How to use Top Conversion Paths Report in Google Analytics

Step-1: Navigate to the ‘Top Conversion Paths’ report:

Step-2: Make sure the date range of the report is set to the last three months.

Step-3: Unselect all Goal Conversions from the ‘Conversions’ drop-down menu and then click on the ‘Apply’ button:

Step-4: Click on ‘Conversion Segments’ button:

Step-5: Click on the button ‘Create New Conversion Segment‘ as shown below:

Step-6: Name the new conversion segment as ‘Effect of PPC on organic search Traffic’ and then define the segment as shown in the screenshot below:

Here I am telling Google Analytics to include all those conversion paths which contain ‘Paid Search’ as interaction anywhere in the ‘MCF Channel Grouping’ path and ‘organic search’ as a last interaction.

Step-7: Once you have defined the conversion segment then click on the ‘Save Segment’ button. This action will not only create a new conversion segment but also apply the conversion segment to the ‘top conversions path’ report.

Now you can measure the impact of PPC (Paid search traffic) on Organic Search Traffic:

Note: Make sure that you sort the data table by the ‘conversion value’ column before you interpret this report.

From the data table above, we can conclude the following:

>> Paid search assisted 1,344 conversions in the first row, 304 conversions in the second row, 308 conversions in the third row, and so on.

>> In total, paid search assisted in 4,589 conversions worth $272k. These conversions were closed by organic search. In other words, organic search got the credit for these sales.

>> Without the assistance of paid search, these conversions would not have occurred in the first place.

>> Without the assistance of paid search, organic search would not have been able to close these conversions.

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Measuring the impact of Organic Search on PPC Traffic

The conversion segment below will tell you how organic search traffic helped the PPC campaign’s conversions.

Step-1: Create and apply the conversion segment named ‘Effect of Organic Search on PPC Traffic’:

Here I am telling Google Analytics to include all those conversion paths which contain ‘Organic Search’ as interaction anywhere in the ‘MCF Channel Grouping’ path and ‘Paid search’ as a last interaction.

Step-2: Once you have defined the conversion segment then click on the ‘Save Segment’ button. This action will not only create a new conversion segment but also apply the conversion segment to the ‘top conversions path’ report.

Now you can measure the impact of Organic Search Traffic on PPC (Paid search traffic):

Note: Make sure that you sort the data table by the ‘conversion value’ column before you interpret this report.

From the data table above, we can conclude the following:

>> Organic search assisted 230 conversions in the first row, 59 conversions in the second row, 57 conversions in the third row, and so on.

>> In total, organic search assisted in 770 conversions worth $36k. These conversions were closed by paid search traffic. In other words, paid search got the credit for these sales.

>> Without the assistance of organic search, these conversions would not have occurred in the first place.

>> Without the assistance of organic search, paid search would not have been able to close these conversions.

You can similarly define and apply conversion segments to determine the influence of other marketing channels.

For example:

Measure the impact of organic search on direct traffic
Measure the impact of display ads campaigns on organic search traffic
Measure the impact of social media on organic search
Measure the impact of paid search traffic on direct traffic
Measure the impact of social media on direct traffic
Measure the impact of email on direct traffic

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My best selling books on Digital Analytics and Conversion Optimization

Maths and Stats for Web Analytics and Conversion Optimization

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Attribution Modelling in Google Analytics and Beyond

Attribution Modelling in Google Ads and Facebook

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About the Author

Himanshu Sharma

Founder, OptimizeSmart.com
Over 15 years of experience in digital analytics and marketing
Author of four best-selling books on digital analytics and conversion optimization
Nominated for Digital Analytics Association Awards for Excellence
Runs one of the most popular blogs in the world on digital analytics
Consultant to countless small and big businesses over the decade