I have started using Google Analytics
Sooner or later you have to get to know what’s available in order to track the activity on your self-hosted blog.
Yesterday I spent about two hours reading info on this subject and finally I decided to bite the bullet and give a try to Google Analytics.
The process of setting up the account was easy.
You have to have a Google email address first.The you go to www.google.com/analytics/ and fill out the rest of the steps.
Once finished you are given a code to insert into your website, at the end of each post.
At this point I thought that I am going to screw it up big time, but it went as easy as a breeze.
All I had to do was to add the code while in ‘code’ not ‘visual’ tab.
Now I have to wait 24 hours for my first report.
I am already nervous thinking that probably I would be disappointed, but hey, I don’t fancy the ‘ignorance is bliss’ truism.
If at some distant point in time I would decide to get serious about monetizing this blog, I need to know as much as I can about what’s happening.
When you are on a Wordpress platform (your blog is hosted by wordpress.com), it’s ridiculously easy to get the needed information. Wordpress offers blogstats by default.
Splendid feature.
But on your self-hosted one you have to use different sources. Google Analytics or some plugins made available by the other branch of wordpress: wordpress.org.