Analytics: You Can’t Afford Not To Track

Budget, particularly for smaller businesses is usually a key aspect when deciding on the best Analytics software to use on a specific website. There are some business owners who keep putting off purchasing analytics until they are financially ready to take the leap and make the online commitment or until the overinflated marketing projections are only that, and errors must be tracked. What most businesses don’t recognize is the wealth of information and wisdom they’re losing out on due to their inability to act google utm builder.

It’s the same argument to spend a dollar today or tomorrow for two dollars. Simply put it’s a simple proposition and every day every day, someone throws their online hat in the ring in the hope of Google-like luck, some fantastic M&A buy-out or legendary IPO that promises triple-digit shares, without taking into account the idea of “checks and balances.” “….Having analytics built into your site does not require a long time to pay off. In fact, I’m quite sure that if you delay implementing it the implementation of analytics, you’ll probably lose more money from your website in revenue opportunities lost that it is “saving” by putting it off. Therefore, be smarter and pay attention.

Everyone who manages a website must be aware that there are many options for them to choose from, even and they’re all free! Google Analytics, StatCounter, and ClickTracks all offer analytics solutions which users can use at no cost outside of the site and with only a few internal IT resources particularly if the analytics are put into place at the beginning of the design phase of the site , and then integrated directly into the templates for the site. After a relatively simple setup users are able to view the actual data and use data to make informed business decisions rather than flying around in the wind.

In the rest of this article I will be talking about analytics solutions that are available for free, their features/limitations, and how you can begin collecting the right data.

Google Analytics

Google Analytics became available late in the year, and soon became the most popular thing on the web. Due to its huge popularity, users must register and wait until they get the invitation for downloading. In the average, it takes between a few weeks and months to receive an invitation. Everyone wants to be famous and Google’s inability keep up with demand is the most significant negative for the analytics program it offers.

I was granted access around one month ago, and was extremely impressed with the richness of the reports available. The most common reports include Campaign/Conversion Tracking Visitors/Geo Segmentation Executive Dashboards. Google likes to connect all of their products which means that users can look at the metrics of their AdWords accounts in the analytics tool. Other features that are cool include an administration area that is built upon top of an intuitive user interface that permits the control of websites, users as well as IP filters and accounts. The report information isn’t current and may take as long as an hour to update, which , for the majority of users, is precise enough.

Google Analytics can be set-up and operational in a matter of minutes. Google generates a block JavaScript which you must paste on every page on your site. Conversion tracking requires that users indicate each step of their conversion process by typing an appropriate URL. E-commerce tracking is becoming more advanced and sophisticated, yet there is ample documentation available to help you understand the process.

StatCounter

StatCounter was among the first online analytics programs which is why its home page has the page rank of 10. Though it’s not as full of bells and bells that Google Analytics, it still has a straightforward interface that provides useful data. The main drawback with StatCounter’s free edition is that it comes with the capacity of a 100-page log and this means that more in-depth information such as the analysis of path and referrals (as as well as different metrics) are restricted to a tiny number of users’ most recent page loads. So, if your website already receives lots of visitors the StatCounter free download might not be the ideal product for you. However, If you already have these kinds of figures then you’ll be able to pay for the complete StatCounter package.

StatCounter’s report suite comes with the typical page views report as well as repeat and first-time visitor tracking, but takes up the ante with its in-depth analysis of the path taken by visitors and the activity of visitors. The reports do not have a visual impact, but for those who are only interested in the information it is a great choice.

Like Google, StatCounter generates a block of JavaScript that users can apply to webpages of the website. But, with its free model, there’s no option to create additional tracking to track campaigns, conversions or E-commerce. In the end, the StatCounter free version is a great beginning analytics program however, when your online activity grows and you begin to earn some money it is likely that you will be looking to upgrade to maintain your competitive edge.

ClickTracks

ClickTracks The free version of the software has been released recently, but it certainly has generated some buzz within the industry. The software for analytics is geared to help users better understand their customers so that they can increase their return on investment.

This Version is known as ClickTracks Appetizer It comes with a basic interface however, it also offers behavioral segmentation as well as campaigns tracking (including PPC) and conversion tracking to assist users in making the most appropriate choices for their campaign to promote search on their website. One of the cool things they’ve done with the launch of “Web Analytics Day” where they’ll be turning on features that are more advanced, such as funnel reporting as well as advanced segmentation of visitors. I believe this is a fantastic opportunity to convince people to switch to the latest versions of the ClickTracks software, and is evident an increase in their market share.

That’s it three great options to assist you in making informed decisions about your site. Don’t let your site be left unmonitored as time goes by. Do yourself and your company an favor and sign up to an Analytics account now even if you’re waiting for the most “robust” package and freer budgets for the future.

An analysis of something as basic as “Top Exit Pages” can assist you in understanding why people are leaving your website. By adjusting these pages and ensuring that visitors stay to your site and increasing things like revenue or conversion rates (I believe this should be the main goal of every businessperson). Making sure you are tracking the correct statistics using Analytics software will be the key to your online success in the future, since, as any marketing professional will inform you, understanding your client is the key to earning money in any the business.