New in Go Adserver: Visitor Analytics
Go Adserver now includes Visitor Analytics, a simple way for publishers to see what is happening on their websites, not just with their ads.
With Visitor Analytics, you can check how many people are visiting your site, which pages they are viewing, where they are coming from, and what devices, browsers and operating systems they use.
If your website already uses the Go Adserver Ad Controller, there is nothing else to install.
Website traffic is not the same as ad traffic
Ad statistics tell you how campaigns are performing. They show impressions, clicks, conversions and other advertising activity.
Visitor Analytics looks at something different: the traffic coming to the website itself.
For example, a page may contain several ad zones and generate multiple ad impressions, but it still counts as one pageview.
A page without any ads can also count as a visit, as long as the Go Adserver controller is running on that page.
This gives publishers a clearer idea of how much real website traffic sits behind their advertising activity.
How to enable it
Visitor Analytics can be enabled separately for each website.
Go to:
Publisher > Websites > Edit Website
Then enable Visitor Analytics.
If the Go Adserver Ad Controller is already installed on the site, that is all you need to do. Pageviews will start being tracked automatically wherever the controller is running.
If you are not currently using the controller on the website, Go Adserver provides a simple JavaScript tag that can be added once to the shared header or layout of the site.
You do not need to add tracking code to every individual page.
See your traffic inside Go Adserver
The Visitor Analytics section is always available from the Publisher menu.
From there, you can select a website, choose a date range and review its traffic.
The main dashboard shows:
- Today's traffic
- Total pageviews
- Unique visitors
- Average pageviews per day
You can compare pageviews and unique visitors over time and switch between line and bar charts.
It is a quick way to see whether traffic is increasing, decreasing or staying at a similar level.
More than just pageviews
Visitor Analytics also gives you more detail about the people visiting your website.
You can see your top pages, which helps you understand which parts of the site receive the most traffic.
You can also see your top referrers, so you know where visitors are coming from.
Traffic can be analyzed by:
- Country
- Device
- Browser
- Operating System
- ISP
- Screen Resolution
For these reports, you can choose different chart styles and switch between pageviews and unique visitors.
This makes it easier to understand not only how much traffic you have, but also what that traffic looks like.
Works with modern websites too
Many websites today do not reload the entire page every time someone moves to another section.
Visitor Analytics can track those page changes automatically as well.
That means websites with modern navigation can still record pageviews without requiring extra tracking for every route change.
Custom Events are also supported
Pageviews are tracked automatically, but publishers can also create Custom Events if they want to measure specific actions.
For example, you may want to track a signup, a purchase or another important action on the website.
Custom Events require a small JavaScript call, but they are completely optional.
If you only want to track website traffic, no additional setup is needed.
Simple analytics without another platform
Visitor Analytics is not meant to replace a full analytics platform such as Google Analytics.
It is designed to give publishers the information they are most likely to need on a daily basis, directly inside Go Adserver.
You can quickly check how much traffic a website is receiving, which pages are getting the most visits, where visitors are coming from and what devices they are using.
There is no separate analytics account to manage and no additional dashboard to open.
Privacy-conscious tracking
Visitor Analytics does not place a visitor-identification cookie on the user's device.
Unique visitors are estimated using a derived identifier, and raw IP addresses are not stored as part of this feature.
The result is a lightweight way to understand website traffic without relying on persistent visitor cookies.
As with any analytics or advertising technology, publishers should make sure their use of the feature is covered by their own privacy policies and any applicable local requirements.
Available now
Visitor Analytics is available now for Go Adserver publishers.
To start tracking a website, go to:
Publisher > Websites > Edit Website > Visitor Analytics
Enable the option and, if the Go Adserver Ad Controller is already installed, there is nothing else to do.
If it is not installed, simply add the JavaScript tag provided in the website settings to your site's shared layout.
Then open Visitor Analytics from the Publisher menu whenever you want to review your traffic.
Website traffic, audience insights and advertising, all inside Go Adserver.