Why is your website traffic not showing up in your Google Analytics account?
If Google Analytics is showing a sharp decline in your traffic numbers, or if your tracking code does not seem to be sending any information to your Google Analytics account, there are a number of possible causes to consider.
This article will show you how to determine why Google Analytics is not working, and how to fix common issues Google Analytics users encounter.
How to Know Google Analytics is Not Showing All Traffic
1. Analyze real-time reports
If you have website visitors but are not seeing traffic data in your Google Analytics real-time reports, the tracking code you installed on your website is not sending information to your Google Analytics account.
Here’s how to check if this is the cause of your Google Analytics issues:
- Open your website in Incognito mode. Make sure you haven’t filtered your own IP address and that you don’t have any Javascript-blocking extensions active on your browser.
- Open real-time reports to see if Google Analytics has registered your visit. If not, there is something wrong with your tracking code and you should work on fixing that before doing anything else.
2. Use Google Tag Assistant
You can also use Google Tag Assistant to verify if your Google Analytics tracking code is working properly.
This tool will notify you of any errors associated with your traffic activity and tell you what, potentially, could be wrong with your Google Analytics setup.
Here’s how to use Google Tag Assistant:
- Install the Google Tag Assistant extension on your browser.
- Refresh your website to see if the Google Analytics tag is working properly.
- Click the record button in the Google Tag Assistant window to start recording your activity on the website.
- Stop recording by clicking the stop button in the Google Tag Assistant window.
- Check the Google Tag Assistant report to find out if there are any problems with your tracking code.
Here’s the full Google Tag Assistant tutorial from Google Analytics.
3. Check developer tools
Checking your browser’s developer tools can tell you if there are Javascript errors, and make sure network requests are completed successfully.
In Chrome, open the Network tab in developer tools and use the filter feature to filter the appropriate network requests.
Successful requests will have a page view code 200. If you see this code for your page view request, page tracking hits are being sent to Google Analytics.
Common Google Analytics Issues (and How to Fix Them)
1. Your tracking code is not set up correctly
- Use a tool like GA Checker to verify that you have added the Google Analytics tracking code to every page of your website.
- Make sure you have preserved the correct code formatting when formatting your Global Site Tag from your Google Analytics account. We recommend copy-and-pasting it directly from the code window in your Google Analytics settings.
- Extra whitespace and characters in your Google Analytics code easily can mess it up. If you made any customizations to your code, make sure there are no typos or errors in your code syntax.
- Make sure you have installed your tracking code right before the closing tag on your website’s pages. The code will still work if added elsewhere, but it will take longer to load. This can cause potential issues with your Google Analytics data.
2. You are tracking the wrong property/view
If you have access to multiple Google Analytics properties, there is a chance you may be using a tracking code from a different property (or simply looking at the reports for the wrong property).
To make sure that is not the case, check that the Google Analytics property ID in your GA settings is the same one that’s installed on your website.
3. You have set up a filter that prevents traffic data from showing up
Incorrect filter setup can prevent Google Analytics from showing all your traffic.
Make sure you have not configured two “Include” filters on the same type.
If that is not the case, check the order of your filters for any mistakes that might be inadvertently filtering all your data.
4. You have turned on your User-ID without configuring it
Google Analytics User-ID is a handy little feature, but it requires additional code implementation to actually work.
If the User-ID is enabled but not properly configured, your Google Analytics account will contain no data.
5. You have conflicting scripts on your page or website
If other scripts on your page are using the same variables as Google Analytics, you are going to encounter problems with your tracking code.
Check the variables used by Google Analytics to make sure there are no conflicting scripts on your page.
Final Thoughts
No one wants to wake up to a sharp decline in their traffic numbers, whether it’s because of a Google Analytics mishap or a marketing blunder.
To make sure you are getting the most out of your marketing, check out our free Digital Marketing Assessment.
It will help you determine what’s working for your business and what’s not. Plus, show you the steps needed to take your marketing to the next level.
