Analytics for a small business, set up the way big companies measure

Ask the marketing director of a large company how many enquiries the website brought last month, and she will answer in a few seconds. Ask the owner of a small business the same question, and the honest answer is often "I think it was a good month". The difference comes from measurement that someone set up, correctly, before the question was asked.

Large companies pay people to do this. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the median annual wage for market research analysts at $78,760 in May 2025. Large teams can also buy traffic intelligence tools; Similarweb, for example, publishes no prices for businesses and asks them to contact sales for a custom package. A small business cannot match that budget, naturally. But the core of the measurement comes from three Google tools that cost nothing, and the setup is a job of a few careful steps.

What does a big company measure on its website?

When we look at what a company's analytics setup answers, the questions are the same everywhere:

• Where did visitors come from (Google search, Google Maps, ads, social media, other websites, AI assistants)?
• Which pages did they read, and on which page did they arrive?
• Which visitors took an action that matters to the business, such as sending a form or calling?
• Which searches showed the company in Google, and which of them earned a click?
• How did the local listing perform: views, calls, direction requests?

A big company answers these with an analytics platform, search data, and local listing data, and it brings all three into one monthly report. A small business can do the same with free tools.

Which three free tools give a small business the same basics?

| Tool | What it answers | Cost | First thing to set up | |---|---|---|---| | Google Analytics | Where visitors come from, what they do on your website, which pages lead to enquiries | Free of charge, according to Google | A web data stream and your key events | | Google Search Console | Which searches showed your site in Google, clicks, impressions, click-through rate, average position | Free service from Google | Verify ownership, then link it to Analytics | | Google Business Profile performance | Views of your profile, the search terms that found it, calls, website clicks, direction requests | Creating and listing a profile is free | Verify the profile, then link it to Analytics |

Our page on the free tools a small business can use compares each of these with the paid tools that big teams buy. Here we focus on setting them up and linking them together, which is the step that turns three separate screens into one picture.

How do you set up Google Analytics correctly?

Google's help page "Set up Analytics for a website and/or app" describes three steps. First, create an Analytics account. Second, create a property, which is the container for one website's data; here you choose the reporting time zone and currency. Google notes that a visit is recorded on the date of your time zone, so choose the zone where your business works. Third, add a web data stream and place the Google Analytics code on your website.

Two settings deserve attention on the first day.

Enhanced measurement. Google says enhanced measurement measures interactions with your content with no code changes required. Page views are collected automatically. You can also turn on scrolls (recorded when a visitor reaches 90 percent of the page), clicks on links to other websites, site search, engagement with embedded YouTube videos, and file downloads.

Data retention. Google Analytics deletes detailed user-level and event-level data after a period you choose. For a standard property the choices are 2 months or 14 months. Google says this setting affects explorations and funnel reports, while standard reports stay unaffected. Set it to 14 months, so that next year you can still explore this year's behaviour in detail.

What should a small business count as a key event?

This is the step that decides whether the numbers answer a business question. The big company decides in advance which actions mean business. Google's help calls these key events: "an event that measures an action that's particularly important to the success of your business". Any event you collect can become a key event, and once marked, reports such as Landing pages and User acquisition show a Key events column.

For a small business, the list is short:

• Contact form sent (usually the arrival on a thank-you page).
• Phone number tapped on a phone.
• Booking completed, if you take bookings on the website.
• Email address clicked.
• Quote request or download of a price list.

With these marked, the question "how many enquiries did the website bring last month, and from where?" has a real answer.

How does Search Console fit with Google Analytics?

Google Analytics sees what visitors do after they arrive. Google Search Console sees what happened before they arrived: the searches in which your pages appeared. Google describes it as a free service that helps you monitor, maintain and troubleshoot your site's presence in Google Search results. Its Performance report shows clicks, impressions, click-through rate and average position, and by default it covers the past three months. Google also says that traffic from AI Overviews and AI Mode is counted in this report, under the "Web" search type.

The two tools become more useful when linked. In Analytics, open Admin, then Search Console Links under Product links. Google's help page lists the conditions: you need the Editor role on the Analytics property, and you must be a verified owner of the Search Console property. Search Console keeps data for the last 16 months, so the linked reports in Analytics include at most 16 months as well, and new data arrives 48 hours after Search Console collects it.

One detail is easy to miss. After linking, the Search Console reports in Analytics are unpublished by default. You find the collection under Library and publish it. Then two reports appear: Google Organic Search Queries, and Google Organic Search Traffic, which shows your landing pages with search figures and visitor behaviour side by side.

If you want to see visitors from ChatGPT and Perplexity on their own line as well, our guide to tracking AI search traffic in Google Analytics explains the extra setup.

What does Business Profile performance show?

For a business that serves a local area, the Business Profile on Google Search and Maps is where customers can call, ask for directions or open the website straight from the search result. Google's help page "Understand your Business Profile performance & insights" says performance data is available only for verified profiles, and that it includes activity from both organic results and Google Ads. The main figures are:

• Views: how many people viewed your profile on Search and Maps.
• Searches: the search terms people used to find your business. Google says this figure is updated at the start of each month and might take up to 5 days to appear.
• Calls: taps on the call button, which requires a phone number on the profile.
• Website clicks, directions, messages and bookings, where they apply to your business.

You can also link the profile to Google Analytics from the Analytics Admin page, under Product links and Google Business Profile links. Google says you need the Administrator or Editor role in Analytics and the Owner or Manager role on the profile. Once linked, figures such as website clicks, calls, directions, messages and bookings are shared with your Analytics property, so local and website results sit in one place.

What does a monthly measurement routine look like?

A big company's analyst produces a monthly report. A small business owner can read the same figures in a short session in the second week of each month, once the Business Profile search terms for the previous month have arrived.

1. In Google Analytics, read key events by source and by landing page.
2. In Search Console, read which queries gained or lost clicks.
3. In Business Profile performance, read calls, direction requests and the search terms.
4. Write three lines: what went up, what went down, and one thing to change this month.

Our page on checking results yourself explains how to read the Search Console figures, and our post on what an SEO monthly report should show describes the report a provider should send you.

Who should own the analytics accounts?

The business should. Create the Analytics property, the Search Console property and the Business Profile with an account that belongs to the business, and add any provider as a user with the role they need. If you are about to hire someone to do this work, our list of questions to ask before buying an AI SEO service includes the questions about accounts and data.

At Licheo, a team of specialist AI agents does the website, search and AI work, the owner manages no dashboard, and nothing goes live until the owner approves it. The website, search and AI work that big companies pay whole teams for, done for your small business. To read the wider story, see how big-company marketing reached the small business and our guide to small business SEO. For pricing, contact us. And to see how findable your website is before you measure anything, the Get Found Check is free.

Sources

1. Market Research Analysts, Occupational Outlook Handbook, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Last modified August 27, 2026, accessed 27 September 2026.
2. Similarweb pricing, Similarweb, accessed 27 September 2026.
3. Google Analytics, Google Marketing Platform, accessed 27 September 2026.
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5. Google Business Profile, Google, accessed 27 September 2026.
6. Set up Analytics for a website and/or app, Google Analytics Help, accessed 27 September 2026.
7. Enhanced measurement events, Google Analytics Help, accessed 27 September 2026.
8. Data retention, Google Analytics Help, accessed 27 September 2026.
9. About key events, Google Analytics Help, accessed 27 September 2026.
10. Performance report (Search results): Overview and basic setup, Google Search Console Help, accessed 27 September 2026.
11. AI features and your website, Google Search Central, Last updated 2025-12-10, accessed 27 September 2026.
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