Did you know that Google is the preferred search engine for more than 95% of the population in Singapore? Google Analytics (GA) is a free web analytics service that tracks and reports website traffic. With GA, you can see how visitors are landing on your website, how visits are interacting with your website, and measure the performance of your digital advertising campaigns.
While GA is a powerful and feature-rich tool, it can be overwhelming for beginners to learn. To help you get a headstart on your self-learning, we’ve compiled a list of 10 useful Google Analytics resources to help you get the basics right.
#1 Google Analytics Academy
As far as Google Analytics resources go, you can’t go wrong with content from Google itself. Google Analytics Academy was created to provide free online courses about Google’s measurement tools and help users grow their businesses through intelligent data collection and analysis.
Taught by instructors with over a decade of experience in the field of digital analytics, Google Analytics Academy is a treasure trove of information covering all of Google Analytics tools and features.
The course curriculum is handily split into modules for beginners, advanced users, and power users, making this one of the most comprehensive GA learning resources out there. Google Analytics Academy takes beginners through account creation, implementing a tracking code, basic reports and goal setting before going into more complex analysis and GA tools. You can gain a Google Analytics certification upon course completion.
Explore Google Analytics Academy.
#2 Google Analytics YouTube Channel
Google Analytics is an extremely comprehensive tool that is full of features, but this also makes it complicated and difficult to learn. If you’re someone who prefers to refer to your GA resources in short snippets and in video form, then the official Google Analytics YouTube channel is perfect for you.
Unlike other GA learning resources or guides that may present everything you need all at once, GA’s YouTube channel is full of short videos ranging from 30 seconds to 5 mins long about a specific feature or topic. This makes it useful if you already have a basic understanding of GA tools and are trying to find an answer to a specific question.
Explore the Google Analytics YouTube Channel.
#3 Google Analytics Demo Account
The last of the official GA resources on this list is the Google Analytics Demo Account. We included the demo account as one of our GA resources as it specifically caters to people who want hands-on experience with GA but do not have an existing website.
Out of all the Google Analytics resources, the demo account is best for kinesthetic learners who prefer to learn by doing. It is a fully functional GA account anyone can access with just a basic Google account. Inside, you can experiment with GA features and look at data derived from the Google Merchandise Store or Flood-It app.
Explore the Google Analytics Demo Account.
#4 Moz Beginner’s Guide to Google Analytics
Moz develops a popular all-in-one SEO software suite used by digital marketers all over the world. The digital marketing experts over there maintain a blog that is a popular resource for industry experts and beginners to get advice, research, how-tos and insights from one of the best in the business.
Moz’s Beginner Guide to Google Analytics is one of the most well-organised Google Analytics resources you can find on the web. It is structured as an online book with eight distinct chapters. This step-by-step guide is aimed at complete beginners — walking you through how to set up and collect data, explaining what each metric represents and going through all the Google Analytics tools and reporting functions.
Overall, this is one of the best GA learning resources if you prefer learning the program function by function at your own pace.
Explore Moz Beginner’s Guide to Google Analytics.
#5 Neil Patel’s Beginner’s Guide to Google Analytics
Neil Patel is digital marketer that runs an agency helping clients with content marketing and improving their SEO. Whenever you search for SEO or digital marketing topics, his articles are often ranked on the first page of Google — which shows that his team are making great use of the data from their GA tools.
Neil Patel’s content is focused on teaching the basics to non-marketers, and his Google Analytics guide is no exception. This is one of the most beginner-friendly GA learning resources out there.
The entire guide is condensed into a short article that teaches you how to navigate the Google Analytics interface, how to track common metrics and how to create custom reports. Although Neil Patel has added screenshots in some sections, the guide is primarily text and more suitable for those who prefer to read and refer to their resource as they learn.
Explore Neil Patel’s Guide to Google Analytics.
#6 Neil Patel’s Compilation of Google Analytics Resources
Another one of Neil Patel’s articles on this list — unlike other Google Analytics resources, this one is a compilation rather than a written guide. From official Google Analytics channels to integration apps to GA tools and helpful articles, there’s something for every problem with this collection of GA resources.
Explore Neil Patel’s Compilation of Google Analytics Resources.
#7 HubSpot Ultimate Guide to Google Analytics in 2022
The HubSpot blog is a go-to resource for beginners and industry veterans for everything and anything you need to know about digital traffic.
HubSpot’s Ultimate Guide to Google Analytics stands out as one of the most comprehensive and consistently updated GA learning resources out there. At the time of writing this article, the guide is approximately 7,000 words and is a cheat sheet for both Google Analytics and GA4 (the next version of Google Analytics).
You should use this resource if you prefer to learn by following a step-by-step guide at your own pace. HubSpot’s guide covers topics like how to set up Google Analytics, how to understand the metrics presented and how to create reports to make sense of your data. Each section contains clearly numbered steps and features screenshots so you know exactly how to navigate GA’s interface and where to click.
Explore HubSpot’s Guide to Google Analytics in 2022.
#8 Search Engine Journal: Complete Guide to Google Analytics
With over 1,700 shares and 112,000 reads — Search Engine Journal’s Complete Guide to Google Analytics provides an excellent overview of GA and how you can use its data to boost your SEO and digital marketing.
While other GA learning resources organise their information as step-by-step guides, Search Engine Journal chooses to organise its guide in alphabetical order. Providing an overview for every element on the Google Analytics sidebar.
You should use this resource if you have a basic idea of how GA works and want to deepen your understanding of specific subsets within the platform.
Explore Search Engine Journal’s Complete Guide to Google Analytics.
#9 Semrush Beginner’s Definitive Guide to Google Analytics
Semrush is a software-as-a-service company that develops SEO tools which are closely integrated with Google Analytics to help their users perform keyword research and obtain online ranking data.
The Semrush Beginner’s Definitive Guide to Google Analytics is a 17-minute read aimed at setting complete beginners up with a strong foundation and understanding of Google Analytics tools. The guide covers topics like what is Google Analytics, why you need Google Analytics, how to set up Google Analytics and how to navigate the Google Analytics dashboard.
While not the most comprehensive out of all the Google Analytics resources on this list, it does a good job of introducing complete newbies to the basics without overwhelming them with too much information.
Explore Semrush’s Beginner’s Definitive Guide to Google Analytics.
#10 Simplilearn Google Analytics Tutorial for Beginners
With nearly 1 million views, Simplilearn’s video is the most-watched Google Analytics tutorial on YouTube that doesn’t come from Google’s official channel. Amongst all the GA learning resources on this list, this one is ideal for more audiovisual learners who don’t want to pour through hundreds of lines of text.
The total runtime of the video tutorial is 4 hours long. However, there are handy timestamps that separate the video into sections so you can catch up where you left off. It covers a number of important topics that help complete beginners navigate and get the most out of their Google Analytics tools — from how GA works to setting up goals, creating events and managing Google tags.
Explore Simplilearn’s Google Analytics Tutorial for Beginners.
Bonus: Learn Google Analytics In-person From Industry Professionals at FirstCom Academy
While you can learn a lot from the 10 free online Google Analytics resources outlined in this article, you can speed up your mastery of GA tools by learning in-person from experienced industry professionals.
FirstCom Academy’s Making Business Decisions with Google Analytics is a WSQ-certified and SkillsFuture Credit-eligible course that is ideal for complete beginners. Taught by expert digital marketers with real-world Google Analytics experience, the course provides learners with an in-depth understanding of GA tools and includes hands-on practice on how to navigate and generate useful reports. As the course is conducted in person, you can get immediate answers to any questions you might have!
Interested? Sign up for FirstCom Academy’s Google Digital Marketing Program today!
Read also: 8 Best Free and Paid Google Analytics (GA) Training Certification Courses
