With the release of the new ga.js for Google Analytics, Google has updated how it defines a session by adding a new condition for ending a session. Even though this update is small and will only affect some visits, it will most likely alter data reported for most websites.
Previously, Google Analytics would end a session if one of following occurred:
- More than 30 minutes have elapsed between page views for a single visitor.
- The visitor has closed their browser window.
- At the end of a day – this would be midnight of the timezone configured for the profile.
In the new model, a session ends when:
- More than 30 minutes have elapsed between page views for a single visitor.
- At the end of a day - this would be midnight of the timezone configured for the profile.
- When the source campaign for the visitor changes. This information relates to campaign tracking which is set up manually. The traffic source information includes: utm_source, utm_medium, utm_term, utm_content, utm_id, utm_campaign and gclid (which is AdWords tracking).
Let’s put that simply:
Basically, a session will no longer end when a visitor closes their browser. If a visitor arrives at your site from a Paid Search ad, that will be a session. If the same user comes back to your site within 30 minutes by a different source, e.g. via a link on Facebook with a utm_source tag, a new session will be created. Note that if the visitor returns via referral, the same organic keyword or direct traffic, a new session will not be created.
If you use Google Analytics for reporting, you may notice a slight increase in the number of visits as a result of the browser closing change. The change took place on Wednesday 17 August, so you should already see this update affecting the data in your account. It will only apply to visits going forward from that date, so no historical data will change.
The increase in the number of visits shouldn’t be large, according to Google’s testing, possibly less than 1%. In saying that, if you are seeing huge changes, it could be one of the following reasons:
- Your Google Analytics is set up incorrectly e.g. you have included utm_source on your internal links. Previously, this may not have been a problem, but now if a user clicks on a new link on your site, their current session will end and another will be created! This could severly effect your total visits/sessions. You need to make sure that you are not using any utm_parameters on internal site links.
- If your Google Analytics implementations use multiple trackers (this is not supported by Google, but is a common practice) there maybe be unexpected traffic changes. The traffic source report may reflect a different source between when the first and second trackers execute so Google Analytics may report fewer visits from new visitors and inflated figures for returning visitors. This will vary, depending on different implementations.
So what does this update mean for you?
Well, you now have more accurate information about visitor behaviour on the site with the definitions of a session more similar to that of a visit. Using a last-click attribution model, it provides better attribution for campaigns. It is also a step towards multi-channel reporting for conversions that Google is currently testing.
While we’re on the topic of Google Analytics updates, you may have noticed an increase in your organic traffic. If you didn’t, take this as an FYI. Traffic from images.google.com (or any google.countrysite) is now being registered as organic traffic not referral traffic. This update allows you to report on what search terms visitors came to your site on when referred to by Google Image Search.
If you haven’t already, now would be a good time to get your campaign tracking in order. Google Analytics is really making it easier to get richer referral information from multiple sources and more accurate measurement for your campaigns.
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