optimize your wordpress site with web analytics and testing
Post on 14-Sep-2014
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DESCRIPTION
Slides from WordCamp Boston 2013 session on site optimization using Google Analytics, SEO, A/B and multivariate testing, and heatmapping. Examines strategy. Recommends specific pluginsTRANSCRIPT
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Optimize Your WordPress Site with Analytics &
TestingChristina Inge
EdTripsWordCamp Boston 2013
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What Is Optimization?
• Making sure your site meets business goals• With data• Real, usable data• and the right tools
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You Can Optimize for (Just About) Anything:
• Getting more visitors • Making your site easier to navigate• Getting more people to buy/donate/sign up• More blog posts, community posts, social engagement• Scaring people away
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Develop Goals
• Improve usability• Increase conversions• Grow (the right kind of) traffic
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Create KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)
• What #’s let us know we’re succeeding?• Examples might include:
• Visitor metrics• Type of visit• Number of actions• Source of traffic
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Familiarize Yourself with Common Terms
Conversion
• Any action you want people to take on the site: buy, download, register
Visits • Raw number of views of any page
Unique Visitors
• Separate IP addresses coming to site
Referals • Links sending traffic to your site
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Find the Right Tool for What You Need
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Google Analytics
• Most people skim the surface of the most powerful optimization tool.
• Don’t just track visit volume.• Do track the details.• Five things your GA can
answer:
Does a mention in a niche trade pub do us more
good than a short write-up in
the Boston Globe?
Do people who visit at night buy more often than
those in the daytime?
What is the best day – really- to
send out an email, based on
what people buy?
Did that paid search campaign coupled with a
whitepaper lead to more sales?
Should we spend time on
Google+?
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GA Plugins• Just needs to be a basic part
of every site• Choose the lightest, smallest• You don’t need to access GA
from within WP or other elaborate add-ins
• Often part of other optimization plugins, so check if you really need a separate one
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SEO Plugins: A Must When You Test
• More than just Google Search rankings
• Allow you to tailor meta data to what is drawing the right traffic, optimizing your site
• SEO is core to optimization-attracting traffic, structuring the site
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Testing SEO Meta Data Works!
Meta Description Visits ConversionsEdTrips web platform for educational travel
8,000 240
EdTrips allows you to manage your educational trips with a simple online platform
6,000 540
EdTrips-Manage Educational Trips the Easy Way, with Payment Collection, Your Own Website, and More
7,000 900
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Using an SEO Tool in WordPress
• Configuration gets a lot done-fast
• Sets up to make your job easier, or enable client self-service
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Creating a Template For Basic SEO
• Set up a standard process for <title>, <meta name=“description” > and other content for optimized SEO
• Creates an optimized title automatically if properly configured
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Optimize Each Page
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Testing• You need to test for true
optimization• Hunches, what you think works—
the data is what really tells the story
• Testing is so easy, there’s no reason not to do it
• Involves the design team, the client• Really
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What to Test
Visuals Text Calls to action Layouts
Entire themes if your site is new
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How to Test
Gather your data-observe
Develop a hypothesis-based on your data
Create variation(s) that are still on-brand, consistent
Give it more time than you think
Go back and test again
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Nelio A/B Testing Plugin
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WordPress Landing Pages
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SES Theme Split Test
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Case Study: Using Analytics to Find the Best PR Sources
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EdTrips
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EdTrips
• Online platform for organizing learning trips• Target audiences include teachers, scouts, adult ed, and
venues• WP custom theme• Working with only two free tools in this example:
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The Goal
• Find the best sources of inbound traffic
• Which websites are leading visitors to stay?
• What referrals lead to conversions—in this case, checking out the app?
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Referral Sources Alone are
Really Useful
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Referrals with Goal Completions are Even Better
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One View Helps You Learn
• Where to pitch• What topics interest real, buying
customers• Where to advertise• What to advertise• What your customers really want• And it’s not this screen
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Setting Up Goals-A Real-World “Test”
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Google Analytics Channels
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Implementing Testing and Analytics
• It’s affordable and takes less time than you think• Avoid “plugin overload”: you only need a few• Focus on immediately actionable data• Test only when you already have data• Sometimes, you only need analytics to optimize, sometimes
you need both testing and analytics—run lean• Have fun!
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Thank You!
• Christina Inge, VP of Marketing EdTrips, Adjunct Instructor, BU CDIA
• [email protected]• Marketingforgrowth.wordpress.com