Semalt Unveils 4 Steps To Set Up A Filter In Google Analytics To Track Subdomains

Setting up a custom filter in Google Analytics let us analyze the traffic of subdomains separately from our main site. These custom filters are useful for landing pages, websites with blogs, and commercial sites that are part of existing domains.

Here's a comprehensive and straightforward guide from Andrew Dyhan, a top expert from Semalt, on how you can set up a filter in the Google Analytics to track the subdomains.

Step#1: Set up your Google Analytics on the subdomain:

You should make sure that the Google Analytics account is set up on the subdomain and both domains use a single UA code. If both of your websites don't use the same UA property, you might not be, able to see your stats when you create the filters. You can also use the Google Tag Assistant and check the status of your domain and subdomain making sure that the code is installed accurately. Once you have set up the Universal Analytics code for both sites, you can move on to the second step.

Step#2: Create new views in the Google Analytics account:

Creating new views in your Google Analytics account is simple. Once you log into your account, you should click on the Admin section and click on the Create New View option. Don't forget to give this view a proper name. Once this step is completed, you should add the actual subdomain (such as blog.abc.com) and save the settings. This step ensures that you can access your unaltered and raw traffic data without any problem. Moreover, it's easy to turn off the filters, but you cannot delete them permanently and cannot change the filtered data again and again.

Step#3: Apply the custom filters:

You should click on the new views you have created for your subdomain and apply the custom filters as soon as possible. Under the filter type, you should select the custom filter option and click on the Include button. You can also choose the hostname of the drop-down menu; here you have to add the subdomain with periods and backslashes. For instance, if your subdomain is www.wholesale.abcsite.com – you can insert it as wholesale\.abcsite\.com.

Once you finish this process, don't forget to click on the Verify Filter option to make sure everything is working fine, but it is an unnecessary step. Once you click on the Save button, the filters will start collecting and showing the data within next twenty-four hours.

Step#4: Add the referral exclusion to Google Analytics:

You should add the referral exclusion to the Google Analytics property as it will prevent the subdomain visitors from showing up as the self-referrals. In addition, they will not be able to skew your Google Analytics report. To apply the referral exclusion, you should go to the Admin section in your Google Analytics account. Once you have selected a property, the next step is to click on the Tracking Info option. Finally, you should click on the Referral Exclusion list and add the subdomain URL before saving the settings. For further information about filters and subdomains, you should check Google's help section.