Where are We Getting the Online Hits? A Google Analytics Study on Personal

Finance Online Publications in eXtension

Fahzy Abdul-Rahman

2013 ACCIApril 11, 2013

Motivation

• What are getting the hits? Factors?• What GA information tend to be highly useful?

– Extension.org is non-profit organization– Many of the GA information pertain to

information measurable in $ (e.g. sales, donations)• Conversion rate (more later)• AdWords

• Application to Personal Finance CoP

First Steps• Introduction to Google Analytics• Installing the Google Analytics

Tracking Code• Working with Report Data

Interpreting Reports• Pageviews, Visits, and Visitors• Time Metrics• Traffic Sources• Content Reports

Fundamentals• Account Administration• Campaign Tracking and AdWords

Integration• Analysis Focus - AdWords• Goals in Google Analytics• Filters in Google Analytics• Regex and Google Analytics• Cookies and Google Analytics• E-commerce Tracking• Domains and Subdomains

In-Depth Analysis• Advanced Segmentation• Analytics Intelligence• Internal Site Search• Event Tracking and Virtual Pageviews• Additional Customizations

Google Analytics Overview

FSA CoP

• Financial Security for All (FSA) Community of Practice (CoP)

• Led by 10-15 Extension professionals • Develop resources; provide peer-reviewed Frequently Asked

Questions and Featured Resources; answer Ask the Expert questions; and created online learning lessons– Lessons: Bankruptcy Education and Investing for Farm Families

• Consumers a source of reliable and up-to-date financial and consumer information through a knowledge base of commonly asked questions that have science-based, peer reviewed answers.

Goal

1. To share our Community of Practice’s (CoP’s) experience on how we have been using Google Analytics (GA)

– As non-expert users

2. To share preliminary findings on items that tend to get more hits

– Write eXtension publications with these factors in mind without sacrificing quality

• Shared with NIFA-USDA• Reports, grant applications

• Monthly CoP Meetings– Unusual activities– Top hits– Accessed Webinar

recording– CoP annual report

How have we used GA results?

Where are the hits coming from?

Historically

eXtension - ALL

FSA

FSA Visitor’s Tendency • Visitors Flow, 2012

New

Frequency & Recency 2012

Engagement

Top Devices (ranked from most): Apple iPhone, Apple iPad , SonyEricsson LT15i Xperia Arc ,Apple iPod Touch ,Motorola DroidX , HTC EVO 4G* Apple products of different versions lumped together

Personal Finance

Mobile Devices

Traffic SourceSource/medium Visit

1 google / organic 68,843

2 (direct) / (none) 25,021

3 bing / organic 10,616

4 yahoo / organic 9,294

5 google.com / referral 3,348

6 lifehacker.com / referral 2,026

7 genxfinance.com / referral 1,680

8 ask / organic 1,668

9 ag.ndsu.edu / referral 1,418

10 studentaid.rutgers.edu / referral 1,096

Traffic KeywordKeyword Visits % Visits

1 (not provided) 14,917 16.09%

2 smart goals 977 1.05%

3 what is fica tax 429 0.46%

4 what is fica on my paycheck 417 0.45%

5 myplate 2011 369 0.40%

6 u s savings bonds rates 357 0.39%

7 fica exemption 322 0.35%

8 fica exempt 298 0.32%

9 rmd rules 298 0.32%

10 extension 286 0.31%

Regression Analyses on Hits

• Data from Google Analytics• Many readily available from FSA CoP efforts (e.g.

tagging)• Sample

– E.g. This report is based on 499,411 visits (6.28%)• Hits = Reading = Comprehension = behavior change?

– Print one and make copies– Hit a page and stayed on that page while attending other

oncoming matters• Cookies block

Overall Hits for “personal_finance”, 04/2009 – 04/2012

• From top 25 “all time” pageviews:# Page Title Pageviews

Unique Pageviews

Avg. Time on Page Entrances

Personal Finance – eXtension 49,211 34,521 0:00:52 25,0981 Investing for Your Future - eXtension Learning Lessons 25,735 20,387 0:01:33 18,6692 How can I replace a lost birth certificate? – eXtension 17,936 16,759 0:04:51 16,727

3What is the FICA tax that is taken out of my paycheck? - eXtension 16,568 16,074 0:04:31 15,915

4 Organize Your Important Papers - eXtension 16,297 13,655 0:02:36 12,366

5Financial Security: Managing Money in Tough Times – eXtension 13,782 8,132 0:00:58 5,283

6 Investing Unit 1: Building Blocks - eXtension 11,809 8,785 0:01:55 3,0717 Financial Security: Glossary - eXtension 11,347 2,037 0:00:31 6208 Teaching Children Coping Skills - eXtension 9,899 9,262 0:02:20 8,8339 Financial Security: Glossary - eXtension 9,613 1,082 0:00:36 700

10Financial Security: Managing Money in Tough Times - eXtension 8,849 4,456 0:00:54 2,769

11 Investing for Your Future - eXtension 8,674 6,684 0:01:45 6,20712 Investing for Your Future - eXtension Learning Lessons 8,244 6,111 0:01:45 5,45913 SMART Financial Goal-Setting - eXtension 8,180 4,520 0:01:39 4,153

14Who is exempt from paying the FICA tax in the United States? - eXtension 7,703 6,541 0:03:24 6,525

Overall Hits for “personal_finance”

# Page Title PageviewsUnique Pageviews

Avg. Time on Page Entrances

15

What is the Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) rule for tax-deferred retirement plans such as IRAs and 401(k)s? – eXtension 7,177 6,780 0:03:46 6,525

16

How long should you keep monthly utility bills such as gas, electricity, water, etc. for your home? I have heard a year, and that is what I am starting to do in a notebook with dividers for each month. Is there any point in keeping these records any longer? - eXtension 6,939 6,780 0:02:51 6,700

17Financial Security: Managing Money in Tough Times - eXtension 6,477 3,947 0:01:01 2,387

18Organize Your Important Household Papers: Print this Lesson - eXtension 6,095 4,854 0:03:32 4,106

19Even Frost-Free Outdoor Faucets Can Freeze, Break - eXtension News 6,032 5,729 0:03:14 5,729

20 Investing for Your Future - eXtension Learning Lessons 5,968 4,981 0:01:35 4,663

21Financial Security: Managing Money in Tough Times - eXtension 5,872 3,055 0:01:05 1,782

22 Financial Security: Retirement Planning - eXtension 5,729 3,644 0:01:37 668

23What's the best peer-to-peer music download software? - eXtension 5,618 5,490 0:02:07 5,490

24

How long should you keep Explanation of Benefit statements from insurance companies, including Medicare? - eXtension 5,268 5,029 0:03:19 4,965

25 What is a self-proving affidavit? - eXtension 5,061 4,774 0:02:50 4,726

Overall Flow

• From top 25 all time pageviews:– 17 are pages

• Pages could be curriculum, articles, monthly messages, glossary

• Average time = 1:41 min• Tend to be simple. E.g. introduction pages

– 8 are FAQs• Average time = 3:27 min• Higher complexity: Longer, comprehending questions and

answers

• “How can I replace a lost birth certificate?” is #2

Results by Page Categories

• Articles• Glossary Terms• FAQs

FOR ARTICLESResult

Article Top Tags• 63: personal_finance_research_summaries,• 52: financial_security:_legal_topics,• 38: financial_security:_financial_planning_process_research,• 36: financial_security:_managing_money_in_tough_times,• 34: cop,• 32: financial_crisis,• 31: financial_security:_saving_and_investing_research,• 31: disasters,• 29: financial_security,• 26: financial_security:_consumer_credit,• 24: financial_security:_consumer_education_research,• 24: financial_crisis_and_individuals,

Title Date PublishedAverage Google Search Entrances

Average Page Views per Week

Investing for Your Future 8-Jan2010 47.2025 319.949Financial Security: Managing Money in Tough Times 29-Jun2010 17.4177 192.076Organize Your Important Papers 19-Feb2007 84.6329 169.215Investing Unit 1: Building Blocks 15-Oct2009 5.02532 94.0127Teaching Children Coping Skills 10-Sep2008 56.4051 93.2405Financial Security: Glossary 14-Feb2007 1.86076 91.7848SMART Financial Goal-Setting 19-Feb2007 33.6582 89.5443Deciding Which Bills to Pay First 24-Jun2010 25.2658 87.6962Organize Your Important Household Papers: Print this Lesson 28-Sep2007 15.2532 72.6582

Financial Security: Retirement Planning10-

Mar2010 2.17722 61.3418Coping With Stress 10-Sep2008 24.4177 54.0253Household Filing System 31-Jan2008 24.8987 49.4684Investing for Farm Families 14-Oct2009 6.59494 47.1266Investing Unit 1: Wealth Protection 28-Jul2008 0.417722 45.2785

Title Date PublishedAverage Google Search Entrances

Average Page Views per Week

Investing Unit 1: Wealth Protection 28-Jul2008 0.417722 45.2785Organize Your Important Household Papers: Introduction 5-Apr2009 5.46835 41.924Financial Security: Estate Planning 27-Jan2009 1.67089 41.6203Financial Security: Consumer Credit 2-Apr2011 2.17722 41.3671Sizing Up Your Financial Situation 24-Jun2010 2.5443 40.8861

Financial Security for All Learning Lessons10-

Nov2006 0.531646 40.8354Investing Unit 2: Investing Basics 12-Feb2009 0.367089 40.6582Financial Security for All Debtor Education 19-Apr2010 2.73239 40.2817Financial Security: Children and Money 11-Jan2011 2.05063 39.8101Dealing With Collection Agencies 8-Dec2009 22.2763 37.4737Accepting Your Feelings 25-Jun2010 17.4937 36.2532

How Does a Credit Card Work?11-

Nov2009 27.9494 34.7722

Log(Average Page Views per Week)Log(Average Hits/Week) (1) (2) (3) (4)

Intercept 0.82517 1.585*** 1.358*** 1.523***

Log(Average Google Search Entrances)

0.634*** 0.609***

Age of Article (Days) -0.0006*** 0.0002* -0.0007*** 0.000193

Number of Tags 0.140*** -0.04098

Research Summary -0.685** -1.06331

Financial Planning Research -0.21013 -0.1752

Legal 0.35982 0.14268

Managing in Tough Times 1.790*** 0.82425

Adj R^2 0.0443 0.509 0.1173 0.5788

n(Read) 506 506 506 506

n(Used) 485 433 485 433

FOR GLOSSARY TERMSResults

Top 13Glossary Title Date Publishe

dAverage Google Search Entrances

Average Page Views per Week

Periodic Expenses 15-Nov2006 9.43038 11.6582Bankruptcy 5-Apr2009 2.59494 5.86076Diversification 19-Feb2007 0.025317 3.5443Debt Limit (Debt-to-Income Ratio) 15-Nov2006 2.5443 3.3038Bond 3-Aug2007 0.164557 2.94937Durable Power of Attorney 20-Nov2007 0.189873 2.94937Net (“Take-Home”) Income 15-Nov2006 2.39241 2.94937Portfolio 15-Nov2006 0.835443 2.78481Annual Report 14-Nov2006 0.012658 2.65823Bear Market 14-Nov2006 0 2.51899Corporate Bonds 22-Feb2007 0.164557 2.50633Self-Proving Affidavit 17-Apr2007 1.49367 2.49367Commodities 22-Feb2007 0.012658 2.44304

#14-25Glossary Title Date Publishe

dAverage Google Search Entrances

Average Page Views per Week

Bull Market 14-Nov2006 0 2.41772Blue-Chip Stock 14-Nov2006 0 2.40506401(k) Plan 14-Nov2006 0.037975 2.40506Unused Credit 15-Nov2006 2.05063 2.40506Broker 14-Nov2006 0 2.36709Commission 15-Nov2006 0 2.3038Account Maintenance Fees 14-Nov2006 1.86076 2.26582Debt Balance 15-Nov2006 1.63291 2.08861Stock 29-Jul2010 0.037975 2.07595Growth Funds 15-Nov2006 0 2.05063Index Fund 15-Nov2006 0 2.05063Mutual Fund 15-Nov2006 0.0126582 2.01266

Google search one item leads to related items

Glossary: Log(Average Hits/Week)Variable (1) (2)Intercept 1.33 2.526***Log(Average Google Search Entrances) 0.625***

Age of Article (Days) -0.002 -0.00126***

Number of Tags 0.047 0.03788

Adj R^2 0.0416 0.411n(Read) 505 505n(Used) 474 239

FOR FAQS: DATA INCOMPLETEResults

Implications & Recommendations• GA is very useful even for a non-profit organization like

eXtension• SMART Goals

– For conversion rate– Possible goals: Enrollment in the online courses

• Bankruptcy, Investment for Farm Families,

• Tagging and data– Messy: Not everyone tags, insonsistencies

• financial_security:_consumer_credit vs. consumer_credit vs. consumercredit vs. credit

– Important for evaluation• Factors that matter: Subject matters [non-complicated], age [-],

Google search entry [+], number of tags (+)• Topics: Simple ones matter too!

Where are We Getting the Online Hits? A Google Analytics Study on Personal

Finance Online Publications in eXtension

Fahzy Abdul-Rahman New Mexico State University

2013 ACCIApril 11, 2013