If a tree falls in a forest…

You have likely heard the age-old question: If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? The Boston Business Journal recently proposed a more modern version of the query: “If you have content, but no one sees it, does it really exist?” (Plumb, 2012).

Clearly, it exists, because someone (maybe you?) has spent valuable time writing crisp, concise text and selecting the perfect, attention-grabbing images for your website. So the real question is: Does it bring you any value? Black Tie Marketing (2012, para. 3) suggests that having a great website that does not show up on Page 1 of a Google search is like “having a super cool billboard in the middle of the desert.” People are not going to see it.

Enter Web analytics. Lest the eyes of my right-brained readers start to glaze over, consider what Neil Mason of Web analytics firm Applied Insights says about this relatively new field: “It's not just about the Web, it's about business over the Web. Similarly, it's not just about analytics, it's about insights” (Sterne, 2006). In other words, Web analytics is not about graphs, pie charts and number crunching—it is about understanding your customers (and potential customers) and the way in which they want to interact with your company on the Web. Just as a good store owner pays attention to the shopping habits of those who walk through her front door, she should take notice of the behavior of those who click through to her online storefront.

For those who think that anything involving analytics is beyond their capability, Google has come to the rescue with a free (yes, FREE!) tool called Google Analytics. Through the technological magic of cookies and tracking codes, you can learn answers to some very telling questions, such as:

• How many people are visiting your site? Do more visit on particular days? Does less traffic come in the morning than the afternoon?
• Where are your visitors coming from? Search engines, another website, that brilliant email you sent with a hyperlinked coupon?
• Are they viewing the site on an iPhone or Blackberry, or maybe an iPad? If so, do they spend more or less time on the site than those who have the benefit of a full-sized screen?
• What are they doing when they get there? Do they bounce (i.e., turn around and leave without visiting a second page)? (ouch!) Or do they spend 5 minutes looking at seven pages and then make a purchase? (cha-ching!)

Believe it or not, Google Analytics can tell you all this and much more. But, the real magic happens when you combine this information with marketing know-how and a little common sense, and then take action to make the numbers move in the direction you want them to go.

For example, Google Analytics can tell you that the Web ad you just placed is driving lots of traffic to your site (good news!) and that 80 percent of those who click on the ad bounce (bad news). Here is where you take over. Maybe the ad is great, but the Web page it directs to, known as the landing page, is poorly designed. Maybe the landing page looks good, but the content is not what the viewer expected based on the ad. Maybe the URL is broken and viewers are getting an error message.

High traffic with a high bounce rate could be due to any number of factors. Google Analytics can give you data to help find the culprit, but it is Web analytics that will ultimately solve the mystery.

References

Black Tie Marketing (2012, July 18). If you have a phenomenal website and no one sees it, does it really count? [Weblog post]. Retrieved November 2, 2012 from http://www.blacktiedigital.com/web-design/if-you-have-a-phenomenal-website-and-no-one-sees-it-does-it-really-count/

Plumb, T. (2012, Oct. 26). Content optimization company RAMPs up. Boston Business Journal. Retrieved November 2, 2012 from http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/print-edition/2012/10/26/content-optimization-company-ramps-up.html

Sterne, J. (2006, Aug. 23). Why you need Web analytics [Weblog post]. Retrieved November 2, 2012 from http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/10888.asp