Sample Analytics Report
Google Merchandise Shop Analysis
Analytics Report: Google Merchandise Shop (GMS)
By Elijah Bosslet
Introduction
This is the Google Merchandise Shop (GMS). It can be found at https://shop.merch.google, and is the official online store where you can buy Google-branded merchandise (apparel, accessories, lifestyle items, stationery, etc.). The site categorizes products by clothing (men's, women's, kids), accessories, drinkware, bags, and Google/brand collections (Android, YouTube, Chrome Dino, etc.)
The website also contains some information on clothing sustainability, returns and exchanges, shipping, FAQs, and a contact page. Overall, its primary purpose is to sell Google-branded merchandise to consumers.
This report will focus on the website's performance over the last calendar year (January 1, 2024 - December 31, 2024).
Data/Analysis
Traffic Overview
Total Users
360,000
New Users
349,000
Engagement Overview
Average Engagement Time per User
00:01:29
Engaged Sessions per User
0.88
An engaged session means that a user met one of three criteria: stayed on a page longer than 10 seconds, performed a key event, or visited 2 or more pages.
User Acquisition Sources
One of the most important things to recognize is where exactly users are coming to your site from. There are several different ways that a user may find your site:
- Direct: users enter the site via typing in the direct website URL, or via a saved link
- Organic search: users enter the site via organic, unpaid search results
- Referral: users enter the site via non-ad links on other sites
- Cross-network: users enter the site via ads posted on a variety of networks
- Paid search: users enter the site via ads on search engine sites
- Email: users enter the site via links in an email
Looking at the GMS data, direct was the most common way that users found the site, followed by organic search and then referral. Direct traffic also brought in the most return users.
Traffic Source Comparison
Comparing GMS traffic numbers to a balanced portfolio of user traffic, GMS traffic is not very close to the ideal:
| Source | Balanced Portfolio | GMS Portfolio |
|---|---|---|
| Organic | 40-50% | 18.19% |
| Direct | 20% | 70.3% |
| Referral | 20-30% | 4.82% |
| Campaigns | 10% | 5.57% |
As shown in the table, direct traffic is well above the balanced number (20% versus 70.3%), while every other category is significantly lower. Direct traffic is likely a result of links being shared at conferences, events, etcetera. Thus, improving non-direct search traffic is the most significant improvement that GMS should aim to make in order to improve their search portfolio.
User Acquisition Engagement Data
Looking beyond sheer quantity of users, engagement data is critical for understanding the quality of each search group. As an e-commerce site, it is important that GMS users shop around and generate key events.
Email is drawing really long (00:04:30) and frequent (1.96 per user) engaged sessions, but is only generating 4.28% of key events. This means that these users are looking around the site, but are not viewing items, adding them to their cart, or purchasing them. While this percentage is low for the quality of email sessions, it is important to note that email is still overperforming proportional to its total user acquisition percentage (2.83% versus 4.28%).
All other categories are generating about as much commerce as expected proportional to total user acquisition.
Conversion Funnel
Overall, only a small percentage of users who engage with GMS follow through with their purchase. In total, 2.1% of users (roughly 2 in 100) who view GMS purchase an item. In terms of my own anecdotal experience purchasing on the site, the only roadblock I hit was between the "add to cart" and "begin checkout" stages. When prompted to checkout, it required that I log in to my google account. This may only take a couple of seconds, but it gives the user time to think about their purchase and click out of the screen. I would suggest taking the user straight to checkout, and prompting a log in as an option rather than a requirement.
Pageview Data
Based on the data, the most popular items are in the men's apparel, new, and clearance sections. Targeting campaigns toward men's apparel may be beneficial, as this demographic already generates the most significant interest in the product.
Another approach would be to target women's clothing if GMS is interested in diversifying their customer demographic, as women's apparel generates significantly less page views.
Top Revenue Generators
- Super G Camp Fleece Black Pullover: $33,497 generated
- Chrome Dino Holiday Lodge Sweater: $36,024 generated
Both of these items are cold-weather/holiday items, which may suggest success in holiday campaigns.
Conclusion
The Google Merch Shop generates a healthy amount of traffic to their site. Although there is a large imbalance in traffic sources — direct makes up ~70% of all traffic — this is likely due to links being shared at conferences and other events. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it means that there is room for improvement in non-direct sources.
Email users were by far the most engaged, and bought the most items proportional to their total user traffic. Capitalizing on this with a more aggressive email campaign could increase traffic and sales.
The most successful items were men's apparel, especially winter/holiday items. GMS could take this a couple of directions, either leaning into men's apparel or focusing campaigns more heavily on collectibles/women's apparel in order to boost revenue in that area.
Works Cited
Google. "[GA4] Key event." Google Analytics Help, support.google.com, https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/9355848?sjid=1877686910832309848-NC. Accessed 10 Oct. 2025.
Kaushik, Avinash. "Beginner's Guide To Web Data Analysis: Ten Steps To Love & Success." Occam's Razor: Digital Marketing and Analytics Blog, 15 Nov. 2010, www.kaushik.net/avinash/beginners-guide-web-data-analysis-ten-steps-tips-best-practices/. Accessed 10 Oct. 2025.