Do you use any method to track your traffic to see where your users are coming from?

 

I've considered Google Analytics, but I have way too much JavaScript on my board as it is.

 

I do, however, use the Google Search Console to see what keywords I'm getting impressions and clicks from.

I use the same tools as you do; Analytics and Search console. I also used to use SEMrush and Ahrefs when I was deep into SEO, but I used them for more keyword-adjacent tasks than traffic specific traffic origins. These days, I mostly stick to the free Google tools for my sites. They are more than adequate for what I need.

I utilize Google Analytics alongside Google Search Console for tracking performance.

 

 

In addition, I rely on Bing Webmaster Tools: https://www.bing.com/toolbox/webmaster

 

 

 

 

 

I also leverage Cloudflare’s Web Analytics: https://www.cloudflare.com/web-analytics/ to monitor my site’s traffic. It provides insights on visitor counts per hour, every 30 minutes, and over a 24-hour period, as well as data from the past 30 days.

I use the same tools as you do; Analytics and Search console.

I don't use Analytics, but I considered using it. Due to the amount of JavaScript I already use on my board and the fact that I've been trying to do all I can to improve the performance of the forum, I think it's safe to say that adding additional third-party resources wouldn't be good for the performance of my board.

I think it's safe to say that adding additional third-party resources wouldn't be good for the performance of my board.

Unless you use Analytics to see where users are spending their most time so that you can focus on developing that out more.

 

There are huge advantages to getting to know how users use your site, and Analytics (apart from Cloudflare, which I'm not too certain of) is one way to understand what users on your site want alongside Google Search Console.

 

Google Search Console can tell you what they came for, but Analytics tells you what they stayed for, and for how long, giving you a better idea of what to focus on.

I had someone make up a "tracking info page" for me, where it came in the forum of a plain text document that showed how the new visitor found my forum, the URL that had landed them to it as well as their IP address.

 

Right now, I'm using Google Search Console for the very first time.

Right now, I'm using Google Search Console for the very first time.

I've been using it since it was Webmaster Tools.

 

It's very insightful, but much better with a layer of Analytics as you can see time spent on a page, their next move, etc. and essentially make a flow map of where one might go next on a new piece of content.

I really need a good guide on Analytics, it's confusing asf to me.

I switched from Google Analytics to CloudFlare Web Analytics earlier this year. GA just doesn't do it for me anymore, it's become way too big and complex. It was a chore to find key information...

 

I like what CloudFlare offers, even though it may be a little basic.

In addition, I rely on Bing Webmaster Tools: https://www.bing.com/toolbox/webmaster

Can you describe your experience with Bing's Webmaster Tools? How does it compare to Google Analytics? Or is it more like Google's Search Console?

Unless you use Analytics to see where users are spending their most time so that you can focus on developing that out more.

 

There are huge advantages to getting to know how users use your site, and Analytics (apart from Cloudflare, which I'm not too certain of) is one way to understand what users on your site want alongside Google Search Console.

 

Google Search Console can tell you what they came for, but Analytics tells you what they stayed for, and for how long, giving you a better idea of what to focus on.

Being concerned about performance, however, how large is the JavaScript file you add to your site for Analytics, and does it ever cause lagging?

I switched from Google Analytics to CloudFlare Web Analytics earlier this year. GA just doesn't do it for me anymore, it's become way too big and complex. It was a chore to find key information...

 

I like what CloudFlare offers, even though it may be a little basic.

 

Can you describe your experience with Bing's Webmaster Tools? How does it compare to Google Analytics? Or is it more like Google's Search Console?

It’s similar to Google Search Console but offers more in-depth data. It shows where your backlinks come from, along with their anchor texts, and includes a keyword research section.

 

 

There’s also a “Top Insights” area that identifies pages on your site that may need improvement. Additionally, the “Site Scan” feature scans your site and alerts you to any technical SEO issues.

[mention=5]Cpvr[/mention]: How many pages of links for your site do you have indexed on Bing? Only two for me.

[mention=5]Cpvr[/mention]: How many pages of links for your site do you have indexed on Bing? Only two for me.

I have 5,800 pages indexed on Bing. I also submitted my sitemap and I’m using the indexnow feature.

I have 5,800 pages indexed on Bing.

I think my jaw just dropped.

 

I also submitted my sitemap and I’m using the indexnow feature.

I can't submit a sitemap for my forum I don't think since I use non-self-hosted software.

 

What's the "indexnow" feature?

 

I have about 10 pages worth of links on Google.

 

Suffice it to say, that my SEO must be very poor.

I think my jaw just dropped.

 

 

I can't submit a sitemap for my forum I don't think since I use non-self-hosted software.

 

What's the "indexnow" feature?

 

I have about 10 pages worth of links on Google.

 

Suffice it to say, that my SEO must be very poor.

indexnow is a feature thats pings the search engines and lets them know that there’s new content or that the website has been updated.

 

You can submit one, but you might have to build it.

https://www.seerinteractive.com/insights/how-to-create-and-submit-a-xml-sitemap

 

 

 

https://www.indexnow.org/

 

You can setup an api key for it here:

https://www.bing.com/indexnow/getstarted

IndexNow is an easy way for websites owners to instantly inform search engines about latest content changes on their website. In its simplest form, IndexNow is a simple ping so that search engines know that a URL and its content has been added, updated, or deleted, allowing search engines to quickly reflect this change in their search results.

 

Without IndexNow, it can take days to weeks for search engines to discover that the content has changed, as search engines don’t crawl every URL often. With IndexNow, search engines know immediately the "URLs that have changed, helping them prioritize crawl for these URLs and thereby limiting organic crawling to discover new content."

indexnow is a feature thats pings the search engines and lets them know that there’s new content or that the website has been updated.

That's pretty cool. Too bad you have to have server-side access to make use of it.

Being concerned about performance, however, how large is the JavaScript file you add to your site for Analytics, and does it ever cause lagging?

I'm not terribly concerned about how large the file is or how much it lags. I highly doubt Google will penalize you if their own software causes issues on your site. I've never had lagging issues, due to Analytics, that I can tell. All my scores are A+ (GMetrix) or 99-100 PageSpeed. I plug in my Analytics tracking code in XenForo and forget about it.

indexnow is a feature thats pings the search engines and lets them know that there’s new content or that the website has been updated.

So pretty much brought back the WordPress "ping" feature... Interesting. I'll have to check it out and see if there's an XF add on to notify of new content.

I'm not terribly concerned about how large the file is or how much it lags. I highly doubt Google will penalize you if their own software causes issues on your site. I've never had lagging issues, due to Analytics, that I can tell. All my scores are A+ (GMetrix) or 99-100 PageSpeed. I plug in my Analytics tracking code in XenForo and forget about it.

 

So pretty much brought back the WordPress "ping" feature... Interesting. I'll have to check it out and see if there's an XF add on to notify of new content.

It’s under the “

[HEADING=2]Search engine optimization (SEO)” tab in your Xenforo admin panel.[/HEADING]

There’s an option to enable support for indexnow.

I'm not terribly concerned about how large the file is or how much it lags. I highly doubt Google will penalize you if their own software causes issues on your site. I've never had lagging issues, due to Analytics, that I can tell. All my scores are A+ (GMetrix) or 99-100 PageSpeed. I plug in my Analytics tracking code in XenForo and forget about it.

My GTMetrix score is 81%, I guess I'm just afraid of that decreasing if I add more third-party JavaScript in.

I use https://matomo.org/. Install then add some js to the sites to track visitors and members. Ditched Analytics for it a few years ago.

I have been using Google Analytics ever since I built my first website. I was even using it when I was active on a certain article writing site. I find it very useful tool to track your traffic. The best thing is it is totally free.