Analytics Age Report Guides Content and Marketing
The Google Analytics age report offers insights about how to market a website and improve targeting for search engine optimization. It also may impact content.
For example, the largest age range by far for this site is 25 to 34 years old. Even though the lone publisher and writer is much older than 34 years, the results aren’t surprising. The site is about online publishing, which is a popular career for the younger generation.
The 25 to 34 year old number shows that the age of the writer doesn’t matter nearly as much as the appeal of the content.
When nearly 50 percent of all site visitors come from a single, narrow age range, and only 4 percent fit the writier’s age, it benefits the writer to know that fact and take advantage of it. If nothing else, the writer shouldn’t reference people from other age ranges too much.
Age-Based Content
All content is made up of four major reference points: subject, time, geography and demographics. Google Analytics reflects these reference points.
Subject is obvious. Time refers to events in the past, present or future if relevant. Geography describes where the event or activity takes place, such as city, county, state, zip code or nation. Demographics (which may include geography references, especially zip codes) consist mainly of age and gender.
Any website publisher who wants to increase a foothold in a particular age group will find some use in developing content ideas that appeal to that group. That said, some sites have more potential for developing age-related content than others, such as a parenting site (young mothers versus older mothers).
Tactics that improve the appeal of certain ages in an article start with the topic. They also include references to specific people, generations, time periods and external sources that have a strong appeal to certain age groups.
Age-Based Marketing
Content that targets specific age groups is the first step. Marketing for specific age groups such as search engine optimization begins with getting the data about the people who are visiting the site.
Publishers usually have two main sources of that information: website analytic software and external advertising platforms.
For example, analytic software such as the dominant Google Analytics has that information available by going to Audience / Demographics / Age in the left column. The numbers will show six age groups ranging from 18-24 to 65+.
It’s a good idea to look at longer periods of time rather than the default seven days. Instead, try at least 30 days or more to smooth out fluctuations from week to week.
Note the site performance metrics for each group including pages per visit and any goals that have been set up in the software. Wide variances among the age groups may reveal weaknesses in content and marketing.
Other than analytics, publishers usually will find age information with online advertising platforms such as Bing, Google and Facebook. They gather that information from web users via cookies and make assumptions about their ages based on the sites they visit and data they submit to those three sites.
Age targeting is a valuable tool for marketing and search engine optimization. Its value may vary for each site according to site content. If nothing else, it does provide some interesting insights about website visitors.