Favorite Google Analytics reports you use to decide what new content to create?

I've got a site which gets almost 12k visits per month. I haven't added any content in months and I'm getting back in the saddle now and would like to do so. Rather than just whip up some material which is thematically similar to the site, I got to thinking that there is certainly a more strategic method of adding new content. I'm pretty inexperienced as I have no just admitted to but you all are not.

Aside from doing some keyword research with tools like Long tail pro and targeting a certain phrase in your title, do you every use Google Analytics to help decide what your next article/post will be about? If so, what reports do you look at?

I've looked at Behavior>Site Content>All Pages which shows a page view count but for whatever reason, I'm not drawing any conclusions.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

You can check which landing pages got the highest visits, what keywords people used in viewing these pages, how long did they stay, and where people exited in Google Analytics. This way, you'll be able to know the activity of your users. You'll be able to identify what kind of content they love. You may also want to add social media buttons so that visitors can like, share, tweet your content. By doing so, you'll see what content is the most shareable and engaging.

You may also want to check your competitors, and the kind of content they post. Check Google trends as well for insights.

Google Trends is awesome. I found a gold mine keyword using that advice. THANK YOU!

burgertime said:

Google Trends is awesome. I found a gold mine keyword using that advice. THANK YOU!

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You're welcome, buddy!

I really like to dive deep into forums around a niche. You can find relative terms that you would have never seen in analytics. This is particularly useful in crowded niches and you can often find some great longtail phrases. The search volume may be lower but the terms are highly targeted.

When you speak the language of your niche it tends to raise the perceived authority of your site. I've found this also increases shares and backlinks.

I look at the behaviour section of Google Analytics and the search queries section of Google Webmaster Tools to determine what content I should release next on my sites. For example, on one site I might see that articles relating to security are doing well both in the SERPs (decent CTR, impressions, and clicks) and on Google Analytics (I mostly look at the "time on page" and page views).

Hi there, aside from google suggest terms via "term"_ I look at webmaster results every month. Anything ranking up to 10 (so page one) with a less than 5% CTR can easily be improved upon with a better meta call to action, also ensure it's fast.

Also add a poll or comment box.

It will result in more clicks and time on site, increasing rank. Populate the page with other relevant articles too for increased page views and engagement. You can do this by drilling further down into the search terms recorded. The 'how to's' in step by steps are great for social sharing if you have the time. Depends on your sector.

thebat1980 said:

Hi there, aside from google suggest terms via "term"_ I look at webmaster results every month. Anything ranking up to 10 (so page one) with a less than 5% CTR can easily be improved upon with a better meta call to action, also ensure it's fast.

Also add a poll or comment box.

It will result in more clicks and time on site, increasing rank. Populate the page with other relevant articles too for increased page views and engagement. You can do this by drilling further down into the search terms recorded. The 'how to's' in step by steps are great for social sharing if you have the time. Depends on your sector.

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I actually like that polling idea since it can make a website much more interactive. I might test this out on one of my sites later.

It really does work Also if you add a comment type box with "feel free to ask any questions" or "what do you suggest?" (depending on the nature of the page) - it further adds to your authority and also produces many other quality offerings that google now likes. E.g unique user generated content, dynamic, reflective, ongoing, ability to link to other resources both external or internal and data gathering for further inspiration

Zwielicht said:

I actually like that polling idea since it can make a website much more interactive. I might test this out on one of my sites later.

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I was thinking the same thing.