Web analytics
Web analytics applications can also help companies measure the results of traditional print or broadcast advertising campaigns.
Most web analytics processes come down to four essential stages or steps,[3] which are: Another essential function developed by the analysts for the optimization of the websites is the experiments: The goal of A/B testing is to identify and suggest changes to web pages that increase or maximize the effect of a statistically tested result of interest.
The main bodies who have had input in this area have been the IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau), JICWEBS (The Joint Industry Committee for Web Standards in the UK and Ireland), and The DAA (Digital Analytics Association), formally known as the WAA (Web Analytics Association, US).
However, many terms are used in consistent ways from one major analytics tool to another, so the following list, based on those conventions, can be a useful starting point: Off-site web analytics is based on open data analysis, social media exploration, and share of voice on web properties.
In the early 1990s, website statistics consisted primarily of counting the number of client requests (or hits) made to the web server.
[9] Two units of measure were introduced in the mid-1990s to gauge more accurately the amount of human activity on web servers.
The emergence of search engine spiders and robots in the late 1990s, along with web proxies and dynamically assigned IP addresses for large companies and ISPs, made it more difficult to identify unique human visitors to a website.
[citation needed] The extensive use of web caches also presented a problem for log file analysis.
This information can then be processed remotely by a web analytics company, and extensive statistics generated.
Cookie acceptance rates vary significantly between websites and may affect the quality of data collected and reported.
On occasion, delays in completing successful or failed DNS lookups may result in data not being collected.
With the increasing popularity of Ajax-based solutions, an alternative to the use of an invisible image is to implement a call back to the server from the rendered page.
Both logfile analysis programs and page tagging solutions are readily available to companies that wish to perform web analytics.
Which solution is cheaper to implement depends on the amount of technical expertise within the company, the vendor chosen, the amount of activity seen on the websites, the depth and type of information sought, and the number of distinct websites needing statistics.
Regardless of the vendor solution or data collection method employed, the cost of web visitor analysis and interpretation should also be included.
This can be from the use of third-party consultants, the hiring of an experienced web analyst, or the training of a suitable in-house person.
Some companies produce solutions that collect data through both log files and page tagging and can analyze both kinds.
Typically, front-page editors on high-traffic news media sites will want to monitor their pages in real-time, to optimize the content.
Customer lifecycle analytics attempts to connect all the data points into a marketing funnel that can offer insights into visitor behaviour and website optimization.
Any software for web analytics will sum these correctly for the chosen period, thus leading to the problem when a user tries to compare the totals.
As the internet has matured, the proliferation of automated bot traffic has become an increasing problem for the reliability of web analytics.
IPM provided a proof of concept of how Google Analytics as well as their competitors are easily triggered by common bot deployment strategies.
In some cases, the IP address is combined with the user agent to more accurately identify a visitor if cookies are not available.
Other methods of uniquely identifying a user are technically challenging and would limit the trackable audience or would be considered suspicious.
Countries, Service Providers and Private Networks can prevent site visit data from going to third parties.
