How to Use Google Analytics to Fix Your Website and Convert More Clients

Most VA and online business owners work incredibly hard to get traffic to their website. But here's the uncomfortable truth — most of them have no idea what happens once people actually land there.

In this episode of The Jess Byrnes Show, Jess does a live walkthrough of Google Analytics and Google Search Console, showing you exactly how to find where your website is leaking clients, what's broken, and how to use real data to make smarter business decisions.

Here's what was covered.

You don't have a traffic problem — you have a journey problem

One of the biggest realisations for most business owners when they first look at their website data is that traffic isn't actually the issue. People are arriving. They're just not staying, clicking, or buying.

This happens when your website isn't clear enough, doesn't speak to the right person, or doesn't give visitors an obvious next step. They arrive, get confused, and leave. And if you're running ads to drive that traffic, you're paying for every single one of those exits.

The fix starts with understanding your customer journey — and Google Analytics gives you exactly that, for free.

What is Google Analytics path exploration and why does it matter?

Path exploration is one of the most powerful (and underused) features inside Google Analytics. It shows you the exact steps visitors take through your website — where they start, where they go next, where they drop off, and whether they ever make it to a conversion point.

Jess recommends reviewing this at least once a quarter as part of your regular business rhythm. Here's what to look for:

Leaks — pages where a large number of visitors drop off unexpectedly. If 119 out of 233 sessions are landing on your homepage and then disappearing, that's a leak worth investigating.

Friction points — pages that confuse visitors or don't give them a clear path forward. If your page has too much information or too many options, people don't figure it out — they just leave.

Broken journeys — dead ends where visitors land on a page that doesn't send them anywhere. A great example is a landing page with no clear call to action, or a page that was supposed to redirect but doesn't.

404 errors — every single 404 is a lost sale. Broken links and dead pages silently drain your conversions and waste both paid and organic traffic. Jess discovered thousands of 404 pages on a client's Shopify store after a theme change — visitors were navigating all the way through the purchase journey and hitting a dead end right before buying.

The Wrigley principle — make it easy to say yes

Jess shared a brilliant analogy from her time working at Wrigley. Research showed that moving chewing gum from arm's reach at the checkout to the far end of the counter caused a 70% drop in sales. Not because people didn't want gum — but because the decision was no longer effortless.

The same principle applies to your website and landing pages. The easier it is for someone to understand what you do, who you help, and what to do next, the more likely they are to take action. You're not trying to overwhelm them with information — you're trying to remove every possible reason to hesitate.

Simple, clear, and direct will outperform complex and comprehensive every single time. As Jess put it — her most basic, "ugly" landing page for 100 VA service ideas consistently converts at the highest rate on her entire website.

Google Search Console — are your pages even on Google?

This is the step most people skip entirely — and it could be silently killing your organic reach.

Google Search Console tells you whether your website pages are actually indexed and showing up in Google search results. If they're not indexed, they essentially don't exist as far as Google is concerned.

This is especially important when you:

• Launch a new website

• Switch platforms (e.g. from WordPress to GoHighLevel)

• Add new landing pages or blog posts

• Change your URL structure

Jess discovered during this live session that her own new website wasn't indexed at all after migrating platforms — meaning none of that traffic could find her through Google search.

The fix is simple. Go into Google Search Console, enter your URL, and hit Request Indexing. It typically takes a couple of days to process. Make it a habit to check this any time you create a new page.

Using data to make smarter business decisions

The point of all of this isn't to collect data for the sake of it — it's to use data to make better decisions.

Jess shared how she uses her analytics to decide where to spend her ad budget, who to retarget, and what offers to promote. If a particular page is converting well, that's where she focuses her retargeting. If a page has high traffic but low conversions, that's where she looks at messaging and clarity.

Some practical applications:

• If your masterclass page gets lots of visits but low sign-ups, test a direct ad driving people there with a clear value offer

• If your homepage is your highest traffic page, consider retargeting everyone who visited with a warm ad offering something free

• If a small, highly targeted audience (say 120 people) isn't converting at all, go back and look at your messaging — it's likely not speaking to the right person

Your website health checklist

Based on this episode, here are the key actions to take:

Google Analytics

• Set up Google Analytics on every page of your website

• Use path exploration to map your customer journey

• Review at least once a quarter — monthly is better

• Look for leaks, friction points, broken journeys, and 404 errors

• Use the data to inform your ad spend and retargeting strategy

Google Search Console

• Connect your website to Google Search Console

• Check that all key pages are indexed

• Submit new pages for indexing whenever you add them

• Add this to your checklist whenever you build a new landing page

Landing pages

• Keep them simple and clear — less is more

• Make the call to action obvious and easy to find

• Check that every page sends visitors somewhere logical next

• Test banners as an alternative to pop-ups

The bottom line

If you're investing time, energy, or money into getting people to your website, you owe it to yourself to understand what they do when they get there. Google Analytics and Google Search Console are both free, both powerful, and both wildly underused by small business owners and VAs.

Start with path exploration. Find your leaks. Fix your 404s. Make sure your pages are indexed. And use the data to make decisions — not guesses.

Want support building a profitable VA business with the right systems and strategies? Book a free 45-minute strategy call with Jess at [insert link] or find out more about Freedom Unlocked — the 12-week program that takes you from starting out to fully booked.

Jess Byrnes is a six-figure VA coach and host of The Jess Byrnes Show — a podcast for women ready to build a profitable, flexible Virtual Assistant business. New episodes available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud and YouTube.