Driving profitability through a website takes more than just great design. It also requires robust data insights and impactful marketing. We developed the “Website Performance Checklist” in 2007. It has been used by thousands of companies over the years. It is a clear, actionable framework that guides you through essential checkpoints to ensure your site performs at its best. From setting up accurate tracking to interpreting your data and making informed marketing decisions, each step equips your team with the insights and actionable strategies needed to turn your website into a powerful, revenue-generating asset that meets the demands of a competitive market.
Step 1: Do You Have a Live, Functioning Website?
Clearly, you can't drive traffic to your website without having a website! In some cases, this step gets completed by building and launching a website. In some other cases, you might have a website that doesn't perform the basic functions you need. For example, you want to sell things online, but you don't have e-commerce functionality in place.
Complete this step as soon as possible and then move on to Step 2!
Step 2: Are Google's Data Tracking Tools in Place?
You want to know how many people come to your website, and how many people take the desired action (fill out a form, buy something online, etc). Google provides several free website tracking tools that will give you the insights you need to make smart website decisions.
GOOGLE ANALYTICS (currently known as GA4) helps you know the information of your website. It is essential to install and configure the current version of Google Analytics to have basic data tracking. We can verify that your analytics code is correctly implemented on every page and you are tracking the key goals and events that are important to your company so you’re not missing valuable data that helps measure performance.
GOOGLE SEARCH CONSOLE will give you information about total pages, broken links, keywords on Google's radar and much more. If you want to show up in Google's Search Results from your SEO efforts, Search Console is critical to maximizing your results!
GOOGLE TAG MANAGER (GTM) will allow you to track things that Google Analytics can't. For example, if you have actions that take people off your site (ex: a 3rd party booking tool, your social media pages, etc), you can only track this with GTM.
Once you know GA4, Search Console, and Google Tag Manager are in place and working correctly, move on to Step 3!
Step 3: Collect Sufficient Data
Data-driven decisions require enough information. If your site’s analytics haven’t been collecting data for long, consider waiting to gather insights. Look for trends over a few months to get a clear picture of user behavior. In general, we need at least 300 visitors to begin noticing trends or user behavior.
Once you have 300 or more visitors, the fun begins! Now we get to implement the right digital marketing strategies that could make a HUGE impact to your business!
Step 4: Interpret The Data
Raw data is only helpful when interpreted. Look at key metrics like lead source, page visits, and conversions to understand where users engage or drop off, allowing you to make informed adjustments.
Step 5: Pull the Right Marketing Lever
Based on your data, identify the marketing actions that can drive results. In general, everything you do to improve website performance EITHER drives more traffic to your website OR increases the conversion rates of your website.
If you are happy with your conversion rates (your website is an effective salesperson), drive more visitors to your site! This means choosing strategies like SEO, social media marketing, or paid ads that align with user behavior will drive move visitors will create a big impact!
If you are not happy with your website conversion rates - meaning a bunch of people come to your site and very few take the desired action - you need to look at Conversion Rate Optimization and testing methods to get more visitors to take the right action!
Pulling the right marketing levers / implementing the right strategies is fun and worth the effort. Always remember to start with the lever that will have the biggest impact!