Making Analytics Data Actionable Using Analytics API Tools

“Web Analytics focuses on the direct improvement of conversion rates and the stickiness of the website: how to design and organize the website in order to improve sales and engage/retain customers.” – Web Analytics Association

When analysing a website’s visitor trends, data overload is inevitable. Why? Because web analytics tools such as Omniture and Google Analytics present heaps of raw data in an array of visually pleasing graphs and tables, that by default, lack useful insights.

In order to make raw web analytics data actionable, KPI’s need to be put in place based upon business goals and then metrics need to be set up to show the progress and insight of these KPI’s.

“The difficulty for web analytics vendors and users alike, is that every website is different in some way – be it content, infrastructure, marketing or enquiry/customer follow-up. That means, each website has a unique set of measurement requirements. Whilst Google Analytics does an excellent job at data architecture and visualisation for the vast majority of report users, it often cannot meet very specific, detailed needs. Being able to export your data via its API is a great way for you, or third-party developers, to build custom applications to meet these specific needs.”

- Brian Clifton

Author, Advanced Web Metrics with Google Analytics

One method of intelligently interpreting web analytics data and visualising it in an understandable and meaningful way is to exploit the power of Google analytics API tools.

Identifying the Problem

In mid-2010, Lokku Labs were searching for a low maintenance, well documented standalone Google analytics API tool for their property search engine Gartoo. The requirements included the ability to import data from and query all metrics available in Google Analytics. The objective is to interpret their web analytics data by combining it with other data sources of data, some of them offline KPIs.

Features that Gartoo required from a web analytics API tool

- Simple and fast
- Import data from Google Analytics to .xls and CSV formats from the command line
- Queries all dimensions and metrics available in Google Analytics
- Populates an Excel template
- Extensively documented
- Minimum or no maintenance
- Dependable support
- Standalone, portable software across operating systems
- Adaptable to new versions of Google Analytics API and external software update

The benefits of using Google Analytics API tools

Google Analytics API tools make focusing on the right key performance indicators easier through customized data visualization, flexible dashboards and the ability to pull in data from multiple Google Analytics accounts without having to change the selected profile. Most Google analytics APIs also make exporting data to excel worksheets incredibly simple, saving time on reporting and allowing you to use the Excel commands to interpret your web analytics data and combine it with other data sets.