Semalt: Farewell, Bots And Spiders!

Google Analytics report concerning web traffic is an advantage to a website owner. However, it can sometimes be a never-ending battle between the good and the bad. Some people may be unaware of the fact that some of the traffic data contained in the Google Analytics report come from robots. Online bots and spiders are behind the skewed data reports in GA. They have the potential to influence how data depicts itself, which can be detrimental to the health of the marketing campaign and subsequent decisions.

Ross Barber, the Semalt Customer Success Manager, thinks that site owners should not worry much because there is a way to detect and get rid of the traffic generated by spiders and bots. It means that the information provided by Google Analytics will be much more reliable after implementation of these tasks.

There is no certain way to prevent a spam bot from reaching a website. Even so, there is a way that users can exclude the spam and search bot traffic from the reports. A large percentage of these bots are susceptible to these methods. Following successful implementation, one can increase the value and reliability of the alternate number of visits recorded.

Using information from a bot free report makes it more trustworthy. Also, it allows the owner to validate visitor platforms. Peaks and troughs become apparent and are clearer within the graphs created.

Google Analytics uses JavaScript. It was difficult for search and spam bots to crawl JavaScript. As the technology continues to evolve, so are the bot developers. Now, spam bots can spot vulnerabilities in JavaScript as well as crawl it for information. There are several bots which Google Analytics excludes from its analysis. However, there is also a good number of them that enjoy spamming websites and breaking servers, meaning that they will still show up in the analytics data.

How to Exclude the Search Engine Bots in Google Analytics?

It is now possible to filter out the traffic data to a website, to see which of them is from natural human activity and that which comes from spam and search bots. The power to do this lies within the function to exclude all hits from known bots and spiders. It is a checkbox within the View admin section in GA.

Steps to Follow to Exclude All Known Bots and Spiders

• Create a "test" view within the Google Analytics Property

It allows a user to make the changes he/she wants while maintaining the integrity of their original data in the master view. It also acts as a source of comparison so that the owner can identify the changes taking place. With satisfactory results, now exclude the bots from the main view.

• Eliminate Bots and Spiders

Navigate to the Admin section of the Google Analytics tool, select view settings and check the option to exclude all hits from bots and spiders. After completing this, the traffic will now be free of all search and spam bot traffic, making it easier and clearer to report on human traffic.

• Create Annotations

Create annotations in the GA graphs to take note of any traffic drops after the traffic bot exclusion.

Conclusion

One may notice traffic drops that depend on the amount of traffic generated by the bots. The test view and the master view will help pinpoint where the traffic decreases making reporting more reliable.