google analytics

 

Many of the pages and sites hosted on the oregonstate.edu domain use Google Analytics in addition to Urchin to track traffic and usage data. Analytics offers a faster, friendlier interface tuned especially to marketing, while Urchin offers a more in-depth, comprehensive analysis of site data.

If you'd like to add your Web site to the main Google Analytics account, please follow the steps below.

First you will need to create an official Google account. We suggest using a department email address, such as your.department@oregonstate.edu. Once you have this account registered, submit it to web.communications@oregonstate.edu and we will grant you access to review site data.

Once your account has been added, you can view statistics by logging in at https://www.google.com/analytics/. There you will see various profiles, some filtered by geography and others restricted to a specific subset of the site.

You also must add the tracking code to your site to ensure that both Urchin and Google Analytics are recording your visitor activity. The preferred method is to add the below PHP code just before your closing body tag:

 

This PHP include points to a CWS-administered script designed to track any page on the oregonstate.edu main domain. Central administration allows for quick upgrading and troubleshooting. By adding this script to a centrally located footer in your website, you can make the addition of tracking even more streamlined and modular.

Adding Analytics to your Drupal site is easy as well. As part of your theme, the page.tpl.php file sets the template for your site. By adding the above PHP include to that page, again right before the closing body tag, the Analytics tracking software will be added to your site. The page.tpl.php file can be found at {your site}/sites/default/themes/{theme_name}/page.tpl.php.

If you are not using PHP-enabled pages, you can use the below code. Results may be mixed, so be sure to test your pages:

<script type="text/javascript"> var gaJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "https://ssl." : "http://www."); document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + gaJsHost + "google-analytics.com/ga.js' type='text/javascript'%3E%3C/script%3E")); </script> <script type="text/javascript"> try { var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-4834799-1"); pageTracker._trackPageview(); } catch(err) {}</script>

 

Google Analytics operates on a 24-hour delay, so you must wait at least one day after adding the script to start tracking results.

Once your site visits are being recorded, you can check back as often as you need. A host of online resources exist for using and making the most of this system. There is currently no training offered for Analytics, but Web Communications is committed to sharing best practices and serving as a resource, with upcoming workshops and seminars planned.