storefront.

Gold Photo via Shutterstock

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