Many webmasters prefer WordPress to other CMSs, as it allows for creating multifunctional sites with eye-catching designs like those you can see following the link. However, aesthetic appeal and user-friendliness are not enough when it comes to running a web resource. It’s also important to keep track of the activity on your platform so that you could ensure its constant advance to the top ranking. Roughly speaking, you should have a general idea about your audience, the reasons for their staying on your site, the most popular posts and many other details that will help you drive more traffic to your resource eventually.
At the moment, WordPress doesn’t have a built-in statistical feature, but you can still make use of this functionality due to availability of various statistical tools. In our post, we have listed the best products of this kind in terms of users’ feedback, a number of downloads, and ease of use. Choose a WordPress stats plugin from our set, and you will have an opportunity to make a thorough analysis of everything that happens on your site. It will let you satisfy interests of your audience and, therefore, increase their interaction with your resource.
Google Analytics by Yoast
One of the best free WordPress plugins with the largest number of downloads is Google Analytics by Yoast. By means of its asynchronous tracking code, you will be able to trace different site metrics, particularly demographics, interest data, outbound links, downloads, search results and 404 pages. This powerful tool is easy to install and use. Even if some glitches arise in the process of operation, its debug mode will eliminate them in no time.
WassUp Real Time Analytics
If you want to see real-time statistics of your blog, WassUp is a great option to make use of. With the help of its four admin submenus and two widgets, you will learn a lot of things about each visitor of your site in a chronological order. They include his / her IP, hostname, referrer, search engine, operating system, browser, language, pages viewed and many other details. Using this plugin, you will be able to filter records by the following criteria: a time period, entry type, keyword, and per page. WassUp can also assist you in detecting both referrer and comment spammers due to its anti-spam functionality.
StatPress
Here is another WordPress statistics plugin that will let you take a view of all the actions people perform on your platform. Ease of use is what webmasters appreciate about StatPress. Just activate the tool, and it will start collecting the data about visitors at once. With its aid, you will find out how many visits have been made on a certain day and see their total number. The plugin also provides information on the most used browsers and operating systems as well as popular posts and categories. To empty some space for new statistics, StatPress can delete old posts in an automatic mode.
WP Slimstat
The next plugin that will let you carry out analytical research of your site visitors’ activity is WP Slimstat. Using this tool, you will get access to the data over any time stretch, whether it’s today or the last three months. To have a clear vision of your blog statistics, you can sort out the information by different points such as IP addresses, browsers, content types and credentials of registered users. One of the main things to know about your audience is their geolocation, and this is what WP Slimstat will allow you to determine accurately.
FeedStats
WordPress site stats can also be collected by means of this simple plugin, FeedStats. It is highly customizable so that you could adapt its statistical parameters to your priorities. For example, you can choose the number of days to save the data of your site’s activity. Don’t hesitate to check this plugin out to become well-informed of your visitors’ preferences.
Google Analyticator
Awareness of your website visitors’ interests will help you create content that would appeal to them, which is when Google Analyticator will come in handy. Due to its admin dashboard widget, you will be able to see the top pages, search queries, and referrers. The plugin also supports tracking of outbound links, download links, events, and even the speed of your platform. Looking through the statistics, you will have an opportunity to hide administrator’s visits in order to avoid any confusion. Google Analyticator allows users to assume complete control over its features. Thus, you are free to disable all the unnecessary options that only distract your attention.
Blog Stats by W3Counter
Using Blog Stats by W3Counter, you can embed W3Counter statistics into the dashboard of your WordPress-based site. In such a way, everything you are eager to know about people browsing through your platform will be brought to your attention. When a new comment is left, its author’s name is saved in a cookie. In the future, it will be added to the comment form automatically. You will also see the browsing history of this person, which will inform you of his / her interests.
GeneralStats
GeneralStats is a great tool that will help you count the data of various kinds on your blog, from the number of users, pages, posts, comments, links, and tags to the amount of words in posts, comments and pages. This WordPress stats plugin comes with sidebar and dashboard widgets that provide its easy integration. Its settings page is fully configurable with the graphic user interface of your WP panel. Give a try to GeneralStats, and you will benefit from its extensive functionality.
Feed Statistics Plugin for WordPress
To track the statistics of your RSS feeds, this free tool will do the job. Apply it to your WP site, and you will find out the number of your subscribers and see which feeds they used, posts they read and links they clicked. Installation of Feed Statistics Plugin is completed in three steps that include unzipping the file, uploading it to the wp-content/plugins/ directory and activating it from the admin panel of your site. Don’t miss an opportunity to trace your feed stats with this easy-to-use plugin.
Page Layout Builder for WordPress
Collecting statistics is definitely an important aspect of running a site, but it’s also vital to take care of its appearance. For such a purpose, you are recommended to use MiniMax – Page Layout Builder, a plugin that will help you design an appealing platform in a simple and hassle-free manner. Thanks to this frontend and backend page builder, you will be able to create content blocks with an impeccable look on screens of both desktops and handheld devices. To work with this tool, no programming skills are required, which means it’s a great option for everyone, from beginners to advanced web developers.
As you see, there many tools that can let you become a true host of your blog. Choose a WordPress stats plugin that offers the most extensive functionality to analyze the actions performed by your readers. Feel free to share your impression about using it in the comments below, please.