It’s the most wonderful time of the year for Etsy and Google Analytics

Tis the season for celebrating the birth of Jesus and shopping online. Also known as the best time of the year. I love scouring the web for personal Christmas presents and this year I made a fabulous new discovery – Etsy.

Granted, Etsy isn’t new. In fact you could say I’m a little late to the party. These days, Etsy is practically synonymous with hand-made and unique items. Friends have shops and Pinterest is full of those who create and those who purchase pinning wonderful items tailored to your needs. Buzzfeed posted about 2,347 gift giving articles this season featuring unique products from the site for the book lovers in your life, nerds in your life, etc.

Etsy is everywhere.

I’ll start at the beginning for those of you living under a rock.

Launched in 2005, Etsy is a website that invites users to open shops and sell their handmade and vintage items and craft supplies. The model is meant to replicate a typical craft fair and allow the sellers can list their goods in personal storefronts. There is a flat listing fee of 20 cents per items and requests a 3.5 percent commission from everything sold (Crunchbase, 2014).

The name came from a desire to be whimsical and nonsensical to grow the brand from nothing. Robert Kalin, one of the founders, chose Etsy because it sounds like the Italian phrase ‘eh, si’ which sounds  and means ‘oh, yes’ (Wikipedia).

In a world full of heavyweight sites like Pinterest, Google and Facebook, Etsy was the little enging that could, continuing to surprise the world with its rapid growth. In May 2012, just seven years after launching, the site had 15 million users in more than 150 countries. There were 875,000 shops, 13 million items, almost 700,000 new users each month and almost three million items sold per month (Adams, 2012).

Last November, 1,381,666 users joined the site, marking a 22.5 percent increase from the month before. More items were sold as well, with 7,430,698 purchased goods. Web and mobile page views surpassed two million for the month (Traub, 2013).

Etsy publishes a Weather Report on the blog each month to show trends and providing updates for sellers and visitors alike.

Let’s recap: Etsy is a site that invites the creative folk to sell their goods to those who love the unique and unusual. It’s like an online craft fair. Hearing that, how does an e-commerce site like Etsy track analytics? On the macro level, Etsy clearly tracks sales, page views, signups and more, but how does that help its moneymakers?

In 2009, as the site continued to grow, Etsy launched analytics for the shops through Google Analytics (Engelhardt, 2009). The partnership allowed the sellers to monitor their own metrics but worked with Google to tailor the content to track the most important data for sellers.

Etsy realized the need for its sellers, but also the challenges the seller might face if they were new to the world of web analytics (which I’m sure a large majority were). In a blog post, Etsy described Google Analytics as ‘the pulse of your shop…a higher pulse rate means more visitor, and in general more visitors would correlate to more sales for your shop’ (TechUpdates, 2009).

Understanding the value, Etsy put forth a commendable effort to make it relatable for the sellers through online labs and blog posts designed to aid with questions and guide users to maximize the potential of Google Analytics.

On a basic level, Etsy provides Shop Stats to show the traffic volume and traffic source for sellers. It provides views, favorites, orders, revenue, traffic sources, sources from Etsy and keywords. The interface resembles Google Analytics, but much simpler. It provides an additional breakdown of how the metrics can assist a seller (Etsy, Shop Stars, 2014).

If users choose to pursue Google Analytics for a more in-depth breakdown, a step-by-step guide is provided (Etsy, Web Analytics, 2014). I read through the steps, and I think Etsy does a really wonderful job of making it easy to understand for those who are unfamiliar with code.

Additionally, the various blog posts inform sellers about the metrics they may find most beneficial as well as information about how to find them and apply them to the individual’s shop.  The site is dedicated to learning what the sellers’ need and adapting the analytics to best help them.

Suggestions include discovering the search engine keyword referrals and site search tracking from Etsy. The first provides sellers with the ability to see what keywords lead potential consumers to the site and includes organic and paid search results. The latter tracks ‘on Etsy’ six different ways (Engelhardt, 2009). A 2011 post covered filters and how they can assist the seller as well as providing cheat sheet coding to assist the curious user (daniellexo).

Months after launching Google Analytics for sellers, Etsy released another post about the benefits and how they expand upon Shop Stats (kutty, 2009). The site seemed to push the use of GA to help sellers, which ultimately helps Etsy.

It seems like Etsy is doing a decent job of tracking the overall site stats and encouraging Google Analytics use among the sellers. It’s dedicated to education and assisting them to make the implementation easier. It recognizes the need and benefits and realizes Google offers more than its stats alone.

So now the question: what could Etsy do better to assist sellers in the tracking process?

In a word: simplicity. Yes, the site is very clear in how to use Google Analytics. Yes, Etsy offers its own limited version of statistics to help sellers who might be afraid of implementing GA. But isn’t there an easier way?

Different developers create apps to work in conjunction with GA to simplify it and provide the reports most essential to the individual. If Etsy created a similar app, it could remove the learning curve associated with Google and deliver the best metrics to the sellers.

The developers at Etsy most likely know what works best compared to most sellers. By designing this app, they could assist themselves by making it as easy as possible to interpret and improve a shop. If a user was aware and didn’t need the assistance, Google Analytics would still be available in its raw form.

Etsy continues to be our favorite online craft fair, and I’m excited to see how the analytics evolve.  

References

Adams, D. (2012). Etsy’s growth may surprise you: The facts and stats. Bit Rebels. Retrieved from http://www.bitrebels.com/social/etsys-growth-may-surprise-you-the-facts-stats-infographic/

Crunchbase. (2014). Etsy. Retrieved from http://www.crunchbase.com/organization/etsy

daniellexo. (2011). Web analytics: Who’s found you through the Taste Test. The Etsy Blog. Retrieved from https://blog.etsy.com/en/2011/web-analytics-whos-found-you-through-the-taste-test/

Engelhardt, L. (2009). Tech update: Etsy web analytics enhancements. The Etsy Blog. Retrieved from https://blog.etsy.com/en/2009/tech-update-etsy-web-analytics-enhancements/

Etsy. (2014). Shop Stats. Help Home. Retrieved from https://www.etsy.com/help/article/541

Etsy. (2014). Web Analytics. Help Home. Retrieved from https://www.etsy.com/help/article/230

kutty. (2009). Etsy web analytics: Get it straight from Google. The Etsy Blog. Retrieved from https://blog.etsy.com/en/2009/etsy-web-analytics-get-it-straight-from-google/

TechUpdates. (2009). Web analytics recap: Seller chat in the online labs, The Etsy Blog. Retrieved from https://blog.etsy.com/en/2009/web-analytics-recap-seller-chat-in-the-virtual-labs/

Traub, M. (2013). Etsy statistics: November 2013 Weather Report. Etsy News Blog. Retrieved from https://blog.etsy.com/news/2013/etsy-statistics-november-2013-weather-report/

Wikipedia. (2014). Etsy. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etsy

The sadistic joy of using Google to slam itself

You know you’ve made it when there’s a page on Wikipedia for you.

I’ve spent countless hours in a Wikipedia-induced spiral of doom, overwhelming my brain with senseless knowledge. When I want to learn about something in a concise yet thorough manner, it’s my favorite site to visit.

Imagine my joy when I Googled* “google privacy issues,” imagine my excitement in seeing the second result coming from Wikipedia with the page title “Criticism of Google.” Score. Research done.

*It’s important to note the irony involved with this post. Spoiler alert: This post is dedicated to Google and how it gathers data and the privacy problems surrounding the search engine-turned-ruler of the Internet. As I already mentioned, I used Google to find more information and sources. It’s almost cruel, using Google to provide me with information damning Google. I’ll stop now. Googleception.

Obviously, I was just kidding when I said my research ended at Wikipedia. That would be foolish and I’m sure this post wouldn’t result in anything beneficial to the reader. I did find the opening statement interesting:

“Criticism of Google includes alleged misuse and manipulation of search results, its use of others' intellectual property, concerns that its compilation of data may violate people's privacy, censorship of search results and content, and the energy consumption of its servers as well as concerns over traditional business issues such as antitrust, monopoly, and restraint of trade.” (Wikipedia, 2014)

Yikes.

That’s pretty heavy, considering the sheer power of Google. Unless you live in Pawnee, Indiana, and prefer Alta Vista, the term ‘Google it’ is most likely a part of your vocabulary.

Like so many Internet favorites (looking at you, Facebook), Google grew from an idea in a dorm room to the number one search engine. While at Stanford, Sergei Brin and Larry Page developed a search engine called ‘BackRub.’ The first center was set up in Page’s dorm room after they began designing the search tool to connect links between pages to determine the authority of a website. The man who started Yahoo!, another Stanford grad, encouraged them to proceed with their idea. Google, Inc. began in a garage in California and now has more than 50 percent of the total search market (SubmitToday.com).

When I first started learning about search engines in elementary school, Google was hardly a consideration. It was all about Yahoo! or Ask Jeeves. Who didn’t love a butler who brought you search results? This was also when we had to be ‘taught’ to use a search engine using plus signs and quotation marks. Less than 20 years later and Google practically runs my life.

Through my browser, I use Google constantly for any inquiries. Sometimes even when I’m too lazy to type in the address. My primary email is through Gmail and I’m a big fan of Google Drive. The calendar keeps all my events in order and I’m incredibly dependent on Google Maps. Plus, who doesn’t love YouTube, now in conjunction with Google?

But what does my dependence on Google mean for my privacy?

Essentially, it means everything. The New York Times said Google continues “to treat privacy like it was just a silly thing” (Bilton, 2014).

Earlier this year, Google announced new privacy policies announcing the scanning of email for spam and to improve the user’s experience (to show relevant ads based on content). If I share something with one piece of Google (Gmail, YouTube, etc.), it’s available to every other service as well (Goodale, 2014).

Amid lawsuits about violation of wire tapping laws, Google quietly unveiled the new policy (Goodale, 2014) that I’m sure many people didn’t read. The change only made news due to Google’s massive effect on the Internet.

It’s more than simply mining our emails. Last year Google admitted it wasn’t just using cameras for Street View in Google Maps – it also collected data from computers inside the residences, like passwords and emails. In 2012, the Federal Trade Commission issued its largest fine of $22.5 million after Google used a code to bypass Apple’s security with Safari to track user data. This wasn’t the first privacy agreement violated by the company (Rosenfeld, 2014).

Basically, Google knows a lot about us. While the services are free, we pay it with our data and personal information (van Rijmenam, 2014). It’s weird to think about in those terms, but I think they’re absolutely right. Our history, interests and conversations provide valuable insight to Google the company and it values our input, even if we hand it over out of ignorance or begrudging acceptance.

Recently Umbel collected information and conducted a survey about how Internet users feel about privacy and the Internet. From the respondents, 45 percent believe the personal information they disseminate online is safe. Almost 70 percent agree with the notion that the information they provide is being used for something else online. When asked “to what extent do you trust [search engines] to protect your personal data?,” they answered 40 percent (van Rijmenan, 2014).

I’m with the 70 percent who realize what they provide has additional uses for something else, but it doesn’t concern me.

Truthfully, I went into this assignment wondering if this would change my opinion on Google and its data mining. I’m happy to say I remain as content as ever with the company.

I know you’re relieved as well.

The argument could be made about the ethics of it all. Google takes a lot of information from us, yes, and sometimes it isn’t immediately made known what they’re doing. On the other hand, we aren’t reading the privacy policies. We’re reading articles about the policy updates and fuming about targeted ads but most people still ‘Google’ something on a daily basis. If you’re not using your work email, it seems almost outdated to have anything except a Gmail address.

At times, it feels intrusive, but I feel this is the way the Internet is going. Google recognizes what needs to be done and continues to do with no real remorse for its behavior. Google revolutionized out Internet usage already and it almost seems foolish to stand in its way and say we won’t stand for this, because we do every single day.

Maybe I’m wrong and the Internet will move toward a new privacy stance, but when your star player is saying this is the future, it’s hard to ignore the insight.

Also I love targeted ads and seeing what Google believes is applicable to my life. I find it amusing and interesting. Plus, it’s hard to be in marketing and not appreciate the power of Google.

References

Bilton, N. (2014). The slippery slope of Silicon Valley. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/27/style/uber-facebook-and-others-bedeviled-by-moral-issues.html?_r=0

Goodale, G. (2014). Privacy concerns? What Google now says it can do with your data. The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved from http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2014/0416/Privacy-concerns-What-Google-now-says-it-can-do-with-your-data-video

Rosenfeld, S. (2014). 4 ways Google is destroying privacy and collecting your data, Salon. Retrieved from http://www.salon.com/2014/02/05/4_ways_google_is_destroying_privacy_and_collecting_your_data_partner/

SubmitToday.com. (n.d.). The history of Google: From garage-based business to #1 search engine. Retrieved from http://www.submittoday.com/history_of_google.htm

van Rijmenam, M. (2015). Big data ethics and your privacy [INFOGRAPHIC]. Smart Data Collective. Retrieved from http://smartdatacollective.com/bigdatastartups/282781/big-data-ethics-how-does-it-affect-your-privacy

Wikipedia. (2014). Criticism of Google. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Google