Google Adwords Launches Offline Conversion Tracking

Posted on September 5, 2013 at 10:02 pm.

(But it doesn’t really matter for lawyers . . . yet)

In an attempt to provide increased analytical information about an Adwords spend, today Google launched AdWords Conversion Import – which tracks offline conversion (like phone calls) back to the original PPC spend. (Thus presumably increasing the perceived ROI on Google Adwords and therefore encouraging advertisers to continue to adjust their budgets towards PPC spend. . . but I digress.)

As you can see from the cute Google graphic above, the process is pretty simple but it is really designed much more for an online retail experience than a law firm. Note that this requires a)the user to fill out a form to store the original click information (known as the GCLID) and b)the advertiser to have a customer tracking database that they record the GCLID in and then reupload that GCLID back to Google once the user converts. Booo.

Why This Doesn’t Work For Lawyers

Online intake form completion for legal websites anecdotally represents roughly 2-3% of inbound leads. What lawyers really want is the phone to ring (and Google is clear that this doesn’t work for those inbound phone calls.)
This also requires a back end tracking database. While there are a few solutions (including, ahem, Avvo’s Ignite Suite) that do provide sophisticated CRM for lawyers, very few law firms have actually adopted them.

But Wait . . .

One of my favorite pastimes is reading the Google tealeaves and prognosticating changes in direction and new product features. Between tracking phone numbers in Adwords and the huge push into the small business realm (think restaurants, plumbers, auto repair, lawyers etc.) things are changing. Better conversion tracking for small businesses that rely on phone calls for the vast majority of their conversions is coming soon.

How to Check your Access Level in the New Google Analytics Interface

Posted on August 21, 2013 at 4:26 pm.

Written by Conrad Saam

I’ve recently been on a series of rants about the importance of controlling exclusive access to key high level log in credentials to control you web presence. This post started as a step by step email instructions to a law firm whose agency either couldn’t figure out the new Google Analytics Interface or was too lazy to bother. I decided to post it as a blog instead so anyone could read it.

Working with the new Analytics interface to add users or change their permissions is different, but mindnumbingly simple if you know where to look. (In fact there are now 4 tiers of permissions instead of 3.) Below I’ll show you a)how to check to see if you have “add user” level access – which as a site owner you MUST have and b)add/modify user permissions once you’ve cleared the previous hurdle.

NOTE: If you don’t have “add user” level access to your own Google Analytics account – immediately go and scream at your agency/consultant/self-professed search expert until they make that change. Then remove that level of access to everyone except yourself. (And hide that password away very securely and carefully.)

Step 1: Log in to Google Analytics.

Step 2: Click “Admin” in the top left hand corner.

Step 3: If “User Management” is grayed out and you can’t click on it you don’t have the high level access to your own Analytics account that you should. Talk to your agency.

Step 4: Once you can click on “User Management”, you’ll find a very easy interface to add accounts (or change permissions to existing accounts).

Simple. All done.

Your Website – Three Things You Absolutely Must Control

Posted on August 19, 2013 at 4:33 pm.

Written by Conrad Saam

I continue to run into attorneys who don’t really have control over their website – due to vendors who have set up certain systems, but retained high-level log in credentials (and failed to supply their clients with similar credentials.) In common English please – Lawyers should have exclusive control and access at the highest administrative level to log ins for their Domain, their Host and this Analytics account. In priority (and technical complexity) order:

Domain

As I’ve written before, if you don’t own your domain, you are essentially leasing someone else’s website. As a most insidious practice, some legally focused online marketers are getting their clients to pay for search consulting services and eventually upping the price or reselling the domain to the competitor across the street. This is the real estate equivalent of a landlord forcing a tenant to paying for upgrades to an apartment and then turning around and charging extra for the upgraded space. Not sure if you “own” your domain? Find out at Who Is.

Hosting

You need high level access to your websites hosting provider in order to do a variety of back end things – like changing an email provider, moving hosting solutions and exporting your site’s content database. While you may want technical assistance in performing these tasks, you must have access in order to do so. Calling up your old SEO begging for passwords can be a drawn out, frustrating process.

Analytics Log In

For the most part, when I say “Analytics” I mean Google Analytics. Your Google password can then be used across the entire Google ecosystem –Analtyics, Adwords, Email, Webmaster Tools etc. Having admin level access here enables you to invite others to view (or work on) any of these accounts. Thoughtlessly gifting this level of access to a vendor enables them to read your mail or create new accounts to access your performance after you fire them (recent occurrence with a client and vendor both of whom will remain unnamed). You should have exclusive high level access. Note that Google Analytics has recently changed their interface (confusing every non-regular user). Carefully select access for your vendors among the following options (and never include “add users”):

Entrust your vendors with the performance of your website, but never abdicate control of it to them.

UPDATE: Check out Steve’s comment below for an approach your agency should be using.

Stop Sending Me Your Google Account Log In Credentials

Posted on July 22, 2013 at 5:52 pm.

Written by Conrad Saam

I frequently speak with attorneys who are only too eager to hand over their log-in credentials for the Google Analytics account.

Stop doing it.

You are not just opening the kimono – you are taking it off and throwing it away. Here’s why:

Once you’ve finished sharing this data with me, you’ll have to change your password; otherwise I’ll have ongoing access. This is easy to do, but few ever consider it.
Most law firms don’t run their email through google and because you must use a Google Account to access Google Analytics, many of the log-ins are personal google email accounts. (While you can associate a non Google email address with your Google Account, very few do.) Sending me over your personal account to log in to your company’s Google Analytics account means I can now read your personal gmail . . .
If this is the primary business account (either a solo lawyer or the marketing department), the log-in also opens up access to Google Webmaster Tools, Google Adwords etc.
By default your account probably has administrator access – which means you can add and delete users as you see fit. Now that you’ve sent me your credentials, so can I.

Note that if you rely on your agency to set up Google Analytics for you THEY will have your administrator level access. This is something you should check and change immediately if it is the case. (I’ll show you below how you can tell if this is the case.) Demand your agency make you the sole administrator and then grant them “user” level access.

What does this look like in the real world? Recently, I transitioned a client (who will remain nameless) from their existing agency (who will also remain nameless) to Atticus. When reviewing the client’s Google Analtyics account, we discovered that a new, innocuous sounding administrator-level account (marketing@example.com) was created just prior to the switch. My client swears that she not only didn’t create it but wouldn’t know how to.