Last Updated on 1 year by Komolafe Bamidele
Knowing how frequently your files are downloaded and Track File Downloads, the type of files that are downloaded would help you create better content and earn more money (that’s if you’re earning from your downloads).
But how do you track your file downloads and how to you know when an mp3, mp4, or a pdf file is downloaded?
Fortunately, there is an easy way to track file downloads in Google Analytics and you can do that with MonsterInsights.
With MonsterInsights, you could track podcast downloads Google Analytics.
In this article, you will learn how to track file downloads on your WordPress with Google Analytics by MonsterInsights.
What is MonsterInsights?
MonsterInsights is a WordPress Google Analytics plugin that helps you to get more out of your blog. With Google Analytics you can track user demographics & interests, ads, traffic sources, most popular content, top exit pages. and many more.
When you install the MonsterInsights plugin, you not only get more accurate metrics, but you also get to track more statistics like form conversions and e-commerce reports.
Monsterinsights Pricing
While MonsterInsights is very effective in helping you accurately track many important metrics in Google Analytics, it requires you to part with a small fortune especially if want to get access to its full features.
The plugin has a free version that is very limited doesn’t allow you to track file downloads. If you want to track file downloads in Google Analytics, you will have to opt for one of its pricing plans.
Below are MonsterInsights Pricing Plans
Whichever plan you opt for, you’ll be able to track file downloads as all their plans give you access to MonsterInsights file download add-on.
How To Track File Downloads in Your WordPress Site
To track file downloads in your WordPress site, you will have to first sign up for Google Analytics and connect it to your WordPress site.
There are many ways to install Google Analytics in WordPress but since you want to track file downloads on your site, you’ll have to install Google Analytics in your site using MonsterInsights.
How to Install Google Analytics in Your Site Using MonsterInsights
Before installing Google Analytics on your site, you should first sign up for Google Analytics and ensure that you’re signed in on your browser.
Next, you will have to add the MonsterInsights plugin to your website. You can download the plugin from the MonsterInsights website or log in to the backend of your WordPress site and download it from WordPress.
After installing the plugin, activate it and add your plugin license key. Navigate to Insights
>> Settings on your WordPress dashboard and type in your plugin license key.
Next, click “Connect MonsterInsights”
From there, you will have to connect your Google Analytics account to MonsterInsights. When done, you can now view your Google Analytics stats on your WordPress dashboard.
If you find it difficult in setting up your site using MonsterInsights you can check how to Google Analytics Stats
Steps To Tracking Files Downloads in WordPress
After installing and connecting your MonsterInsights account to your Google Analytics account, the file downloads tracking feature will be automatically enabled,
To ensure that the file downloads on your site are properly tracked you will have to set certain functions that will enable you to track the number of downloads and the type of files that are downloaded.
Click on Settings >> Tracking >> File Downloads. You will see a box that contains a number of file extensions to track as downloads. These file extensions include doc, exe, js, pdf, ppt, tgz, zip, xls files. You can add more or remove as many file extensions as you want; ensure that any file extension you add is separated by a comma.
When done, click “Save Changes“.
How to View File Downloads in WordPress
MonsterInsights allows you to view your file download stats in your WordPress dashboard. To view the stat,
Navigate to Insights >> Report >> Publishers
You’ll see a table displaying your number of clicks (which represent the number of downloads that you have on a particular file) on different files on your site. The link labels refer to the file extension of the file that was downloaded.
How To Track File Downloads in Google Analytics
If you want more data on your file downloads, you can simply check your Google Analytics dashboard. Normally, Google Analytics doesn’t track file downloads, but integrating Google Analytics with MonsterInsights allows you to do so.
To view file downloads, you will have to log into your Google Analytics account. Select the website (property) where you’d like to track file downloads.
Depending on how you enabled your download tracking, you can find your download report in either your All Pages report or Events report.
If you enabled downloads tracking as pageviews, then navigate to Behaviour >> Site Content >> All Pages and you can find your downloads report along with other blog posts and pages
If you enabled downloads tracking as events, then navigate to Behaviour >> Events
On the events report page, you will find the following options
Overview: This represents the overall events data of your site
Top
Events: This gives you a list of events that keep your visited hooked on your site
Pages: This refers to a list of pages and posts where the events occur on your site
Events
Flow: This shows you which events keep your visitors hooked on your site. It also shows a path users take from one top even to another.
In your events report, you will find that all file downloads are being categorized as downloads. This could be limiting especially if you have different file types on your site and you want to track them individually.
Luckily, you can always go back to your MonsterInsights dashboard on your WordPress site to track your files downloads based on the file extensions you provided.
However, checking your Google Analytics for file downloads can really help you determine how often the files are being downloaded on your website. You can also find real-time stats on your site on the Google Analytics dashboard.
In your events report page, you can either track an event category (the only download category is downloads which represent all file downloads on your site) or you can track an event action.
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Event action refers to the full URL of the file you’d like to track. By tracking event actions rather than categories, you can know how often your files are being downloaded and which files are being downloaded.
Why You Need MonsterInsights On Your Website
MonsterInsights isn’t cheap and its lowest plans are way higher than that of its competitors. Its Plus plan (billed at $99.50 per year) will give you access to a handful of features the plugin has to offer and will support only 1 site.
If you want to get more out of the plugin, you will have to upgrade to its pro plan (billed at $199.50 per year) which supports up 5 sites and provides you access to all the features the plugin has to offer or you will have to go for its Agency plan (billed at $399.50 per year) which also gives you access to all its features but supports up to 25 sites.
With over 15 million downloads and more than 1 million active users, MonsteInsights is without a doubt the most popular Google Analytics plugin. Here are some of the reasons why you should consider installing this plugin on your site without hesitation.
Provides You Access To Advanced Analytics Tracking Features
MonsterInsights stands as an improvement to your Google Analytics by allowing you to track more metrics, scroll depth tracking and get accurate stats. On the free version, you get only the basic setup which doesn’t allow you to do much or get much data.
Whenever you decide to upgrade, MonsterInsights will provide you access to the following features.
Custom Reports:
- Analytics Dashboard
- Dashboard Widget
- Page Insights
- Date Range History
- Real-Time Report
- Publishers Report
- Ecommerce Report
- Search Console
- Form Conversions
- Custom Dimensions
Tracking Solutions:
- Universal Tracking
- EU Compliance
- Engagement Tracking
- eCommerce Tracking
- Enhanced Ecommerce
- Form Conversions
- File Downloads
- Enhanced Link Tracking
- Scroll Tracking
- Affiliate Links
- Banner Ads
- Performance
- Google AMP
- FB Instant Articles
- WooCommerce
- Easy Digital Downloads
- MemberPress
- Custom Dimensions
- Author Tracking
- Logged-in User Tracking
- Custom Post Types
- Category / Tags Tracking
- SEO Score Tracking
- Google Optimize
There are very few Google Analytics plugins that have as many features or allow you to track as much data as MonsterInsights does.
Organized Stats
Another reason to get the MonsterInsights plugin on your site is due to its organization. The stats on Google Analytics are pretty much jam-packed and it could be tedious for you to get the data you need from its metrics especially if you’re a beginner.
MonsterInsights makes things easier by allowing you to read your stats in its well-organized reports. You can tell from its File Download Tracking report that MonsterInsight takes organization very seriously.
Conclusion
Overall, MonsterInsights offers the best user experience and allows you to track every metric possible without having to download and install different plugins.
Through the guide above, you can easily track file downloads; know how often your files are being downloaded and which files are getting the most downloads.