Truwex Google Analytics Check Tool: Help

Google Analytics help

Google Analytics elements are detected

Truwex detected at least one of the following elements in the web page's HTML code: Google Analytics Script, its function call, any variable from the Google Analytics Script, Google Analytics web beacon or cookie(s).

For example, link to JavaScript file <script src="http://www.google-analytics.com/urchin.js" type="text/javascript">. It can be also JavaScript variable, for example: _uacct = "UA-xxxxxx-x". Or it can be Google Analytics web beacon: http://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif.

Visitor tracking is OK / not OK.

Google Analytics software, just as any other analytics product, tracks visitors by executing a metrics JavaScript when loading the webpage. It does this by loading a small image from a Google server. This image is called a web beacon. The fact that the image is loaded means that a person has visited the web page. The Google Analytics JavaScript also sets cookies. Cookies track the root a person has taken through a website in which Google Analytics metrics has been installed. Truwex checks the correctness of Google Analytics implementation by using the following parameters:

Google Analytics JavaScript file is not downloaded / is OK

To start working, a Google Analytics JavaScript must first be loaded to a visitor's browser. Truwex checks that a file urchin.js or __utm.js is actually loaded by Internet Explorer from a webpage.

Google Analytics JavaScript file is in Head section

According to the Google Analytics help page, the best place for Google Analytics Java Script code is in the end of a web page, right before the </body> tag. However, the early Google Analytics guidelines recommended placing code in the <head> tag, and there are still millions of web sites which follow this recommendation. This is a problem for two reasons: (1) An Analytics Java Script loads before the main content of a web page, which causes a delay. (2) If an Analytics Java Script cannot be loaded or executed, the rest of the web content may not be displayed at all.

Google Analytics Account variable value is not found / cannot be detected because page script contains error / is incorrect / is OK

You must define your Google Analytics account variable in such a way that the metrics software can associate your visit data with your account. Truwex checks this issue making sure that the JavaScript variable _uacct = "UA-xxxxxx-x" is correctly defined (it should not be the default value and should be equal to the value entered by the user if he/she set it in the page checker settings).

Google Analytics WebBeacon is not detected / is detected

Web beacon is a small image placed on an analytics web server (in our case on a Google server). Its URL is http://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif, or https://ssl.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif, or http://service.urchin.com/__utm.gif, or https://service.urchin.com/__utm.gif. The event of loading this image triggers a visit counter. Truwex checks that this image is actually loaded to a browser after loading a webpage.

Google Analytics Cookie is not detected / is detected

Google Analytics JavaScript sets several cookies on a visitor's browser to track the route taken on the website. Their names are: __utma, __utmb, __utmc, __utmz. Truwex checks that the correct cookie is set after loading each webpage.

Event tracking detected, but does not work

Truwex detects all places in the HTML code of a web page where Google Analytics event tracking is used. For example, this could be a file, a flash movie download, or simply a click on an external link with a script. If Truwex reports the error "Event tracking does not work", this means that the Google Analytics JavaScript was not executed.