Stop! Protect that data! – Preparing Google Analytics with backup & test Views

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Before you start creating or testing things with Filters in Google Analytics, it’s important to take some steps to keep your data safe.

What’s the danger?

Whenever you make changes to your GA settings for things like Goals, Filters, Content Groupings etc. — all the things I describe in my articles — the changes to your data are permanent. You need a backup without any of these changes, just in case you get something wrong…

Like accidentally creating a filter that removes ALL your traffic and you don’t notice for a week… right during a big ad campaign!

Oops…

A Testing area takes it one step further to let you test out these settings first, then apply them to your main set of data only when you’re sure they’re working correctly. It’s up to you to decide how risky you think a change is and whether you should test it out first.

How do we do this in Google Analytics?

In Analytics, you can have multiple ways of viewing the same data. These are called, appropriately, Views.

In this guide, we’ll create a backup “Raw Data” view to preserve everything with the default settings, and a “Test” view for trialing more complicated Filters before applying them to your main View (normally called “All Web Site Data”).

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Getting started: Set up Google Analytics for your Etsy shop

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If you’re ready to harness the power of numbers to improve your shop but haven’t installed Google Analytics yet, don’t wait any longer!

Here are my instructions for setting up your Account the right way, with up to date steps and screenshots.

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The Unexpected Value of Organic Search Traffic

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Years ago, almost all of my clients also partnered with a Search Engine Optimization agency.

Google was king and SEO was strategy #1.

Then social media marketing took over as businesses discovered the value of free exposure on Facebook and Twitter. The results were faster and it was no harder than SEO.

Now it’s 2018. Organic reach on social media is a shadow of its former self. Advertising costs on the major networks (AdWords and Facebook) are doubling every year.

If your marketing strategy is getting more complicated and expensive every month, it’s time to re-discover the value of organic search traffic.

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The (not-so) Definitive Guide to Real Traffic Sources in Google Analytics for Etsy

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“How do people find my Etsy store?”

I know you’ve asked that question before. It’s one of the best questions you can ask to improve your marketing.

At first, Google Analytics looks like it has all the answers! There it is: direct traffic, referrals, a few from Facebook and other social media… Isn’t that how they got there?

Not quite.

Google “etsy traffic sources” and you’ll find this little Help article from Etsy. In that article it says this:

“Google Analytics shows how people found Etsy.”

So, what’s the difference? Well, that means that any of those traffic sources in Google Analytics could indicate how that person found the Etsy home page or an entirely different shop before they navigated to yours within Etsy. Half your so-called social media traffic could be from other people’s marketing!

Even worse, Google Analytics doesn’t show you how people found your shop within Etsy, which makes up the bulk of your traffic. Etsy search, clicks from favorites, promoted listings – all hidden.

That kinda sucks.

You could just analyse your traffic sources in Shop Stats, but let’s fix it instead.

This guide explains how to use channel definitions and filters to make traffic sources a whole lot more accurate!

(If you’re a beginner, don’t be scared – this is just a copy & paste job)

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The Second Best Way to Run a Successful Re-consent Campaign

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Let’s stay in touch!

We don’t want to lose you!

Confirm your subscription!

Sound familiar? Yep, they’re the bleating calls of a million businesses rushing to ask you to consent (again) to their email marketing.

Whether you all it re-consent, re-subscribe or re-permission, it’s all the same: an attempt to get your consent to their marketing in a form they didn’t already have.

Why get re-consent?

This is related to the GDPR, which is making consent more strictly defined. Businesses who bundled marketing consent into other services or that didn’t give enough granular information on their sign up form might decide that the consent they have now won’t be good enough on May 26th.

It also reminds us that we need a good “audit trail” for our consent. Businesses that have moved contacts between systems might have lost their original consent records – even though they know they got them – and might choose to re-permission, just to be safe.

Finally, it’s a good idea to ask for re-consent from inactive or old contacts, regardless. You might run re-consent campaigns regularly, or even have them automatically go out when a contact is a certain “age”.

You run a business… does this mean YOU need to get re-consent!?

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SERIES: Data Privacy for Makers

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For the last few months, the internet has been abuzz with talk about data privacy. From Facebook scandals to updated Privacy Policies to new laws, it’s everywhere!

So it’s perfect timing to get to know your obligations as a business owner, for the data you collect and store for your customers, contacts and website visitors.

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Create a Privacy Policy for Your Shop & Secure Your Customers’ Trust

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If you’ve been following the steps to get up to speed on data privacy, your final step is to update (or create) your shop’s Privacy Policy.

Do I need a Privacy Policy if I only sell on Etsy?

All shops should have their own privacy policy, even if only you sell on Etsy or don’t even have an email list! If you run a business with customers, you handle personal data.

Do I need a Privacy Policy if I’m not worried about the GDPR?

Yes, you should have your own privacy policy even if you don’t think the GDPR applies to you or if you’re not worried about it. Here’s why:

  1. Customers are expecting more transparency and honesty, regardless of the law.
  2. Other privacy laws might apply that require a privacy policy. “GDPR standards” will work for these too (though seek legal advice if you’re unsure).
  3. Certain features in Google Analytics (and other tools) require notices that Etsy doesn’t cover in their own privacy policy, such as Advertising Features.
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Do You Need Consent for Your Advertising & Analytics?

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We’re used to asking people to sign up to newsletters and email lists. We might need to tweak how we do it and refine our “consent process”. But the basics stay the same:

People actively send us their details.

But personalized advertising and analytics happened in the background. No questions asked.

Until now!

This article is all about asking for user consent. You will still need to update (or create) your privacy policy for all the advertising and analytics tools you use, even if you aren’t required to collect consent for all of them.

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Avoid the Blacklist & Do Email Marketing Consent Right

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Google “email marketing best practices” and you’ll get millions of results.

Literally.

But also unsurprisingly. The internet is chock full of marketers wanting to tell you how to write can’t-say-no subject lines and make-money-while-you-sleep drip campaigns.

But what about the basic email best practices? You know: how to send emails that are legal and ethical.

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Keep Your Customer Information Safe: It’s Your Responsibility!

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Just like you need to have a basic understanding about tax laws and business registration laws, you need to get the gist of how to keep your customers’ details safe and secure.

Understanding your obligations will help you:

  • Know what information you can ask for and how to ask for more.
  • Deal with any customer requests about their data.
  • Make sure you’re telling them the right information during checkout and in your privacy policy.
  • Vet the tools and services you use to make sure they help you stay compliant.
  • Inform your customers if they might be affected by a security breach in any of the systems you use.
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