Top 7 Misconceptions About Web Analytics

Posted by Akin Arikan on March 20, 2008

0 comments | 2280 reads

Don’t be caught voicing any of the following misconceptions about web analytics, i.e. the art of studying visitors to the Web site with the help of reporting tools from vendors such as Coremetrics, Omniture, Webtrends, and Unica.

Web Analytics is about web visitors’ clicks
No! Web analytics is about people! And remember that web site visitors are the same people that also visit your stores, receive your catalogs, and view your commercials on TV.

Web Analytics is for the web team to worry about
Not so! Wouldn’t an offline marketer also need to know how many customers go online after receiving their direct mail or viewing their commercials? And did they complete a transaction? If not, why not?

It’s none of my business --- I am not in marketing
Think again! To a product manager, web analytics reveals the product features that the market cares for. A sales rep learns how to make a more relevant pitch to each individual prospect. And for customer service, web analytics is about helping customers help themselves.

Web Analytics is about ads clicked and pages viewed
Ludicrous! It is about business interactions of your customers with your company, and about finding ways to help both sides achieve more.

Web Analytics is for making the website better
Very shortsighted! Web analytics is also about making more out of your customer relationships, providing better service, and learning how to better sell to each individual.

All Web Analytics tools are basically the same
If that were true, why do you think companies spend weeks distinguishing the finer nuances to identify the tool that is the best fit for their unique situation!

It's a bore!
Good web analytics is like having an interview with someone who knows your customers extremely well. If that’s boring, you’re boring!

Akin Arikan

Akin Arikan, the author of Multichannel Marketing: Metrics and Methods for On and Offline Success, is a director of product strategy for IBM's web analytics and interactive marketing solutions. Akin has been working with analytics practitioners since 1999.

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