Google Analytics (GA) has finally created the benchmarking report users have been asking for! This report allows webmasters and marketers to access industry averages and compare site traffic to their competition. Benchmarking against competitors is a terrific asset for analyzing a site performance and setting marketing goals and objectives.
The catch? GA users must share their own information (anonymously) to access the report. While some users may be weary of volunteering their information in order to access this tool, we believe the benefits of having access to industry averages far outweighs the inconvenience of sharing information.
“Google Analytics’ benchmarking report is an invaluable tool for assessing a website’s performance against the competition. Having a report that allows you to compare sessions, device, and Channel Grouping provides marketers with the data we need to further analyze and improve a website’s marketing campaign.” the Director of Marketing with Atomic Design had to say.
How do I assess Benchmarking on Google Analytics?
Benchmarking reports are currently available to a select few accounts. As we mentioned, only users who have opted to “Share anonymously with Google and others” will have access to the reports. Google plans to roll out the new reporting interface over the next few weeks and will add to the reports functionality in the future.
Google Analytics Benchmarking report details
We have a feeling that these reports will become increasingly detailed and specialized in the future, but for now the benchmarking report will offer the following:
- 1600 industry categories
- 1250 markets
- 7 size buckets
In addition you will be able to compare your data against benchmarks for the following metrics:
- Sessions
- New Sessions
- Pages/Session
- Average Session Duration
- Bounce rate
- Location
- Device
- Default Channel Grouping
We will provide more information on the benchmarking report as Google Analytics makes updates to the feature. This information can be invaluable to SEO companies looking to track results. Follow our blog to stay up to date on the latest industry trends.
