Whether you just launched a new B2B website design or are interested in evaluating how your website is performing, website performance tracking is essential.
Website Analytics Tools
There are a variety of website tracking tools out there, both paid and unpaid. Even if you have a paid analytics tool you are using or plan on using, we always recommend installing Google Analytics tracking to provide a baseline of activity. Also, in our experience, many paid analytics tools do use Google Analytics as one of their data sources, so it’s a good idea to have access to the raw data yourself.
Other B2B website tracking platforms include:
This is not a comprehensive list of analytics tools for website performance, but it includes tools that have varying levels of service and capabilities. What you expect or need from your analytics tool will drive the options you consider.
Key Website Analytics to Track
If you’ve logged into an analytics tool for the first time and felt overwhelmed, you are not alone. There is so much data available, it can be tough to know which analytics matter and which you can ignore. Even if you know what you are looking at, it can be easy to “go down the rabbit hole” of data and spend hours analyzing data.
Let’s take a few key metrics to look at when tracking your B2B website performance.
Traffic Volume – A high-level look should include looking at the volume of website traffic. We recommend looking at date ranges, typically year over year for the same date range to see if you notice any patterns or changes. Looking at date ranges also gives you insight into any seasonality or inbound events.
New vs Returning Traffic – Another high-level look should include new visitors vs returning visitors. If one of your goals is to attract new inbound leads, you will want to focus on improving the number of new visitors. One thing to keep in mind is that for B2B sales, it often takes over 6 touchpoints (which can include multiple visits to your B2B website) before a prospect will make contact with your company.
Traffic By Source/Channel – Marketing budgets are typically based off of the best lead generating sources. For this reason, it’s important to take a look at what channels or sources are driving traffic to your website. Ideally, you’ll set up lead conversion tracking in your analytics tool and can then attribute which sources are driving the best leads.
Read more: How to define your B2B website KPIs.
Engagement Metrics – There are various engagement metrics you can track for your B2B website traffic. Engagement is really just a fancy term for quality traffic. Tracking things like the average time on the website and the number of pages viewed will tell you whether you are getting good quality traffic. It can also alert you to high-performing and under-performing parts of your website.
Top Landing Pages – Knowing which pages your visitors are first seeing when they get to your website can provide insights into what users are searching for and popular topics that appeal to online users. Additionally, it can indicate when a particular page on your website isn’t providing value when you look at the top landing pages and the engagement metrics listed above.
Read more: Are you content downloads getting the attention they deserve?
Website Conversions – While listed last, this is one of the more valuable metrics for B2B marketing and sales teams. How well a lead generating website performs is easy to identify in the number and quality of website conversions. Tracking and reporting on website conversions often shows the true value of your B2B website.
