Google Optimize and Session Quality Score: a brief guide

Google announced on its Analytics blog and at SMX East the launch of some intriguing updates to its Analytics platform.

Notably a free version of Optimize 360 and a new metric, Session Quality Score.

Optimize: what is it?

Optimize 360 was launched as an enterprise-level product in March this year, and is essentially a landing page testing tool that allows site owners to test page layouts and copy without changing a page's source code.

This new version, for which users can sign up to trial now, will be available for anyone with an Analytics account worldwide, free of charge.

How will it work?

The functionality is similar to the likes of Optimizely (as is the name), with the significant advantage of an automatic and direct tie to other Google products, such as DoubleClick, AdWords and Audience 360.

The opportunities for remarketing to highly qualified leads are clear, as are the possibilities for testing different copy for a range of audience segments, so this news will be assessed in detail by Search professionals.

Session Quality Score: what is it?

This is a new metric due to be launched later in the year and it is a very interesting announcement.

Google says that Session Quality Score will “predict the likelihood of a visitor making a transaction (purchase) on your site or app”, based on past behaviour, data taken from similar users, and myriad other factors.

Driven by the same machine learning technology that drives its Smart Goals product, this is another reflection of Google's objective to become a 'machine-learning first' company.

What does all of this mean?

At a time when device, personalization and customer engagement factors are increasing in importance, this is certainly welcome news as marketers try to target users in ever-more granular detail.

How effective these features are at launch remains to be seen, but given the technology and backing behind them, there is good reason to believe both Optimize and Session Quality Score will have a significant impact on site owners and search marketers.