Organize incoming traffic into custom channels

In Piwik PRO, we’ve organized traffic channels into default groups. For most users, this default set works well. However, if you’re seeking a more tailored arrangement, you can create custom channel grouping. Let’s dive into an example.

The default grouping for the Channel dimension includes:

• Campaign
• Direct entry
• Search engine
• Social (avaliable from 16.11.0)
• Website

Now, when you organize channels into custom groups, your list might look something like this:

• Direct
• Google paid
• Other advertisers
• Other

When you customize your traffic channels, you gain access to insights that aren’t available in the default settings. This perspective enables a deeper understanding of your traffic sources and provides valuable guidance on where to allocate your advertising budget.

In this article, we’ll walk you through the process of working with custom channel grouping.

Before you start

Here are some things to know before you begin:

• You can create up to 10 groups in one custom grouping.
• This feature is different from dimension value grouping because it allows you to group various dimensions.
• If a value belongs to two or more groups, it will be assigned to the first group from your setup. It won’t belong to any other groups.
• Our default channel definitions can help you set up custom channels.

Create a custom grouping

To group channels, follow these steps:

1. Go to Menu > Analytics.
2. Navigate to Settings.
3. On the left, click Custom channel grouping.
4. Click Add a custom channel grouping.

   

5. Name the channel and add a description.
6. In Visibility, choose: Author or All users. All users lets you share this dashboard with your teammates.
7. (Optional) Check All sites & apps to make this dashboard visible across all sites and apps.
8. Group custom channels by adding, naming and defining groups.

   

9. Channels that don’t meet the specified conditions are grouped together as Other. You can change this name if you want.

   

10. When you’re done, click Create.
11. Done! Your new grouping is now available and you can use it in your custom reports and dashboards.

    

Use custom channels in custom reports

To use your custom grouping in custom reports, follow these steps:

1. Go to Menu > Analytics.
2. Navigate to Custom reports.
3. Edit a report or create a new one.
4. When setting up the report, add the dimension with custom grouping.

   

5. Set up your report and click Save.
6. All done! Your report will now show data with your custom grouping.

   

Use custom channels on dashboards

To use your custom grouping on dashboards, follow these steps:

1. Go to Menu > Analytics.
2. Navigate to Dashboards.
3. Edit a widget on the dashboard or add a new dashboard and a new widget.
4. When setting up the widget, add the dimension with custom grouping.

   

5. When you’re done, click Save.
6. Done! The dashboard widget will now show data with your custom grouping.

   

Edit, copy and delete custom grouping

Whenever you need to change, copy or remove a custom grouping, you can do it with just a few clicks.

To edit, copy or delete a custom channel grouping, follow these steps:

1. Go to Menu > Analytics.
2. Navigate to Settings.
3. On the left, click Custom channel grouping.
4. Select the custom grouping you want to work with.
5. On the right, click the ⋯ three-dot icon.

   

6. Click edit, copy or delete.
7. Follow the steps on the screen.
8. Done!