Not too long ago Google furnished us with a new reporting tool: Multi-Channel Funnels.

The announcement on August 24 was very significant to those of us that cherish every single piece of data available on our traffic, mostly because we know what to do with it. We are able to derive Action Items and tactics based on data, and the more we have, the better we are at doing our job.

So what are multi-channel funnels? Simply put, Google is providing us with (up to) the last four steps leading to a conversion, as we defined it, on our site. Very interesting.

For example, people may convert on the site after searching for the "Brand" on Google. But, they may have seen the brand on a blog or while searching for other products and services. The Multi-Channel Funnels reports shows these previous referrals, searches and exposure and how they paved the way to a conversion.

No longer are we limited to the last item clicked or viewed, rather, we are given the "assisted conversion path". In our case, as SEOs, the Keyword path is sometimes very interesting because it can show us exactly what searches were leading to the interaction that made the conversion. Sounds confusing, but it isn't.

Now to the fun part - my very first action with the introduction of multi-channel funnels was to define new goals for my sites. The new goal I set to each site was simply a view of the home-page, and other significant pages. I was about to have multi-channel funnel data for all my traffic, not just "conversions"...

Hooray! a day later, when data started streaming in, I had a wealth of information previously unavailable. Each one of these newly answered questions leads to do-able action items.

• What keywords and phrases ultimately bring people to make a conversion on my sites?
  • => refine targeted keywords
• Are people repeating the same search over and over again until they find a result that meets their expectancy?
  • => focus on ranking higher for these specific terms, note snippet differences
• Are people making progressive searches using a number of keywords and phrases that eventually lead them to a conversion?
  • => create content that will catch them earlier, understand the need for research and learning by visitors
• Is the keyword path different for visitors that have been exposed to Branding?
  • => modify brand awareness or emphasis in site content

• Are people arriving through a referrer and then running a search to validate or look for a "second opinion"?
  • => work on credibility, testimonials, etc. Where does the site rank when searching for "Discussions"?

• Are my affiliates doing a better job than I am?
  • => Examine affiliate activities

• Is my link building strategy working?
  • => or not... ;)

• What is the impact of Social Networks in creating conversions indirectly?
  • => enhance Social Network presence and channeling to main site

All this and more!

I encourage you to think outside the box a little and define goals that you would normally won't - just to see what Multi-Channel Funnels can enlighten you with.

Kindly share you experiences so we may all benefit.