Explore your Etsy Google Analytics backup data (Looker Studio Dashboard)

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This article is about how to view and explore the Google Analytics backup for your Etsy shop’s historical Universal Analytics data (2023 and earlier). If you did not backup your data before 1 July, it’s too late. Make sure you’re up to date with Google Analytics 4 instead.

No matter which method you used to backup your Etsy shop’s Universal Analytics data, you ended up with a bunch of spreadsheets.

Which are… not super user-friendly for actually viewing, exploring and using all this data!

At a basic level, you can use the in-built chart tools in your spreadsheet program of choice. But I recommend using Google’s free dashboarding program, Looker Studio (previously called Data Studio).

If you exported your data using my tailor-made UA backup tool for Etsy, I have built a Looker Studio dashboard to go with it. Here’s how to get it…

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Backup your Google Analytics data before it’s deleted

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On Some time after 1 July 2023, Google Analytics Universal Analytics (UA) stopped recording data.

The future is Google Analytics 4. Well, maybe it’s GDPR-friendly analytics instead. But it’s certainly not the same tool we’ve used for all these years (decades?) and it’s not the same set of data.

What do we do with all the data in our Universal Analytics Properties? Can we backup our analytics data? Can we transfer UA data to GA4? Can we continue to analyse it at all?? Is it only an option for big business (i.e. comes with a hefty price tag) or is it something boutique ecommerce shop owners can DIY?

We only have until July 2024 to figure this out, when Google will actually delete all our Universal Analytics properties and reports.

Transmission from July 2024…

It happened. It’s done. It’s gone.

If you got some backup data, fantastic! If you used my backup tool for Etsy, grab the Looker Studio Dashboard to explore it.

If you missed the window, don’t worry. Let’s look forward and make sure your shop is connected to Google Analytics 4 instead.

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Backup your Etsy shop’s old Google Analytics data for free

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Left it to the last minute to save your Etsy shop’s old Google Analytics data?

If you’re here, then yes: you have. The countdown is on to 1 July 2024 when all our Universal Analytics data will be deleted!

Transmission from July 2024…

It happened. It’s done. It’s gone.

If you got some backup data, fantastic! If you used my backup tool for Etsy, grab the Looker Studio Dashboard to explore it.

If you missed the window, don’t worry. Let’s look forward and make sure your shop is connected to Google Analytics 4 instead.

Got your backup? Now get the dashboard…
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Connect Google Analytics 4 to your Etsy shop (the right way)

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If you’re ready to harness the power of numbers to optimize your Etsy shop but haven’t installed (or upgraded) Google Analytics yet, don’t wait any longer!

Here are the complete, accurate instructions for connecting Google Analytics 4 with an Etsy shop.

You will learn:

  • What login to use for Google Analytics
  • Whether to create a new Google Analytics Account or use one you already have
  • All the most effective, up-to-date settings to apply inside Google Analytics
  • How to link your new Google Analytics tracking number to Etsy
  • How to test everything is working
  • What to do next to start looking at your visitor numbers and behaviour!

⚠️ You need to follow these instructions even if your Google Analytics 4 Property was created automatically and you had the old GA version (Universal Analytics) connected to Etsy.

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Advanced: Find Etsy buyers in Google Analytics

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One of the more frustrating parts of using Google Analytics with Etsy is that we cannot see ecommerce metrics.

That’s right: Etsy does not tell GA when a sale occurs, so we get big fat zeros for everything from Transactions to Average Order Value to Ecommerce Conversion Rate, no matter how many actual sales you’re making in Etsy. It’s not just a matter of enabling Ecommerce Tracking in your GA settings; Etsy simply doesn’t send the data to be tracked.

Luckily, all is not lost!

If you make regular sales on Etsy and have had GA connected for at least a few months, you can use an Advanced Segment to identify a slice of your buyers in your GA reports. The most useful thing this lets you see is general trends around the traffic sources that send you buyers.

⚠️ IMPORTANT!
These instructions are for GA Universal Analytics and are no longer applicable. Etsy now supports GA4.

The out-of-date article below is available to read if interested. If the topic is still relevant in GA4, it might be updated in the future.

Google Analytics 4 has similar segment capabilities as those used in this technique. You should be able to use this technique in GA4 once you have a few months’ of data.

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The (almost) Definitive Guide to Real Etsy Traffic Sources in Google Analytics

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⚠️ IMPORTANT!
These instructions are for GA Universal Analytics and are no longer applicable. Etsy now supports GA4.

The out-of-date article below is available to read if interested. If the topic is still relevant in GA4, it might be updated in the future.

POP QUIZ: Can Google Analytics answer this question?

“How do people find my Etsy store?”

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

ANSWER: Nope! Not unless you follow the instructions in this guide.

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 the traffic sources you see in Google Analytics could show 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! (And not in a good way…)

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 or recently viewed, promoted listings: all hidden.

That kinda sucks.

Where’s all the Etsy traffic? Probably in “(direct) / (none)”…

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

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

This looks much better! Yep, these are the exact same visitors.
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The Etsy Seller’s Guide to Hiding Your Own Visits in Google Analytics

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A long time ago, when I worked in retail, I envied the prim, organised merchandisers whose sole responsibility was (as far as I could tell from behind the counter) to fluff around with enticing displays of gifts and stationery.

I know I’m not the only one!

Now as Etsy sellers, we get to “merchandise” our own online shops every day.

Check how our listing thumbnails look all together in the catalogue.

Pour over a new product page to make sure every detail is perfect.

Go through our shop policies with a fine tooth comb to make sure we aren’t accidentally committing to replacing unwanted items with a lifetime supply of Starbucks…

And I know—because I’ve spent my fair share of time there—that we do a lot of this “fluffing around” in our public shop front. You know – the exact same view that our buyers see.

The pages of our shop where our Google Analytics code runs. Those pages.

Oh… I think we have a little problem to fix.

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What is Direct Traffic in Google Analytics… really?

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Direct traffic in Google Analytics is one of the first big mysteries you discover. What is direct traffic? Why does it perform so well? Who are these people?

What is this?

Every other traffic source seems so self-explanatory: Google, Pinterest, organic (search), email… But (direct) / (none). Direct from where? None of what?

No seriously. What IS this? What does it mean and why is there so much of it?

In this guide, you’ll get a thorough but easy to understand introduction to the mystery of Direct Traffic. You’ll learn:

  1. Why “Direct” is fundamentally different from all your other traffic sources
  2. What kinds of visits it actually includes
  3. How to keep it “clean”
  4. How to analyze it

This article has been updated for Google Analytics 4.

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Google Analytics vs Etsy Stats: Which is Better?

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Reading and understanding the numbers around your shop’s traffic is super important. If you can do this, you can better understand where you should focus your marketing, what parts of your shop could be improved, and make sure you’re seeing real benefits from all your promoting efforts.

(And we know promotion needs A LOT of effort!!)

There are two sources for this information: Etsy’s built-in Stats and Google Analytics (“Analytics” or just “GA”). They both have their pros and cons, so you’ll most likely continue to use both hand-in-hand to gauge your performance. But when should you use each one?

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The Secret of Professional Analysts is Segmentation (and it’s easy!)

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I think I’m lucky. I get to talk to people about digital analytics almost every day. (Hey, it’s fun for me, ok?)

But over the years I’ve noticed something a bit silly.

Everyone’s always talking about how to measure more stuff and see more reports.

They need to capture every movement of every visitor.
They want to dip their fingers into a swirling ocean of numbers.
They’re desperate for a veritable avalanche of interactive charts straight off the set of Minority Report.

And it’s all a complete waste of time if you don’t know how to take the next step.

The most important work you will do in Analytics isn’t setting up traffic attribution or installing dashboards. It’s actually analysing your data.

And wow, can that be a daunting prospect! Where on earth do you start? What should you look at first? How do you know when something is important and what can you even do about it??

Luckily, there’s a simple place to start and it’s called segmentation. It’s the bread and butter of analysis, is super easy to learn and will make finding those important insights so much easier.

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