Key Metrics
Last updated: 16th July, 2024
👋 The first thing you'll notice in Trends is are the line graphs (timelines) at the top of the page – these are your most important key metrics.
You can easily switch between a series of 6 key metrics by hovering over the large numbers in the top left of the Trends dashboard. Click the arrows to cycle through each key metric.
Smart Predictions
For current time periods that are incomplete (like when you're half way through the day), GoSquared will give you Smart Predictions to give you an idea of whether the current day, week, or month is on track to be a good one. It's never been this easy to understand your key web metrics.
Timeline Metrics, Updating in Real-time
The timeline is displayed at the top of your Trends dashboard. The large number to the left of the timeline allows you to switch between different metrics. Use the arrows either side to switch between metrics.
Choosing a time period
The date picker on the right hand side allows you scroll back in time to view historical data. First choose the time period, either day, week, month or year views. Then scroll back in time to select the specific day/week/month/year you would like to view.
What's the difference between the white and grey lines?
These lines offer a quick comparison so you can quickly see how the data has changed. After selecting a time period, the white line will show you the data for the currently selected period. The grey line will show you the data for the previous time period.
For example, If you've selected the month view, and then scrolled back to August, the white line will show you the data for August, and the grey line will show you the data from July.
Day time periods are slightly different. Day to day metrics are likely to be much more variable. Therefore the day period will show you the currently selected day, versus the same day from the previous week.
For example, if you've selected Monday, the grey line will show you the data from last Monday (instead of showing you Sunday).
Visits Over Time
This is the total number of visits, including visits from returning/repeat visitors. An easy way to think about this is the total number of browsing sessions people have had on your site. An individual user can view multiple pages during a single browsing session. We also track total pageviews and the average number of pageviews per visit.
Percentage of New Visits, Over Time
The percentage of visits that are brand new. When compared to the total number of visits (sessions), what percentage of them were performed by people that were visiting your site for the very first time. This means excluding returning visitors and already logged in users.
New Visits Over Time
The total number of people that visited your site for the very first time. By definition, a new visit can only be performed by a brand new visitor. Therefore the new visits number is equivalent to the number of new visitors. A new visit is only counted if that person has never been seen before on your site.
Total Visitors Over Time
The total number of unique visitors to your site over time. For example if I visit your site 10 times, I will count as 1 unique visitor but will have contributed 10 visits.
Pageviews Over Time
This is the total number of pageviews your site has had over time.
Bounce Rate Over Time
The is the percentage of visitors that bounce from your site, over time. To learn how GoSquared defines a bounced visitor – read more here.
Average Engaged Time, Over Time
Somebody may visit your site and forget to close it, potentially leaving it open in a background tab for hours. Because of this, instead of showing the average time a visit lasts, we thought its was much more useful to show the average time a user is actually engaged for during their visit. We explain what we classify as engaged here. This metric shows you how this average changes over time.
Pageviews per Visit Over Time
This is the average number of pages that somebody views during one of their visits. This timeline shows you how that average has changed over time.
A Summary of all Your Key Metrics
If you click the arrows all the way to the right, you'll eventually switch through to an overview of all the previous metrics. The lines on the graph are pageviews, visits, and visitors:
- Pageviews – this is the top line as it will always be the largest number in your metrics.
- Visits (sessions) – this is the middle line because each visit can contain multiple pageviews.
- Visitors (uniques) – this is the bottom line. One unique visitor can have multiple sessions, therefore visitors will always be a smaller number than either pageviews or visits.
The grey lines show the same numbers but for the previous time period.
