Web Metrics in the Real World
Session: Web Metrics Workshop: Measuring Your Site's Success
Jim Sterne, who spoke earlier about eMetrics, led this workshop for about 25 people. The group was comprised of a well-rounded mix of publishers, advertisers, and sellers of "stuff." Sterne started off by asking the group if everyone uses some form of web analytics. Almost everyone raised their hands. Half of the group spends a "healthy amount" of money on analyzing their web traffic. Webtrends is the most popular software package deployed by the group, however most have had major problems using it.
Everyone agreed that the hardest part of web analytics is making data meaningful. Very few had a clear idea of what they are trying to accomplish and how their tools are helping them get there. Many were still searching for that perfect solution, but to have a solution you have to ask, "solution for what?" Are you trying to drive store traffic, generate leads? Many sites aren't defining clear measurement objectives.
An increasing problem in identifying visitors is separating out spider traffic. Not one software package seemed to have solved the spider problem.
A few tough problems were presented by attendees. One person has had difficulty in tracking why or when users click off a form. Another attendee has had difficulty using her analytic tools to see how users are navigating through her site. As each person brought forward another problem, you could see many in the audience nodding in agreement that successful web analytics are difficult to develop.
Overall, this seemed to be a very helpful workshop for those in attendance. Sterne engaged everyone in the room by talking through useful problem-and-solution scenarios.
