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You may have heard it said that there are “no shortcuts to the top,” but Google is making a good effort to prove that adage incorrect. Their aptly named “Shortcuts” feature was designed with one goal in mind: to help you see your data the way you want in record time.

Shortcuts allow you to easily jump to information you want to see (with any filters, segments, and other customizations already in place) without having to tweak settings to get it right. You get peace of mind, knowing you’re comparing apples to apples, without worrying that you’ve missed a step when reapplying your filters. After all, if you’ve done it right once, why repeat the process?

How to

Let’s say that once a month, we want to check on the number of returning visitors coming to our site from an Apple iPad. We’re establishing our shortcut based on these criteria:

Advanced segment: returning visitors Device: Apple iPad First, you have to access this information, the same way you would any other time. Log in to Google Analytics Click on Advanced Segments, and check the box for Returning Visitors Click Mobile on the left sidebar Select Devices from the drop-down menu to access the Device report

You should see the Apple iPad listed in the results. Now that you’ve located your information, it’s time to create the shortcut. To retrieve this information in the future with these exact settings (returning visitors, device information)…

5. Select “Shortcut (BETA)” from the same bar on which you found ‘Advanced Segments’
6. Type a descriptive name for your new shortcut, one that will remind you of its properties when you return to it at a later point in time
7. Click OK.

Now, you’ll have to locate your new shortcut so that you can return to it in the future. Here’s how: Go to the Home tab (located on the orange bar along the top of the page, next to Standard Reporting and Custom Reporting) Select Shortcuts (BETA) from the left sidebar. Choose your shortcut name from the drop down menu, in this case “Returning Visitors - iPad”. Keep in mind that this shortcut has been designed to pull a ‘returning visitors’ device report specifically.

If you’d like to look at other variables, you’ll have to adjust the steps accordingly for your purposes, choosing the appropriate advanced segment and whichever report you’re interested in viewing (Visitors, Content, Commerce, etc). You can delete any shortcuts that you no longer want by going to Shortcuts > Overview, clicking the Actions button next to the shortcut in question, and then choosing Delete.

The takeaways

Why waste time on the process when you could be investigating the data instead? Think of these actions as the difference between an automatic car vs. a manual, or a laptop vs. pad of paper. Sure, your task can be completed either way, but sometimes, it’s nice to go with the easiest option, allowing data collection to become a rote task so you can preserve your brain power for the actual analysis.

Put in the effort up front by setting up shortcuts, and you’ll be able to reap the benefits for a long time in the future!

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