Why Small Businesses Need Google Analytics (Even With Built-In Website Analytics)
Most website platforms like Squarespace, Wix, and Shopify come with built-in analytics. So why would you bother setting up Google Analytics too?
Here's what happens all the time: business owners rely solely on their website platform's analytics, then lose years of valuable data when they switch platforms or redesign their site. That data disappears forever, and they have no way to tell if their new site is actually performing better.
The simple truth: Google Analytics is like investing in the stock market—time in it matters most. The longer you have it collecting data, the more valuable that information becomes. Starting today means you'll have data to look back on next year, in three years, in five years.
I automatically add Google Analytics to every website I build because I've seen too many business owners learn this lesson the hard way.
What Happens When You Rely Only on Built-In Analytics
You Lose Everything When You Switch Platforms
Here's the scenario I see constantly:
You use Wix for three years and finally understand your traffic patterns. Then you switch to Squarespace for better features or design options. Suddenly, all your historical data is gone—you can't access it anymore because it lived inside Wix's system.
Now you can't answer crucial questions:
Is my new website getting more visitors than my old one?
Did the redesign improve my contact form submissions?
Which pages on my old site drove the most business?
Are my marketing efforts working better or worse?
According to research on website analytics, 76% of small businesses make marketing decisions based on website data—but that data becomes useless if you can't compare it across platform changes.
Platform Analytics Show Surface-Level Information
Think of platform analytics like your car's basic dashboard—it shows you're moving, but not much else.
What Squarespace/Wix/Shopify analytics typically show:
Total visitor count
Basic page views
General traffic sources (like "Google" or "social media")
Top pages visited
What Google Analytics shows:
Everything above, plus...
Exactly how visitors use your website
Which marketing campaigns bring paying customers
Visitor demographics and interests
Mobile vs. desktop behavior differences
Real-time visitor activity
Custom reports for your specific business goals
Detailed conversion tracking
E-commerce performance metrics
No Way to Compare Performance Across Platforms
When you switch website builders, you lose the ability to measure improvement. Google Analytics for small business stays with you across all platforms, giving you consistent data no matter what website builder you use.
Why Historical Data Matters for Your Business
Measuring Your Website's Success
When you launch a new website, the most important question is: "Is this actually better than my old site?"
Without Google Analytics tracking both the old and new site, you're guessing. With it, you know exactly:
Visitor count changes (up or down)
Conversion rate improvements
Which design changes helped or hurt
Whether your investment paid off
Scenario: A hair salon switches from Wix to Squarespace. Because Google Analytics was installed on both sites, they can see that the new site increased contact form submissions by 35% and cut their bounce rate in half. Without Google Analytics, they'd just have a vague feeling it was "doing better."
Understanding Your Business Patterns Over Time
Google Analytics helps you spot patterns that build over months and years:
Seasonal trends (every summer is slow, plan accordingly)
Best days for engagement (Thursdays drive more inquiries)
Content that keeps performing (that blog post from two years ago still brings customers)
Marketing that actually works (Instagram brings traffic, but Google brings buyers)
According to Google's own research, businesses using historical analytics data make 3x more informed marketing decisions than those relying on gut feelings alone.
Platform analytics might show you this week's numbers, but they don't help you spot bigger patterns that drive smart business decisions.
Google Analytics Follows You (If You Keep Using It)
Data Portability Is Your Insurance Policy
Here's the key: Google Analytics stays with you as long as you keep using it on your new site.
When you switch platforms:
Move from Wix to Squarespace? Add your Google Analytics code to the new site and all your historical data continues seamlessly
Redesign your entire site? Install the same Google Analytics tracking and you can compare before and after
Switch to WordPress or a custom site? Your years of data come with you
Think of it like your phone number—you can switch carriers and keep the same number, but you have to actively port it over. Same with Google Analytics: the data is yours, but you need to connect it to each new website.
This is exactly why I automatically add Google Analytics to every website I build—so my clients don't lose their data when they inevitably update or change their site down the road.
How I Set Up Google Analytics (Easier Than You Think)
When I build websites, I include Google Analytics setup as standard because I know how valuable it becomes over time. The process takes about 10 minutes:
Step 1: Create a free Google Analytics account (5 minutes)
Step 2: Connect it to your website (5 minutes)
Squarespace has a built-in field for your tracking code
Wix has simple integration under Analytics & Reports
Shopify lets you add it in Online Store settings
Most platforms make this straightforward
Step 3: Let it start collecting data
That's it. Ten minutes of setup protects your business data forever.
According to Moz's analytics research, businesses that implement analytics tracking from day one have 5x more data to inform their marketing strategies than those who add it later.
What You Learn That Built-In Analytics Miss
Real Traffic Source Details
Your platform analytics might say "social media" or "Google." Google Analytics tells you:
That Instagram post from Tuesday brought 47 visitors who each spent an average of 3 minutes on your services page
Your Google Business Profile listing drives twice as many phone calls as your website
That Facebook ad brought visitors, but 90% left immediately (stop wasting money there)
Which Content Actually Converts
According to HubSpot's content analytics study, understanding content performance drives 67% of successful marketing strategies.
Google Analytics shows you:
Which blog posts bring in the most customers
What service pages people read before contacting you
Where people get confused and leave your site
What information visitors are looking for but not finding
Optimal Timing for Marketing
See when your website is busiest:
Monday mornings at 9 AM? Schedule your emails then
Thursday afternoons? That's when to post on social media
Weekends are dead? Save your energy for weekdays
The Real Cost of Not Having Google Analytics
You're Making Decisions Blind
Without historical data:
You can't prove if marketing campaigns work
You don't know if website changes helped
You're guessing about what content to create
You might be wasting money on ineffective channels
Search Engine Journal reports that 82% of small businesses that track analytics data outperform competitors who don't.
You'll Regret It Later
Every business owner I talk to who doesn't have Google Analytics wishes they'd started years ago. Don't be that person three years from now wishing you had data to compare.
Common Questions About Google Analytics for Small Business
"Isn't This Too Complicated?"
Yes, Google Analytics can be confusing at first. But it's getting better and easier to use all the time. And here's the good news: you have options for making sense of the data.
You can:
Learn the basics yourself (the interface improves regularly)
Create custom reports that show only what you care about
Export your data and upload it to ChatGPT or Claude AI to interpret it for you
Work with someone who knows how to read the data
The basic reports answer straightforward questions:
"How many people visited my site?"
"Where did they come from?"
"What pages did they look at?"
"Did they contact me?"
Start there. The advanced features come later if you want them.
"My Platform Analytics Work Fine"
They work fine until you switch platforms or redesign your site. Then you lose everything. Google Analytics is your backup that never goes away.
According to Content Marketing Institute, 64% of businesses that switched website platforms wish they had implemented Google Analytics earlier to maintain historical comparisons.
"Is Google Analytics Really Free?"
Yes, completely free for small businesses. Google Analytics 4 (the current version) is free for websites with standard traffic levels. You'd need millions of hits before hitting any limits.
"Can I Add This to My Existing Site?"
Absolutely. Do it today. The sooner you start, the more data you'll have to work with. Waiting doesn't help—you're just losing time and valuable information.
What You Need to Track for Your Service Business
Essential Conversion Goals
Set up tracking for actions that matter to your business:
Contact form submissions - Your main lead generator
Phone call clicks - Track when people tap your number on mobile
Email clicks - See when visitors click to email you
Appointment bookings - If you use online scheduling
Lead magnet downloads - Track interest in your free resources
According to Backlinko's conversion tracking research, businesses that track specific conversions see 3x better ROI from their marketing efforts.
Key Metrics to Monitor Monthly
Traffic trends:
Total visitors (trending up or down?)
New vs. returning visitors
Mobile vs. desktop split
Traffic sources:
Organic search (Google, Bing)
Direct visits (typed your URL)
Referral (other websites linking to you)
Social media platforms
Email campaigns
Engagement metrics:
Average time on site
Pages per session
Bounce rate (percentage who leave immediately)
Top landing pages
Conversions:
Form submissions
Phone calls
Email inquiries
Goal completion rate
Using Your Data to Make Better Decisions
Simple Monthly Review Process
Spend 30 minutes each month asking:
Is traffic growing? If yes, what's driving it? If no, what changed?
Which marketing works? Compare traffic sources to see what brings visitors
What content resonates? Identify top-performing pages and create similar content
Are visitors converting? Track if website improvements increase inquiries
Data-Driven Improvements
Examples for service businesses:
Hair salon noticed most traffic came from "balayage" blog posts → created more color technique content → bookings increased 40%
Wellness practitioner saw high bounce rates on service pages → simplified descriptions → contact forms doubled
Wedding photographer found Instagram drove traffic but Google drove bookings → shifted ad budget → ROI improved 3x
According to Neil Patel's analytics case studies, businesses that regularly review and act on analytics data grow 2x faster than those who don't.
The Bottom Line on Analytics for Small Business
Google Analytics is one of those 10-minute tasks that pays dividends forever. It's your insurance policy against data loss and your key to understanding what actually works for your business.
Take Action Today
Set up Google Analytics on your website right now. Don't wait until you switch platforms or redesign. The best time to start collecting data was three years ago. The second best time is today.
The setup takes 10 minutes. The insights last forever.
Every month without Google Analytics is another month of lost insights about your customers, your marketing, and what actually drives your business forward.
Need help setting up Google Analytics or understanding your website data? I automatically include Google Analytics setup in all my website projects. Building a new website or redesigning? Let's make sure you're not flying blind with your marketing.
