The old hit counters that would show every one that landed on your page is so web-cliche these days. Those usually will track literally every one that hits any page on your site. Having a total number of page loads is great for your ego, but it's not good at all for tracking where people go on your site, how they use it, and how they get there.
Using web statistics is an essential component of your web marketing program. Without weighing your website, you have no idea what areas of your site are working well or not. And, not knowing will lead to problems and frustrations when trying to take your web presence to the next step.
In this podcast, we cover two popular web statistics viewer:
Google Analytics is easier to use and install for most people, while AWstats gives you more comprehensive and real-time information about who is visiting your website. Both aree available at no cost to download and use.
We explain the fundamental aspects of what data is collected for you to analyze and how to understand it, such as:
- What "hits" really mean and why they are not the best unit of measure
- What page views are
- What unique visitors are
- How you can view the search phrases people use on google and yahoo to get to your website
- What web pages have driven traffic to you with links from their pages
- What web robots are and how they impact your stats
- What a "clickstream" is that allows you to see the path people take through your website
- Plus tips for how you can use stats to improve your sales efforts or enhance your message
We are joined by Mark Jones of Rouge Wave Software. Mark participated in the design and buildout of the first online banking system (anyone remember BayBank?) and consistently has used web statistics throughout the years for various companies he has provided web services and consulting for. Mark explains effective ways to use your web stats to improve your website goals, and how to comprehend what you are looking at.
