SiteScan Frequently Asked Questions

What is SiteScan

SiteScan is a free diagnostic tool from EpikOne that verifies if your Google Analytics (GA) tracking code is installed properly on your website.  It is a helpful tool to verify the conversion from GA's old tracking code to new tracking code recently released.

What does SiteScan cost? 

SiteScan is a free service provided by EpikOne.  It verifies your Google Analytics tracking code and provides resources to correct any identified problems.   Further support to correct identified problems is available via Google Analytics and Analytics Experts.

How many times can I use SiteScan? 

SiteScan allows you to scan the same URL once every six (6) hours, allowing for up to four (4) times in a twenty-four period.

Who developed SiteScan?

SiteScan was developed by the Google Analytics experts at EpikOne.  An online marketing agency and Google Authorized Analytics Consultant, EpikOne uses SiteScan as an integral part of their Google Analytics Professional Audit Service.

Why should I use SiteScan to test my website?

Improperly installed Google Analytics tracking code can result in inaccurate visitor and site activity data.  To ensure that all of your pages are being tracked and included in Google Analytics reports, it is in your best interest to verify that they are tagged properly.   With the new GA tracking code available, SiteScan provides further verification when  converting from old to new tracking code.
 

Does SiteScan work on websites that do not use Google Analytics?  Does it scan other analytics tools and software?

It does not.  SiteScan was developed specifically for websites that have Google Analytics tracking code installed.  It does not work on websites without Google Analytics, or those using other analytics tracking applications.

How do I get Google Analytics on my website?

Google Analytics is an invaluable sales and and marketing tool that tells you where visitors come from and how they interact with your website.  This information allows you to make improvements on your website for better performance.  Google Analytics is a hosted service that is free and available at the Google Analytics Website.

How long does it take SiteScan to verify my website?

Once SiteScan begins to scan your website, some reports are completed in just a few minutes, while others take up to a week to complete.  Time to completion depends primarily on number of pages, page navigation and server workload. Once SiteScan is completed scanning your site, you receive an email with a link to your results page.   In the event that SiteScan is unable to complete a scan of your website, additional attempts are made to identify the issue and produce a successful scan.  If still unsuccessful, you will be notified that SiteScan was unable to verify your website.  Whenever possible, you are provided with suggestions why the scan was unsuccessful.
 

If SiteScan finds improperly tagged pages on my website, will it fix them?

SiteScan does not fix the improperly tagged pages, it only identifies them.  However, within the results report, you are provided with details on each page and the likely cause of being tagged improperly.  The report also includes links to resources for fixing these errors.  Additional help is available at Google Analytics and Analytics Experts.

After I make the corrections suggested by the SiteScan report, how do I verify my corrections?

The best way to gauge if your corrections are accurate is to use SiteScan to rescan your website.  Be sure to enter the URL exactly as you did for the first scan.

What if I require further assistance to make corrections to the page errors identified by SiteScan?

If you are unable to successfully get 100% of your pages properly installed with the Google Analytics tracking code, we highly recommend the following resources for further support: 

Google Analytics Help Center
Google Analytics Help Group
Analytics Experts

Are there any known limitations with SiteScan?

SiteScan Does Not Scan or Complete the Following: 

1. Directories with more then 1000 files
2. Pages that are protected by a Robot.txt file (meaning that if your pages are not indexed by Google, they will not be scanned).
3. Pages that are password protected
4. Checkout Pages or any area of your website that requires a certain sequence of events or trigger to access (Like adding a product to cart before checking out)
5. Repair identified errors or change your Google Analytics configuration.

Problems Starting a Scan?

Make sure your site is web accessible.
Make sure you do not have a robots.txt file blocking your site.
Make sure you have not accidentally triggered advanced crawling of site.

 

Why should I upgrade to the new Google Analytics Tracking Code?

Installing the new Google Analytics Tracking code (ga.js) will enable the Site Search and enhanced Event Tracking reports in your Google Analytics profile.

Do I need to upgrade to the new Google Analytics Tracking Code?

No. You can continue to use the old tracking code on your site without a problem. The only disadvantage is that you will not be able to take advantage of the new features of the ga.js, including site search reports and enhanced event tracking.

What is the difference between old and new tracking code? 

The new Google Analytics tracking code adapts an object based approach to logging and managing the visitor traffic on a website. The new object oriented approach allows much more flexibility in customizing your Google Analytics configuration to meet your business and marketing needs. Additionally, the new Google analytics tracking code unlocks the Site Search and Event Tracking reports in the latest release of Google Analytics.

I am using the new ga.js tracking code and chose this option to scan by site.  I am sure that most of my pages are tagged properly, but SiteScan reports "0% Pages Tagged Correctly".  Is this accurate?

A short time after its release, Google made a revision to the new ga.js code.  SiteScan only identifies ga.js code on websites that have been updated.  You must update with the following snippet of code: 

<script type="text/javascript">
 var gaJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "https://ssl." : "http://www.");
 document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + gaJsHost + "google-analytics.com/ga.js' type='text/javascript'%3E%3C/script%3E"));
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">
 var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-xxxxx-x");

 pageTracker._initData();
 pageTracker._trackPageview();
</script>

(replace xxxx-xx with your Google Analytics account number)

For more information on this revision:  http://groups.google.com/group/analytics-help-troubleshoot/msg/15ce4981ece070bd. 

Once you update the code, resubmit your website to SiteScan.


I submitted my website, but SiteScan responded with a message saying, "We can't find your site".  My website is definitely live and reachable, and I am sure I entered the proper domain.  What's wrong?

Your website has probably not been indexed by a search engine.  If you have a sitemap.xml, SiteScan will use this to generate a list of your page links.  If not, SiteScan queries search engines to build a list of links.  For more information on indexing your website: https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/docs/en/about.html

The same holds true for new pages added to your site.  They will not be detected by SiteScan until they are indexed by a search engine or your sitemap.xml file is updated. 

Please note that once you submit your website to a search engine, it is not immediately indexed.  Therefore, allow several days before resubmitting your website to SiteScan.