Module 9: Tracking Performance & Making Data-Driven Decisions — Know What’s Working and What’s Not

You’ve put time and effort into optimising your Google Business Profile — but how do you know it’s paying off? That’s where data comes in.

This module is all about understanding the numbers behind your GBP. We’ll explore how to track performance using built-in insights, how to connect it with your website analytics, and — most importantly — how to use what you learn to make better decisions for your veterinary clinic.

📊 Why Tracking Matters

Marketing without tracking is like treating a patient without a diagnosis. You’re guessing.

When you monitor performance, you:

• See what’s working and what’s not
• Learn how pet owners are finding and interacting with your clinic
• Make smart decisions about what to post, change, or double down on

Data helps you move from “I think” to “I know.”

Whether you want more phone calls, more bookings, or more visibility — your GBP and website data can show you how to get there.

📈 Understanding Google Business Profile Insights

Google gives you access to a rich set of performance metrics right from your GBP dashboard. Here’s what you’ll see — and what it all means.

🔍 How customers find your business

• Direct Searches – People who searched your business name or address.
• Discovery Searches – People who searched for a category, product, or service (like “vet near me”).
• Branded Searches – People who searched for a related brand or chain (e.g., “Greencross vet”).

✅ Why it matters: High discovery searches = good local SEO performance.

👀 Where customers view your business

• Search Views – How many times your profile appeared in Google Search results.
• Maps Views – How many times it appeared on Google Maps.

✅ Why it matters: This shows where your clients are looking and helps guide where to focus updates.

🚀 Customer actions

• Website Clicks – How many times people clicked through to your site.
• Call Clicks – How many clicked to call your clinic.
• Direction Requests – How many asked for directions to your clinic.

✅ Why it matters: These are the “conversion” signals. Watch for trends or sudden changes.

📸 Photo insights

• Number of photos posted by your clinic vs. by customers
• Photo views compared to competitors

✅ Why it matters: Active photo profiles often get more engagement. Great visuals make a difference.

Bonus: Check your most popular days/times for interactions. This can guide staffing or posting schedules.

🌐 Using Google Analytics for Website Behavior

If your website is connected to Google Analytics, you can go even deeper.

Key things to track:

• Traffic from GBP – Use UTM tracking or look under “Referral” sources to see how many visitors come from your GBP.
• Bounce Rate – Are visitors staying or leaving quickly? This tells you if the landing page is relevant.
• Conversions – Bookings, contact form submissions, or downloads.

✅ Why it matters: This helps you understand the full journey from search to site to appointment.

💡 Tip: Use free tools like Google Tag Manager to track specific actions on your site (like clicking a “Book Now” button).

🔄 Putting the Data to Work

Now that you have data — how do you use it?

Set Benchmarks

• Note your average views, clicks, and actions for a typical month
• Use that as a baseline to measure improvement

Watch for Trends

• Did a post or photo cause a spike in traffic?
• Are calls dropping? Could your business hours or photos be outdated?
• Did a recent service addition get more interest?

Use What You Learn

• Double down on high-performing content (e.g., repeat popular post styles)
• Fix low-engagement areas (e.g., update a weak landing page)
• Create FAQs based on search data and messages

Make Reporting a Habit

• Set up a monthly or quarterly report
• Assign someone (you, your manager, or your marketing person) to check GBP and web data
• Use a spreadsheet or simple dashboard tool to track key stats over time

📌 Consistent tracking = better long-term performance and less guesswork.

📓 Mini Homework

1. Log into your GBP dashboard and review the last 3 months of insights
2. Identify your top source of GBP traffic (search, maps, or branded)
3. Check your website analytics for traffic and behavior from GBP
4. List two actions you’ll take based on what you find — post more photos? Improve a landing page? Add an FAQ?

🐾 Wrap-Up

Tracking your Google Business Profile performance isn’t about numbers — it’s about insight.

You’ll learn:

• What’s drawing pet owners to your clinic
• What’s encouraging (or discouraging) them to act
• How to make small changes that deliver better results

“Don’t fly blind — let the data show you where to go.”

In the next and final module, we’ll show you how to bring everything together by making your GBP the hub of your entire online presence.