Let Me In! Getting Access to Google Analytics
When we set up your site, we enabled Google Analytics to track site activity, meaning that there exists data on your website’s performance from when it was just a baby website. You’re welcome.
But knowing that the data exists is only half the battle. Luckily, we’ve made the other half – accessing the data – into a simple step-by-step.
Creating Credentials
First, you’ll need an email address that you want to use to access your analytics. You have a few options for this:
- The simplest way to do this is to use a Gmail account. You can use a pre-existing Gmail address or create a new one. Make sure you have the log in credentials before moving on to the next step.
- Alternatively, you can link your Carleton Email account to a Gmail account to allow you to use your cmail address to log into Google Analytics. To do this, just open this tutorial on creating a Gmail account and follow the instructions under the subheading “Use an existing email address”.
Enabling Access
Whether you have a Gmail address or a Carleton Email Address that is connected to Google, the next step is to request analytics access for that email
- Access the ITS Service desk: https://itsjira.carleton.ca/servicedesk/customer/portal/5
- Select “Request Help”
- Request to have your email address enabled with Google Analytics access for your website. Be sure to include:
- Your name
- The name of the website(s) you need analytics access to
- The email address you selected or created in the previous step
- Submit your request – someone from Web Services will fulfill your request and get back to you.
Logging In
After receiving a reply from Web Services, you will be able to log into Google Analytics using the credentials from the first step. Log in here: https://analytics.google.com/analytics/web/
You will also receive an email from Google Analytics notifying you of being granted access and providing you with a log in link.
From there, what you do with the data is up to you, whether that’s just looking at the pretty charts or using the data to actively enhance your website performance. We recommend a bit of both.