Skip to content
English
More support Ticket Desk Visit
Raise a ticket
  • There are no suggestions because the search field is empty.

Guide to Using the "Traffic by Source" Dashboard

1. Understanding the Dashboard

A "Traffic by Source" dashboard typically includes the following elements:

  • Dimensions:

    • Source: Indicates where the traffic originated (e.g., search engines, direct visits, or referral links).
    • Medium: Describes the type of channel (e.g., organic, referral, email).

  • Metrics:

    • Sessions: The total number of visits to your website.
    • New Users: The number of visitors who accessed your website for the first time.
    • Bounce Rate: The percentage of visits where users left after viewing only one page.
    • Pages per Session: The average number of pages viewed during a visit.
    • Session Duration: The average amount of time users spent on your website.

2. Steps to Extract Meaningful Data

Step 1: Analyse Key Traffic Sources

  • Sort by Source or Medium:

    • Identify which sources (e.g., search engines, direct traffic) are driving the most visitors or new users.
    • Evaluate which mediums (e.g., organic, referral) generate the highest levels of engagement.

  • Examine Engagement Metrics:

    • A high bounce rate may suggest the need to improve the content or user experience on your landing pages.
    • High pages per session and session duration indicate that visitors are finding the content engaging and useful.

Step 2: Identify Underperforming Channels

  • Look for traffic sources with low volume but high engagement. These could be worth scaling up with targeted efforts.
  • Pinpoint sources with high bounce rates or low session duration as areas to investigate and improve.

Step 3: Segment the Data

  • Use filters to segment traffic by:
    • Geographical location (e.g., country or city).
    • Device type (e.g., mobile, desktop, or tablet).
    • Campaign (e.g., using UTM parameters for tracking specific campaigns).

3. Exporting the Data

To analyse data in external tools:

  1. Locate the Export CSV or similar button on the dashboard (this is often in the top-right corner).
  2. Click the button and save the file to your computer.
  3. Open the CSV file in spreadsheet software such as Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets to:
    • Create pivot tables for deeper insights.
    • Generate graphs or charts (e.g., bar charts, line graphs) for visual analysis.

4. Best Practices for Analysing Traffic Data

Use Proper Tracking Parameters:

  • Ensure all campaigns use correctly tagged UTM parameters to track their performance (e.g., source, medium, campaign).
  • Example UTM URL: https://example.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=holiday_sale.

Establish Benchmarks:

  • Compare metrics such as bounce rate, session duration, and new users to industry standards or your own historical data.

Monitor Trends Over Time:

  • Regularly compare data across periods (e.g., week-on-week or month-on-month) to identify patterns or seasonal changes.

Integrate with Other Tools:

  • Connect the data to visualisation platforms such as Google Looker Studio or Tableau to create comprehensive reports and dashboards.

5. Taking Action from Insights

  • Optimise High-Performing Sources:
    • Invest additional resources (e.g., higher ad budgets or more content) in sources or campaigns that are performing well.
  • Address Underperforming Channels:
    • Improve landing page content for sources with high bounce rates.
    • Reconfigure tracking to ensure accurate data collection.
    • Investigate technical issues, such as broken referral links or incorrect campaign tagging.