subject: The Eight-step Web Analytics Process [print this page] The process of improving a website's success using web analytics is actually very clearly articulated, and follows logical, sensible steps from start to finish. Unfortunately, through a poor understanding of the demands and purpose of web analytics, many companies switch around, under-value or completely ignore one or more steps of the 9 that constitute an effective web analytics assessment of your internet marketing and search engine optimization results. Here we look at the 8-step process of using your web analytics package, from start to finish.
1.Know your needs
You must understand the areas in which your website could use improvements before you establish a goal - although steps 1 and 2 are certainly closely linked.
2.Know your goals
Your goal will be to remedy the areas in which your website has shown a need of improvement (in step 1 above). Depending on the type of site you run, the goals of all your search engine ranking optimization and viral marketing will probably fall into one of four categories:
- Ecommerce site goals: Increase sales, decrease repeat marketing costs,
- Content site goals: Increase readerships, number of repeat visitors and time spent on site (all of which indicate reader engagement)
- Lead generation site goals: Genearte and also segment leads
- Self-service site goals: Self service sites usually belong to large corporate entities like banks and telcos. Their goals are to allow for fast and easy self-service and ultimately reduce customer service time, and therefore costs.
3.Know your metrics
Your metrics vary according to the type of site also:
- Ecommerce site web analytics metrics: Sales, sale value per visitor, cost of acquisition, customer satisfaction, returns. Etc
- Content site web analytics metrics: Time spent on site, number of page views, subcriptions to the site or to an RSS feed, and also number of subscriptions cancelled.
- Lead generation site web analytics metrics: These usually include white paper downloads, newsletter email list joins, bounce rates on pages asking for contact details, and ratio of sales to leads.
4.Gather data
Your data collection methods will vary slightly according to the particular web analytics programs you are using, and your internet consultancy services will be able to help you set up your collection processes.
5.Establish a baseline
Certain types of goals will require a baseline, and in fact goals that don't require the establishment of a baseline are often too vague (ie, "make more money from the website"). Once you have your data collection methods in place via web analytics you can determine where your internet marketing tactics have placed you currently.
6.Make improvements
Make a single improvement at a time. It is best to undertake this step in consultation with an internet marketing service, or conversion optimization experts.
7.Measure and analyze results
Look at what happened from your single change. Did it get you closer to attaining your goal, or further away? And most importantly, why?
8.Repeat steps 1 through 7
Using web analytics as part of your internet marketing strategy is not a single-time action. If you want to stay ahead of the game, conversion optimization (much like search engine optimization) is an ongoing process.
