by Russ Henneberry

Google Analytics profile filters rock.

The most common use is to include or exclude data in your reports based on some kind of parameter.

You might want to:

• View only (or exclude) data from mobile traffic
• View only (or exclude) data from a particular domain
• View only (or exclude) data from a particular location

Here’s Google’s definition of a profile filter:  A profile filter is used to limit or modify the data that is included in a Google Analytics profile.

TRANSLATION:  It’s possible to create a set of Google Analytics reports (a profile) that, for example, shows you only the data from your mobile traffic and gets all the rest of the data out of your way.

Once you know how to build new Google Analytics profiles and profile filters you can apply them in numerous situations.  We’ll get to a few other applications at the end of this article.

First, let’s build a profile that only shows us data from our mobile traffic.

Step 1 – Make sure you have a master profile

Before you get started, you want to make sure that you have one profile set up for your website that contains all of your traffic.  For most of us this “catch all” profile will be where we spend most of our time.  If you are already using Google Analytics to monitor your website, this profile will likely already be set up.

Step 2- Set up a new profile

In this example, I will set up a new Google Analytics profile for my new blog,Content Measures.

Here’s how to create your new profile,

1.  Click on ADMIN at the top right of any Analytics page

2.  Select the PROFILES tab and click on + NEW PROFILE

3.  Name the profile MOBILE USERS and click on CREATE PROFILE

Congrats!  It’s that easy.  You now have a new profile.

But, this profile is loggin all traffic just like your master profile.  We need to create a filter on our new profile so that it only records data for your mobile traffic.

Let’s get busy creating the profile filter.  Don’t worry, it’s easy.

Full Article

Step 3 – Create a profile filter

1.  Click on the MOBILE USERS profile

2.  Click on FILTERS, then + NEW FILTER and enter the following settings,

Bingo.  You’re all set.

What you’ve done here is set a filter so that your new profile will only include traffic data from mobile devices.

Now, let’s take a look at how you might use this data.

A Google Analytics mobile filtered profile in action >> Full Article