According to the Online Measurement and Strategy Report on web analytics companies are failing to adopt a coherent strategy that ties in web analytics data with business objectives. About 18 percent of the firms surveyed said they had a strategy, 22 percent said they didn’t have a strategy and 56 percent said they were “working on it”. Lack of budget and resources were sited as the most widespread barrier to implementing an effective online measurement strategy. The most widespread use of web analytics tools was for reporting traffic figures, with 88 percent saying that it was an “important use” of web analytics. Approximately 43 percent of organizations did not have any dedicated web analytics professionals. About 33 percent of respondents spend less than US$7,500 a year on web analytics and 21 percent spent at least US$75,000 a year. Two-thirds of the organizations surveyed used the free Google Analytics tool, which makes it far and away the most widely used web analytics tool.
Some 700 companies took part in the survey including 434 “client-side” respondents and 229 supplier-side companies (including agencies, consultancies and analytics vendors). Some 77% of company respondents and 74% of agency respondents are based in the UK. The rest are split between Europe (non-UK), North America (US or Canada) and other countries, including Australia, South Korea, India and Israel. Labels: Google, internet trends, measurement, Web Analytics
Yahoo has agreed to acquire IndexTools, a leading provider of web analytics software for online marketing. The acquisition is intended to expand Yahoo's set of services designed to maximize its clients' online marketing efforts. "Yahoo! believes that the ability to generate the most valuable and relevant insights is essential to seizing market opportunities and creating successful campaigns," said Bassel Ojjeh, senior vice president and head of Yahoo!'s Strategic Data Solutions group. "We expect that the IndexTools' technology platform will provide our customers the opportunity to more quickly uncover and act on these insights, enhancing Yahoo!'s status as a partner of choice in online marketing and the must buy for the world's advertisers." The acquired technology is expected to extend Yahoo!'s current analytics offerings by adding capabilities to deliver relevant insights and metrics for online campaigns that run across the entire Yahoo! network. Following the acquisition, the first group of customers to benefit from these enhanced tools will be more than 150,000 small-to-medium businesses marketing on the Web with Yahoo!. Additional capabilities enabling third-party developers to monitor and optimize the traffic performance of their applications are expected to follow throughout the year following the acquisition. Labels: index, Search Tools, Web Analytics, Yahoo
 YouTube has come out with a tool to help you answer the question of who's watching you. YouTube Insight is a free video analytics tool that allows users who upload videos to YouTube to track the viewership on their videos including the geographic breakdown by region, as well as the popularity relative to all videos in that market over a given period of time. Uploaders can also delve deeper into the lifecycle of their videos to find out how long it takes for a video to become popular, and what happens to video views as popularity peaks. Another key feature expected shortly is a breakdown of how viewers discovered your video. Using these metrics, you can increase your videos' view counts and improve your popularity on the site. To view your video analytics, click "About this Video" button under "My Account > Videos, Favorites, Playlists > Manage my Videos." Labels: GOOG, Google, Web Analytics, Youtube
 Baidu (BIDU), China's leading search engine has selected Omniture (OMTR) to provide web analytics and online optimization services. Baidu is looking to improve the advertiser experience by providing better data points on China's fast growing web audience.  Omniture's timing is great because the U.S. economy is slowing and ad spend budgets for ad services, tools and infrasture will follow. By signing up Baidu, Omniture is getting some insulation. Omniture's clients include companies like Microsoft (MSFT), Time Warner's (TWX) AOL, and eBay (EBAY), which have strong presences worldwide. Labels: Search, Web Analytics, Web Optimization
 TNS, a world leader in market information and insight, announced that it has agreed to acquire Compete.com for a total of US$150 million. An initial cash payment of US$75 million will be made upon closing and the remainder will be payable upon performance targets being met over several years. Compete.com provides online traffic metrics about web sites very much like Alexa.com, comScore and Hitwise - which was acquired last year by Experian for US$240 million.  Compete conducts continuous analysis of internet clickstream data from close to 2 million people received from its own panel and from internet service providers. They uses proprietary data methodologies to normalise this data, making it representative of the entire US online market place. This information is used to measure how consumers consider, engage with and buy a client’s products or services online, relative to those of its competition. This ability to analyse online behaviour before a purchase is made enables Compete to advise clients on how to target online communications to individual consumers, to influence both their online and offline purchasing behaviour. It specialises in the telecoms, media, automotive, travel, financial services and online search. As internet usage and e-retailing increases, clickstream data is expected to become a significant information source around which market research and analysis is based. Recent estimates suggest that the US market in which Compete operates will grow from $325 million in 2007 to $500 million in 2009. Compete.com won the award for the "Best Content Search Engine" at Searchnomics 2007. Labels: measurement, Online Advertising, Searchnomics, Web Analytics
With the easy availability of full-featured, free online services like Google Analytics, an increasing number of companies are implementing Web Analytics tools for their web sites. Many of these implementations still focus on older metrics like page views and click-throughs. Although conversions and overall traffic levels continue to be important, today's Web Analytics tools - which have come a long way from the "Log Analyzers" of ten years ago - can provide a rich set of Business Intelligence metrics that allow web site managers to drill down to much greater depth in understanding user behavior. In this article, we identify the core Business Objectives for a Web Analytics implementation. 1. Traffic Measurement and Analysis
One of the primary goals of web analytics is to measure traffic quality, volume and engagement (e.g. time spent on site ).
Traffic can be segmented by source, into three categories: - Referrals from other web sites and from marketing campaigns
- Free (organic) traffic from Search Engines, which depends on the quality of content and on SEO tactics
- Paid (AdWords) traffic from Search Engines
2. Measure and Optimize the Effectiveness of Conversion Paths
This is the usual definition of web analytics; it includes an audit of key navigation paths, calls-to-action, pricing, discounts and the power of the overall sales pitch. You can also measure the effectiveness of individual web pages. 3. Test and Optimize Conversion Enhancement programs
Closely related to the previous item, this goal is all about enhancing revenues from a current buyer, by optimizing upsell and cross-sell strategies. It answers the questions: "How well do you encourage users to buy more? How often do you get repeat buyers?" 4. Measure "Bounce Rates"
This is one of the simplest and most important metrics, yet it is often neglected. This metric focuses on discovering which pages on the site cause users to drop off. This is a critical point of analysis - it can highlight deficiencies in the web site, navigation or content. 5. Gauge the Effectiveness of External Marketing Campaigns
Web site traffic analysis can provide valuable feedback about external Marketing campaigns: by source, medium (email, web page, print, blog feed) and campaign. It can be used to test various forms of advertising. 6. User Segmentation
A site audience is rarely completely homogeneous; it is usually made up of several distinct constituencies. A highly effective way to enhance the user experience is to segment users into groups by behavior and re-orient the site for each group, with special navigation and emphasis. 7. Day-parting
This is segmentation based on external factors not related to the user herself; e.g. time of day, geography, referring source, organic vs paid, and so on. 8. Drive Design and Usability Decisions
Many companies make site design decisions "blindly", without measurement or testing. However, instead of trying to guess what users will like, we can directly measure the effectiveness of various web design and usability decisions, individually and together, using multi-variate analysis and A/B testing. This means that we can improve a web site in a systematic, measurable way, while minimizing any adverse impacts. As we've seen above, Web Analytics provides powerful capabilities to systematically improve online sales and analyze user behavior. Which of the objectives in this list do you use? Do you see any that are missing from this list? Labels: Web Analytics
 23andMe today announced a web based service that will help individuals map and understand their own genetic information. The site will offer web based tools and the latest advances in DNA analysis to enable individuals to gain deeper insights into their ancestry and other inherited traits which are marked in an individual's genetic code. The service will allows individuals to: - Search and explore their genomes; - Learn how the latest research studies relate directly to traits identified in their genome; - Compare their genomes to family and friends who are also 23andMe participants; - Discover their genetic roots and find where they sit on the tree of human genetic history; and - Give individuals the option to actively participate in a new research approach.  Anne Wojcicki, co-founder of 23andMe, said, "23andMe is designed to provide our customers with scientifically accurate, high-quality information about their own genetic code in a format that is easy to understand and use. We believe this information provides intriguing insights into an individual's genetics, with the goal of expanding the collective knowledge base by enabling active participation in research." 23andMe sends individuals a saliva kit containing a barcoded tube for saliva collection. Customers then use the enclosed mailing materials to send their samples to 23andMe's contracted laboratory. The DNA is then extracted and exposed to a microchip-like device that reads more than half a million points in the individual's genome, including a proprietary set chosen by 23andMe scientists, to produce a detailed genetic profile. Once the analysis has been completed, individuals will be able to use their own private login to access their data via 23andMe's secure website. Using 23andMe's web-based tools, individuals can explore their ancestry, see what genetics research means for them and compare themselves to friends and family members. Ultimately, they will become part of a community that works together to advance the overall understanding of the human genome. Labels: Google, Web Analytics, Web Apps
In a recent book published by O'Reilly called High Performance Web Sites, author Steve Sounders, Chief Performance Yahoo!, outlines tips, tricks and best practices to increase the speed of your web site. He outlines 14 specific rules that will cut 20% to 25% off response time when users request a page. According to the author even highly optimized pages, such as Yahoo! Search and the Yahoo! Front Page, were able to benefit from these surprisingly simple performance guidelines. The book explains how you can optimize the performance of the Ajax, CSS, JavaScript, Flash, and images that you've already built into your site -- adjustments that are critical for any rich web application. The book focuses heavily on the display time taken up on the browser side and by the communication between server and browser as opposed to focusing on tuning web servers, databases, and hardware. Here are some of the tips and tricks; * Make Fewer HTTP Requests * Use a Content Delivery Network * Add an Expires Header * Gzip Components * Put Stylesheets at the Top * Put Scripts at the Bottom * Avoid CSS Expressions * Make JavaScript and CSS External * Reduce DNS Lookups * Minify JavaScript * Avoid Redirects * Remove Duplicates Scripts * Configure ETags * Make Ajax Cacheable Labels: Search Tools, web 2.0, Web Analytics
As the company realizes that it can no longer compete with Google, it is saying the future of web search is history. Yahoo says the model for getting information via the browser is outdated. In the future relevant information will be delivered directly to readers. "The future of the web is about personalization. Where search was dominant, now the web is about 'me.' It's about weaving the web together in a way that is smart and personalized for the user," said Tapan Bhat, VP, Yahoo!'s Personalised Home Page. Interestingly, iGoogle is about personalization and Google has been making alot of noise of about it. Suddenly, it has become the core focus at Yahoo. Yahoo has been losing market share to Google in search and has been recasting itself as a company not focused on search. In fact Susan Decker, CFO, Yahoo has said previously that "Our goal is not to be number one is search". "They've realised they can't compete with Google on search." said Deborah Schultz, a Silicon Valley-based marketing consultant. Search continues to gain wider adoption as an enabler for online commerce and soon may become the platform for commerce. Billions of dollar are being channeled into search as major marketers and brand advertisers see the efficiency of the medium. The river of money is finding its way mostly to Google. In fact the company does more in reveune in a single quarter than Yahoo does in a year. The entire Searchnomics conference is focused on the importance of search to web sites and online businesses.  On Tuesday June 12, 2007, Yahoo holds it annual shareholder meeting. Yahoo's Terry Semel was the highest paid CEO in 2006, with total compensation of $71.7 million, according to the AP. That is two times more than the $27 million in total compensation for the New York Yankees' Alex Rodriguez, baseball's highest-paid player, and higher than the typical pay A-list stars like Brad Pitt who earn $20 million a movie, plus 20 percent of the gross box office take. There is even talk that Microsoft may buy the company. That would give Semel a graceful exit. However, the word is that the company is not attractive enough to any single major buyer to advance their product line, not at that price. Jeff Clavier, a venture capitalist at SoftTech, said: "The problem with Yahoo! is that they're trying to be all things to all people but they don't do any one thing particularly well." All this is making investors, partners and customers very nervous. Several advertisers and partners are moving to Google; Friendster, a social networking site, moved to Google from Yahoo to better monetize its user base with Google's larger ad platform and deeper inventory. If this trend continues, Yahoo maybe history before search is. Labels: Google, Local Search, Mobile Search, Search and Marketplaces, Search Engine Marketing, Search Engine Optimization, Search Tools, Social Search, Vertical Search, Web Analytics
According to a survey of over 1000 web analytics professionals, consultants and end-users: - 82% said web analytics was largely misunderstood within their organisations - 56% found web analytics difficult Most respondents had at least two years of experience with the relevant technologies and approximately 25% had over five years experience. The survey was conducted by Web measurement guru Eric T. Peterson and Jim Sterne, co-founder and chairman of the Web Analytics Association. According to Mr. Peterson only 8 percent of companies worldwide are taking a process-oriented approach towards web analytics. "In my experience, process is the key to both success and achieving positive and recurring return on investment from web analytics technology and staff", he said. Mr. Peterson will be the opening speaker on web analytics at the up coming Searchnomics conference, Brett Crosby from Google and Avinash Kaushik and John Squire from Coremetrics will also be speaking at Searchnomics. Labels: Google, Search Engine Marketing, Search Engine Optimization, Search Tools, Web Analytics
comScore, today released a study on the relationship between paid search marketing and retail e-commerce as of March 2007. The study revealed that e-commerce sites are the most frequent users of search engine marketing, with each of the top ten search engine marketers being either retail or comparison shopping sites. In March, nearly 20 billion sponsored links were served to U.S. Internet users from the top search engines, with eBay.com leading the charge as the top search engine marketer with 802 million (4.1 percent) of sponsored link exposures, followed by Smarter.com with 366 million (1.9 percent), and Shopping.com with 357 million (1.8 percent). According to James Lamberti, senior vice president of comScore Search Solutions, all of the top ten sites generating sponsored links are retail or comparison shopping sites and account for about one out of every six sponsored links served to U.S. Internet users. Top Sites Generating Search Engine Sponsored Link Exposures | Total Internet | Sponsored Links (000) | Share %
| | eBay.com | 801,744 | 4.1% | | Smarter.com | 365,766 | 1.9% | | Shopping.com | 357,012 | 1.8% | | Bizrate.com | 297,649 | 1.5% | | Dealtime.com | 283,574 | 1.4% | | Shopzilla.com | 245,398 | 1.2% | | Target.com | 202,482 | 1.0% | | Nextag.com | 163,220 | 0.8% | | Shop.com | 123,009 | 0.6% |
Source: comScore qSearch, Share of Voice Report (March 2007)Labels: Google, Search and Marketplaces, Vertical Search, Web Analytics
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