Simple E-Commerce Analytics: 12 Metrics for Retailers

You do not need a data team, fancy dashboards, or hours of spare time to understand what is working in your online store. A handful of practical metrics, checked consistently, will tell you where sales are coming from, where shoppers drop off, and which levers lift profit the fastest. That matters because research from Baymard Institute shows the average shopping cart abandonment rate hovers around 70 percent, and the institute’s latest benchmark puts it at roughly 70.22 percent today, which means most potential orders slip away before checkout is done (see the data on Baymard’s cart abandonment page at https://baymard.com/lists/cart-abandonment-rate). At the same time, mobile shopping is surging, and Insider Intelligence notes mcommerce is now the preferred channel globally, accounting for an estimated 69.9 percent of retail ecommerce by 2024 as outlined on their mcommerce trends overview at https://www.emarketer.com/topics/industry/mcommerce. In short, attention is scarce, expectations are high, and the right few metrics help you focus your effort.

If you run a local boutique, bakery, grocer, or hardware store, you are juggling operations already. This guide gives you the 12 metrics that actually matter, how to track them using built-in tools like Google Analytics 4 and platform analytics, and what quick wins to apply. For retailers that want a done-for-you setup plus inventory sync and local delivery integration, StoreStudio is designed to get you selling online quickly, with a typical two-week setup for about 100 products, and includes the analytics plumbing so you do not have to touch code.

Before you measure: a 30-minute setup checklist

A few simple foundations make the rest of your metrics reliable and painless to review.

First, add ecommerce events to your analytics. Google explains how to send standard purchase events and item data in the GA4 ecommerce documentation, and the setup guide at Analytics for Developers covers the events for viewitem, addtocart, begincheckout, and purchase. If you are not technical, ask your platform provider or implementation partner to enable the events according to Google’s help article on GA4 ecommerce events. Most modern platforms and apps can push these events without custom code.

Second, tag your marketing links with UTM parameters so you can see which emails, social posts, and ads drive revenue. Google’s campaign URL builder is the simplest way to create tagged links, and Analytics Help explains how UTMs flow into your reports.

Third, turn on and learn your platform’s built-in analytics. Shopify’s behavior and marketing performance reports show the funnel from sessions to add to cart to checkout, as explained in the Shopify Help Center behavior reports and the marketing performance overview. If you are starting from scratch or migrating to a simpler setup, Shopify includes the essential ecommerce analytics out of the box.

Finally, keep a simple weekly KPI sheet. Write down last week’s sessions, conversion rate, average order value, revenue, new customers, returning customers, and ad spend. You can track the rest monthly. This helps you see trends at a glance, no dashboards required.

If you prefer a partner to wire up GA4 and platform analytics, put together your KPI sheet, and make sure inventory and delivery data feed in cleanly, StoreStudio’s managed service includes analytics setup as part of the launch.

The 12 ecommerce metrics that actually matter

1) Sessions and channel mix

What it tells you: Sessions tell you how many visits you get. Channel mix shows which sources bring those visits, for example organic search, direct, social, email, or paid ads. Too many retailers only watch traffic volume, but understanding the mix is critical because it ties to cost and intent. Organic and email often convert at lower cost than paid social, while branded search often reflects ready-to-buy intent.

How to track it: In GA4, use Reports, Acquisition, User acquisition for new visitors and Traffic acquisition for sessions by channel. In Shopify, the marketing performance report summarizes traffic and the funnel by campaign, as explained in the Shopify Help Center marketing performance guide. Make sure you use UTMs on every campaign link so channel and campaign names are accurate.

Quick win: If a channel brings traffic but not conversions, fix the landing page message to match the ad or post. If email sends a small volume but high conversion, increase list-building efforts and send frequency.

2) Conversion rate

What it tells you: Conversion rate is orders divided by sessions. It is the clearest signal of how well your store turns interest into revenue. Average ecommerce conversion rates tend to fall around 2.5 to 3 percent, according to Shopify’s guide to conversion rate benchmarks, while Littledata’s analysis of Shopify stores finds the average closer to 1.4 percent on that platform and suggests that 3.2 percent puts you in the top 20 percent.

How to track it: GA4 shows conversion rate for purchase events, and Shopify shows conversion rate on the analytics overview and in behavior reports. Always look at conversion rate alongside device type and channel, since mobile conversion can differ significantly from desktop.

Quick win: Improve speed and mobile usability. Deloitte’s study with Google found that a 0.1 second improvement in mobile site speed increased retail conversion rates by 8.4 percent, as summarized on web.dev’s report on Milliseconds Make Millions and detailed in the Deloitte study. Compress images, simplify your theme, and remove third-party apps that slow pages.

3) Add to cart rate

What it tells you: Add to cart rate is the percentage of sessions where a visitor adds at least one item to the cart. It isolates product page performance. If visitors browse but rarely add to cart, your product titles, imagery, price, or value proposition may not be clear enough.

How to track it: Shopify’s behavior reports include the conversion funnel that shows sessions that added to cart, reached checkout, and purchased, as described in the Shopify behavior reports guide. In GA4, you can create a funnel exploration from viewitem to addto_cart to purchase.

Quick win: Strengthen product pages with clear size or portion info, lifestyle photos, social proof, and a tight value statement above the fold. If you are local, mention pickup or same-day delivery options early.

4) Checkout completion rate and cart abandonment

What it tells you: Checkout completion rate is the share of initiated checkouts that end in a completed order, and cart abandonment is the inverse problem. The single biggest causes of abandonment are unexpected fees and slow delivery. The cart abandonment benchmarks from Baymard’s statistics page show 39 percent of shoppers abandon due to extra costs, and 21 percent cite delivery being too slow.

How to track it: In Shopify, open the conversion funnel to compare add-to-cart, reach checkout, and purchase. In GA4, build a funnel exploration from begincheckout to addpayment_info to purchase, then segment by device and traffic source.

Quick win: Be transparent about shipping early, offer a free shipping threshold, and keep checkout steps minimal. Shopify’s guide to free shipping strategies explains how thresholds can lift conversion and average order value, and the recommendations in Shopify’s free shipping guide are easy to test.

5) Average order value

What it tells you: Average order value is revenue divided by orders. It indicates how much customers typically spend per transaction. AOV multiplies the impact of your existing traffic, so small lifts here can add up quickly.

How to track it: Both GA4 and Shopify calculate AOV automatically. Look at it by channel and device, and track how it changes when you add bundles or adjust free shipping thresholds.

Quick win: Set a free shipping threshold that is about 10 to 20 percent above your current average cart value, then promote it on product pages and in the cart. The tactics outlined in Shopify’s free shipping strategies are a good starting point.

6) Revenue per visitor

What it tells you: Revenue per visitor, sometimes called revenue per session, is total revenue divided by sessions. It combines conversion rate and AOV into one efficiency score, which makes it useful for comparing channels.

How to track it: In GA4, create a custom metric or view purchase revenue alongside sessions in a report or exploration. In Shopify, export revenue by channel and divide by sessions for a simple calculation.

Quick win: Use this to prioritize marketing. If one channel has lower traffic but higher revenue per visitor, allocate more budget or content time to it.

7) New vs returning customers and repeat purchase rate

What it tells you: This shows how much of your revenue comes from people buying again. For local retailers with consumables or seasonal products, healthy repeat behavior is a strong sign of product-market fit and a cushion against rising ad costs.

How to track it: Shopify’s customer reports show returning customer rate and sales from returning customers. In GA4, use segments for first-time purchasers vs repeat purchasers.

Quick win: Add simple win-back email automation at 30 to 60 days, and include an incentive for a second purchase. Omnisend’s annual ecommerce messaging study highlights that automated flows outperform one-off campaigns on conversion rate, and their 2024 report shows automated messages such as cart or post-purchase flows drive outsized results as summarized in Omnisend’s 2024 marketing statistics overview.

8) Email list growth and signup conversion

What it tells you: Your email list is a major owned channel. List growth reflects your ability to capture and re-engage visitors. Signup conversion rate is signups divided by sessions, often measured for a popup, footer form, or checkout opt-in.

How to track it: Your email service provider will show form conversion and list growth. In GA4, tag signup success pages or events, or send a custom subscribe event. Combine with sessions to calculate a rough signup rate.

Quick win: Offer a simple value exchange, like 10 percent off the first order or early access to seasonal drops. Third-party analyses of popup performance point to average conversion rates in the low single digits, and a synthesis of Sumo’s large sample suggests roughly 3 percent average with top performers near 9 percent, which is referenced by practitioners who summarize the findings such as Popupsmart’s overview at https://popupsmart.com/blog/why-popups-convert-with-statistics. Test on mobile especially, since that is where most browsing happens now.

9) Customer acquisition cost

What it tells you: CAC is advertising and marketing cost divided by the number of new customers acquired in a period. It helps you judge whether paid campaigns are sustainable given your AOV and contribution margin.

How to track it: In your ads manager, note spend. In Shopify or GA4, count first purchases from new customers attributed to that channel or campaign. For a quick approximation, divide channel spend by new customers from that channel in the same time frame.

Quick win: If CAC is high on broad targeting, try remarketing or high intent keywords, and refine location and audience. Combine with AOV and repeat rate to see if the payback is acceptable over a couple of orders.

10) Return on ad spend

What it tells you: ROAS is revenue divided by ad spend. It is a simple efficiency metric for paid campaigns. Google Ads defines Target ROAS as the automated bidding strategy that aims to maximize conversion value while hitting a set efficiency goal, and the concept is outlined in Google Ads Help’s tROAS article.

How to track it: Ad platforms report ROAS based on their own attribution. Cross-check with GA4’s revenue by session source and with your platform’s sales by discount or campaign code. For small budgets, keep it simple and look at blended ROAS across all channels to avoid getting lost in attribution debates.

Quick win: Start with a realistic ROAS goal that accounts for gross margin and shipping costs. If margins are tight, use dynamic product ads on your bestsellers first, and exclude low-margin items.

11) On-time delivery rate and fulfillment cycle time

What it tells you: Fast, predictable delivery matters for conversion and repeat behavior. McKinsey’s consumer research on ecommerce deliveries shows that shoppers value scheduling and reliability, with more than 50 percent emphasizing the importance of being able to schedule deliveries, as covered in McKinsey’s analysis of US consumer delivery preferences. If your orders are late or unpredictable, refund requests and negative reviews climb.

How to track it: Export orders with promised and actual delivery dates from your platform or delivery app. Calculate the share delivered on or before the promise date, and track average days from order to delivery.

Quick win: Offer local delivery time windows and clear cutoff times for same-day or next-day service. If your store offers BOPIS, make sure pickup ready notifications are fast and accurate.

12) In-stock rate on key products

What it tells you: If the products that drive most of your revenue go out of stock, your funnel metrics will suffer no matter how strong your ads or pages are. In-stock rate is the percentage of time a top seller has available inventory.

How to track it: Tag your top 20 items by revenue. Review inventory history weekly for those SKUs and note days out of stock.

Quick win: Increase safety stock for fast movers and set low-stock alerts. If you sync your point-of-sale with your online store, make sure the sync runs frequently enough that pickup and delivery promises match reality. If you need inventory sync wired to your POS and your online storefront, StoreStudio’s service includes real-time inventory and local delivery integration, so you can monitor availability with less manual work.

How to track these without a data team

Put your most important numbers where you cannot ignore them. For most busy retailers, the easiest route is a one-page weekly routine.

Start your week by checking sessions, conversion rate, AOV, and revenue in Shopify or GA4. If anything jumps sharply, drill into device or channel. In the middle of the week, glance at add-to-cart and checkout completion, then spot-check a few carts on mobile to see if anything feels slow or confusing. End the week with a quick look at paid campaigns, comparing ROAS and CAC to your targets, and turn off underperformers.

Once per month, measure repeat purchase rate, email list growth, and in-stock rate for your bestsellers. Review one shipping or delivery problem and fix its root cause, whether that is packaging supplies, cutoffs that are too late, or a route plan that needs adjusting.

If you use Shopify, the native analytics and reports cover most of the basics, and the funnel view in the Shopify behavior reports gives you add-to-cart and reach-checkout context at a glance. If you are choosing a platform, Shopify is a smart pick for small retailers because it centralizes orders, payments, and analytics.

GA4 adds deeper acquisition and segmenting. The ecommerce events documented by Google in the GA4 ecommerce measurement guide unlock funnel explorations that show where users fall off. If you do not have the bandwidth to implement it, engage a partner to connect your theme or tag manager once, then let it run.

For channels and campaigns, UTMs are non-negotiable. The Google campaign URL builder lets you tag links in seconds, and Analytics Help explains how campaign names and sources appear in reports. Use consistent names, for example source equals instagram and medium equals organic for posts, or source equals newsletter and medium equals email for your sends.

For advertising, set clear targets. If you are using Google Ads, the idea of Target ROAS described in Google Ads Help will be familiar to your media buyer, and you can translate that target back to whether you are profitable after cost of goods and shipping. If you sell across Meta and Google, track blended spend and revenue to keep decisions simple.

Finally, do not let logistics metrics slip. McKinsey’s findings on consumer expectations for scheduling and speed make it clear that fulfillment is part of your marketing, and that is doubly true for local retailers who offer same-day delivery or curbside pickup, as summarized in McKinsey’s ecommerce delivery preferences article. Put on-time delivery rate side by side with your reviews and repeat purchase rate. Small improvements here reduce refunds and increase lifetime value.

A 20-minute weekly analytics rhythm

You can keep this to a simple rhythm that fits between opening the doors and prepping the next promotion.

On Monday, check sessions, conversion rate, and AOV. If conversion dipped, scan your site on mobile. Use PageSpeed tools to confirm nothing broke, and spot-check checkout. If AOV slipped, look at cart content and run a small free shipping threshold test for the week.

On Wednesday, check add-to-cart and checkout completion. If add-to-cart is soft, test one product page change, like a clearer photo or a size guide. If checkout completion fell, review shipping options and any new fees.

On Friday, check paid efficiency. Compare ROAS and CAC to your goal. If a campaign is far under goal, pause it for the weekend and shift budget to a proven ad set or to remarketing. If email performed strongly, schedule a simple segmented send to recent browsers or past purchasers.

Monthly, review repeat purchase rate and list growth. If repeat is low, add a post-purchase email with a reorder reminder or a complementary product, drawing on Omnisend’s insight that automated flows outperform campaigns, as discussed in Omnisend’s 2024 statistics. If list growth is slow, refresh the popup offer and make sure the form appears on mobile without blocking content.

If you want this routine prebuilt and monitored, StoreStudio can launch your storefront, connect inventory and delivery, and set up a metrics cadence so you get weekly insights without wrestling with tools. You can learn more about the service on the About page, browse the latest tips on the StoreStudio blog, or reach out directly via the contact page.

Practical tips to keep data clean and useful

Small inputs make your numbers trustworthy. Always use consistent UTMs. If you sell online and in-store, ensure your POS syncs inventory in near real time so your product availability is accurate on the site. Make sure the ecommerce events match your product catalog data, for example currency and tax are correct, so revenue and item reports are meaningful.

Check attribution at a high level rather than getting stuck on discrepancies. Ad platforms often show more conversions than GA4 due to attribution rules. For small businesses, it is fine to use ad platform ROAS to optimize campaigns, while using your platform’s order and revenue totals for real financials.

Take notes in your KPI sheet. If you launched a Mother’s Day collection or changed shipping policy, note the date. When you look back in two months, you will see why numbers moved.

Where to go from here

Pick two or three of the metrics above to start. Most retailers begin with conversion rate, average order value, and repeat purchase rate, then expand into acquisition cost and on-time delivery. As your store grows, you can connect a dashboard tool, but do not let that delay action. The strongest habit is a weekly check-in that leads to one small improvement.

If the idea of wiring up GA4 tags and tying marketing to orders makes your eyes glaze over, bring in a partner. StoreStudio specializes in helping local retailers launch and operate a complete online store, including inventory sync, local delivery, and the analytics stack to keep you confident in your decisions. It is simple, fast, and managed, so you can focus on your shelves and your customers.