In Part Two of our Budgeting 2009 Web Strategy series, we’ll cover Analytics.
Analytics
Cost: Free – $20/mo
Time: 1-2 hours setup for each site, 1/2 hour weekly analysis for each site
As I mentioned last year – as well as on many posts since – analytics is a critical facet of your web strategy not only because it provides measurement, but it is one of the most valuable research tools you have at your disposal. Most people install analytics on their website and never look at the data again. There are many reasons for this. Some people don’t have time and most just don’t know what the data means.
If you don’t have time, you need to make time. Budget at least a half hour a week to peek into your analytics – there’s a gold mine of data in there that is essential to measuring and planning for an effective web strategy.
Tools and Services
At 48Web, we have used Google Analytics since its release – and we love it. Unfortunately we are growing out of it and there are other services out there that offer more features with real-time tracking. Don’t get us wrong, Google Analytics is an extremely powerful tool with a great price tag – free.
We have recently started using Clicky and absolutely love it. We have a post coming next week about Clicky (make sure you subscribe), but for now we’ll let you know some of the killer features it offers. First off you get real time tracking – which is a must have if you are doing any kind of internet marketing. Other features include a WordPress plugin, twitter and feedburner integration, spy mode, RSS feeds for all kinds of stats, and an iPhone interface… Among several others. Clicky is an amazing service we are looking forward to using very much in 2009. The premium plan is only $20/mo, which we feel is a great price for the functionality it provides.
Also to note regarding analytics – if you are sharing content and links via social networks or email marketing, make sure you are tracking stats on those as well. There is a ton of information you can acquire by using URL tracking services. We have a rundown on URL Shorteners and list of the best tools. Also be sure to look into aWeber’s analytics tools for email marketers. Most of these tools are free and easy to insert into your workflow via bookmarklets.
Resources
Here are some resources to help you implement and understand your analtyics.
- Ask us at 48Web to help you implement and understand your analytics
- Google Analytics Blog
- Web Analytics Blog
- ROI Revolution Blog
- Google Analytics 2.0
- Advanced Web Metrics with Google Analytics
- Web Analytics: An Hour a Day
What tools do you use for analytics? How often do you check them? If you have any other feedback or recommendations, please let us know in the comments.
Budgeting 2009 Web Strategy
- Part 1: Budgeting 2009 Web Strategy – Hosting
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