Money5 min read
Most analytics are noise
Dashboards are full of numbers that move without meaning anything. A very small handful actually tell you what to do next.
Published
Open any analytics tool and you are shown dozens of figures, almost none of which change a decision. Sessions went up eleven per cent. Bounce rate went down four. Now what?
A number is only useful if you would do something different depending on its value. Most of what gets reported fails that test.
The ones that pass
- Where visitors came from — tells you which effort is working.
- Which pages they land on — tells you what they were actually looking for.
- How many did the thing you wanted — called, booked, submitted.
- Which pages they leave from without doing it — tells you where the problem is.
Why bounce rate misleads
A high bounce rate on a page that answered the question is a success, not a failure. Someone found your opening hours and left because they now know your opening hours. Judging that page by bounce rate punishes it for working.
Check monthly, not daily. Weekly noise will have you reacting to weather.
