Google Analytics tells you how many people visit your website, where they come from and what they do there. The current version, Google Analytics 4 (GA4), has many menus, but most small businesses only need a handful of reports. This guide shows you which ones and how to read them.
Set it up (once)
- Go to analytics.google.com and sign in with your business Google account.
- Create an account (your business) and a property (your website). Choose your time zone and currency.
- Add a Web data stream with your website address.
- Connect it to your site:
- WordPress: install Google’s free Site Kit plugin and follow the steps.
- Wix, Shopify, Squarespace: paste your Measurement ID (starts with G-) into the site settings.
- Open Reports → Realtime and visit your website on your phone. If you see yourself, it works.
Also add your colleague or web designer as a user (Admin → Property access management) instead of sharing your password.
5 words you need to know
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Users | Number of different people (devices) who visited |
| Sessions | Visits. One user can have several sessions. |
| Engaged session | A visit that lasted over 10 seconds, viewed 2+ pages or did a key event |
| Event | Any action: page view, click, scroll, form submit |
| Key event | An event that matters to your business, like a contact form, WhatsApp click or purchase |
The 6 reports that matter
1. Realtime
Reports → Realtime. Who is on your site right now. Useful right after you post on social media or send a newsletter.
2. Traffic acquisition
Reports → Acquisition → Traffic acquisition. Where visitors come from: Organic Search (Google), Direct, Organic Social, Referral (other websites), Paid Search. This shows which marketing works.
3. Pages and screens
Reports → Engagement → Pages and screens. Your most visited pages. Make sure your best pages have a clear next step: call, WhatsApp, form or booking.
4. Landing page
Reports → Engagement → Landing page. The first page people see. If a blog post brings lots of visitors, link it to your services.
5. Key events
Reports → Engagement → Events. Find important actions (like generate_lead or a form submit) and click the star or toggle to mark them as key events. Then you can see how many leads come from Google, social and ads.
6. Demographics and tech
Reports → User attributes and Tech. Countries, cities and mobile vs desktop. If most visitors use phones, test your site on a phone first.
Connect Google Search Console too
Analytics shows what people do on your site. Search Console shows which Google searches bring them there. Link both (Admin → Product links → Search Console). Together with your Google Business Profile insights, you’ll see the full picture.
A 10-minute monthly routine
- Compare this month with last month (date picker → Compare).
- Check Traffic acquisition: which source grew or dropped?
- Check top pages and landing pages.
- Count key events (leads) by source.
- Write 3 numbers in a simple sheet: users, leads, top source. Our KPI dashboard template works well for this.
Privacy basics
Add a privacy policy that mentions analytics cookies, and use a cookie banner if you have visitors from regions that require consent (such as the EU). Don’t send personal data like names or emails into Analytics.
Quick summary
- Set up GA4 once, with Site Kit if you use WordPress.
- Focus on Traffic acquisition, Pages, Landing pages and Key events.
- Mark leads (forms, WhatsApp clicks) as key events.
- Check monthly and act on what you see.