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The other week, Brian Clifton wrote a very neat article on his well-known blog about tracking social networks by using filters. The data I got from the implementations he recommended in that article made me want to obtain even more “actionable data”.

So I went a little deeper into it and, after some tricks and implementations, I decided to share the findings with you. So here goes my second article for the series: 10 things you (probably) didn’t know about your visitors. If you missed the first one about visitors that lost their way, check it now.

This post tries to answer the following questions:

• What’s wrong with the data I already have?
• How to tweak it?
• How to use the new reports?
• What actions to take?… at least a couple of examples :)

One of the favorite’s expressions between us, analytics ninja wannabees, is “Actionable Data”. Yes, we like this phrase a lot and we use it every time we have the occasion. It gives meaning to our work and it’s a great hook to get CEOs, CTOs and marketing departments to listen to what we might have to say.

What is “Actionable Data” and how do you track it?

Unfortunately, the answer is not as easy as I would like it to be. With the help of Avinash Kaushik I got access the other week to the new Segmentation feature in Google Analytics (GA). I played with it a full weekend, doing advanced segments, but when I got to show it to my colleagues on Monday, all I was able to share were very neat tips and tricks. And I got the following remark from: “Wow, really cool… but how does it help us”?

So, this is what Actionable Data is for me: data that helps me improve my website. Before looking at data, I first ask myself: What do I need help with? Is the conversion number to small? Am I spending too much money on AdWords? Should I invite more bloggers to try our products and if yes, which ones?

I am writing this article for at least 75% of you, who, according to our tracking tools, are using Firefox to read this blog. The chances are that your Firefox browser is not “naked”, as dressing it up is what makes it such a great and beloved browser around the world.

The best part of it, though, is you can customize it so that it really helps you in your web marketing work. You can add features that help you increase your online social capital or features that will make browsing, web discovering and source code debugging a breeze.

Being part of a department that works with Search Engine Optimization and Marketing, Web Analytics and Usability Consulting, I consider Firefox not just a simple browser, but a customized tool that helps us get things done faster and more accurately. We really rely on it, so here goes a big Thank you to the Firefox developers, wherever you are.

Download free e-book: "Analytics miniBible for Software Vendors"

Google Analytics is a great tool, but when you use it frequently, it shows some glitches. Having many profiles, trying to access certain type of data can be sometimes pretty difficult.

Here are 4 scripts that can enhance your Google Analytics Experience. They work with GreaseMonkey, which is a really cool plugin for Firefox, which allows you to customize the way a webpage displays using small bits of JavaScript.

1. Show 100 by Lunametrics. Helps you automatically show all your profiles from the website profile list in Google Analytics.
2. Google Analytics Report Enhancer by RoiRevolution. Brings up tens of new reports in Google Analytics. It also calculates for you “True Time on Site”, which is the average time spent on site, excluding all bounces.
3. Google Analytics Downloader by Juice Analytics. Adds a highly valuable button to your keywords and referrers reports, stating who sent you unusual traffic. Really great info can be brought out of it.
4. Cleaner Profile Switching by Erik Vold. With this simple script, when you select a new profile to view, you will see the same report you were just on, but it will be for the new profile which you selected. Also, if you wish to compare reports from two profiles, there is an option to view the new profile in a separate tab. Update: Erik Vold has created a Firefox plugin out of the  Cleaner Profile Switching GreaseMonkey Script, for easier management of the tool.