Goal tracking in Google Analytics is important for your ProStores store.
What is goal tracking? Goal tracking allows you to specify particular pages to track, usually in sequence.
In this ProStores tutorial I will be showing you the set up, steps, and an example of setting up a Google Analytics Goal in ProStores.
Lets assume you are already logged into your google account and are at the Google Analytics page and are viewing your ProStores store’s Google Analytics profile.
This example is tracking purchases completed from the Cart all the way to your Order Confirm page in your ProStores store.
Click Edit, in the Actions column next to the Visits Column. This brings you to the Profile page, Look for the Conversion Goals and Funnel section:
Click Edit in the Settings column on the far right. This will bring you to the Goal Settings Page.
1. Choose On for Active Goal to turn the goal on once you’ve hit Save Changes when your done, or off to leave it off when your done.
2. /servlet/Invoice – If your on a traditional ProStores set up, 90% of you are, this is your Goal Page:
3. Choose a Goal Name: I used PurchaseMade
4. Checkmark Case sensitive: in ProStores Caps matters
5. Goal Value, if you know your average order value put that in here, otherwise leave it at 0.0. Its not going to be accurate anyway.
6. Define Funnel: you can just track your goal if its just a sign up page or something when the steps to reach the goal aren’t static. In this case, ProStores store purchases, the checkout steps are static. You can name each step whatever you want.
7. Step 1. /servlet/Cart – click Required step – I named it Cart
8. Step 2. /servlet/Checkout – I named it Billing/Shipping info, this URL is used on the Guest/registered members pages, as well as the gift and regular ship to pages.
9. Step 3. /servlet/InvoiceAccount – Named Payment Entry
10. Step 4. /servlet/InvoiceBilling – Name Invoice – This is the step where they can review their order and choose shipping and then click PAY
11. Your last step, the GOAL, is automatically entered from Step 2.
Here is a picture of this set up.
Then click Save Changes. The goal will start to track as soon as you set it to Active as shown in Step 1.
You can View the reports under the Goals section in Google Analytics. Don’t forget to check the Funnel section, this will show you where your customers are jumping ship. I’ve had a client set up exactly like this and in the past 5 months once they fill out their Billing Info 100% of his visitors have stayed with the process and converted to customers. 
I hope you all find this to be helpful!
The next two guides will be written by Ian Lurie of Conversation Marketing, an internet marketing strategy blog. I know you’ll enjoy him!
Don’t forget to read the first post Google Analytics Filters – ProStores Setup if you haven’t seen it yet.
What happens if you have “characters” after the domain head for each product? Ex. “/servlet/InvoiceAccount?smode=checkout” or it gives an id number for each product in the address bar?
In part 1 of Google Analytics Guides I address that by telling it to exclude URL query parameters.
See point 6 under “Setting up Exclusions”
Thanks Matt, it is starting to make since. When installing Analytics I used you Blog (I entered in the exclusions), I noticed in my URL it has a “?” before the exclusion. Do I need to include that into the exclude field? Right now I am getting cart data but nothing else. I noticed someone in here had mentioned they put some code on a “confirmation page”, I only have it on my header (should I enter the same code on my confirmation page).
Thank you very much ahead of time.
I have a question regarding goals and events in GA. I set for a click on a link for GA to track both an event and a virtual pageview. the problem is that the number of events doesn’t correspond with the number of goals (i set a goal for that virtual page view). why is this?
can you clarify what you mean by ‘virtual’ pageview? thanks!
Matt
setting goal funnels in GA is very important for tracking visitor behavior, but what can you do when all your steps are in a javascript popup? how can you track them?
thats a great question, I have limited experience with JS, I’ve got a couple designers that would probably know, but they really don’t frequent the blog as they are really busy. If you are interested in discussing this as a possible project I’m always happy to talk. you can reach me at 810-434-4448 or matt@onetakemedia.net.
Wish I had an easy answer for you, but I don’t.
Matt
in the new GA interface you can set goals for events also… which is cool, because you don’t have to generate virtual pageviews just for goal tracking
regarding your question about pageviews that someone already said earlier, it’s those pageviews that you generate using _gaq.trackPageView method for the async code… read their documentation about trackPageView method… I can’t explain as good as them:D