Like millions of website owners around the globe, I use Google Analytics on offbeattravelling.com.
What is Google Analytics?
In short, Google Analytics is a web analytics service offered by Google that tracks and reports website traffic. The tool uses “cookies,” which are text files placed on your computer, to collect standard Internet log information and visitor behaviour information in an anonymous form.
How do I use Google Analytics?
When I check my Google Analytics dashboard I look, among others, for the following:
- From which countries are my visitors?
- Which articles are popular?
- How do visitors navigate on my website?
- Through which channels do visitors end up at my website?
- How long do visitors stay on a particular page?
With the information gathered I improve my website. For example by writing better articles, developing more intuitive navigation and adding more relevant content.
Should visitors worry about their privacy?
Nope. All of my activity falls within the bounds of the Google Analytics Terms of Service that I signed. Further, Google takes several steps to keep my data protected. Find more information on Google data privacy and security here.
How to prevent Google Analytics from using your data:
You still may wish to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically default to accept them, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies. If you reject cookies by changing your browser settings then be aware that this may disable some of the functionality on our Website.
Another easy way it to install Google’s own opt-out add-on. Once up and running it tells your web browser to prevent Google Analytics from using your data. You can download the add-on here.
How about the email subscriptions?
The email addresses I gathered for my notifications and updates are not distributed to any third party, neither are they available to anyone but myself. I use the email addresses only to send you interesting and relevant content, created just for you.
Be aware that I do use email tracking to see how many subscribers have received and opened the mail and/or clicked on any links. Don’t worry though. This is all standard functionality and common practice within the industry of newsletter sending. There is no way for example that I can access your mailbox, and neither do I ever want to do that.
Cheers to data privacy!