Which Web Statistics package to use?

Tuesday, October 09, 2007 8:00 AM

Posted by Jonathan Danylko | Tag: Metrics | Comments: 0 | View blog reactions

Depending on your site goals, these various web metrics packages can provide a ton of information about your visitors.

Back in the day, I remember good ole WebTrends was the main company to go to for site statistics. But now, it seems there are so many out there, it's hard to know how a web tracking tool fits into your plan for world domination.

Why do I need it?

Why do you....Why DO YOU NEED IT?!??!?

For those of you who don't have any web statistic package on your web site, I would strongly encourage you to take action now and add one of these metrics sites to your web site or have your devigner add it for you. It's kind of like writing checks without recording it in your checkbook. You receive visitors, but you don't where they came from. So how can you determine where to focus your efforts?

Lately, the biggest "rush" has been with BlogRush. Although this isn't a web metrics package, you definitely need to know where these people are coming from. Hence the reason for web metrics on your site (even though BlogRush will have a full reporting dashboard soon)

How does it work?

Usually, the metrics site provides you with a JavaScript code snippit. Insert that into your web site template so it tracks every single page. If you miss an important page and it's a key generator of traffic, guess what? You'll never know where they came from.

How do I know which one is the best?

You won't until you try them out. Each one can suit a different need and each one can be just as generic as the last one. Set a goal of what you want to accomplish with your site and pick a metrics package that matches those goals and you'll be on your way.

Ok, How much will this set me back (or how much will this cost?)

FREE...as in beer. These metric packages I use on my site are all completely free.

Ok, Ok, I get it. Get on with the sites

Ok, I get the picture. These are the statistic packages I currently use on my site, but trust me, there are a lot, and I mean a lot more, out there (Techmagazine has a good post on 40 great web metric sites).

Google Analytics
http://google.com/analytics

The daddy of analytical web traffic tools. Google made this a full-blown metrics powerhouse. The site provides a full dashboard with multiple levels of tracking, integration of AdWords campaigns into the statistics, and many more features that makes this currently the king of web traffic tools.

MyBlogLog
http://mybloglog.com/

Definitely a great addition to the web. Since MyBlogLog was purchased by Yahoo!, it seems Yahoo! saw something great in this startup. Everytime you visit a web site (community) after a certain number of visits, you are automatically added to the community through repetition (their thinking is since you keep going back, it must be a good site).

They also have a great widget for knowing who visits your site (see on the left at the bottom? I seeeeee you).

Overall, MyBlogLog is definitely a way to build community.

10³ Bees
http://103bees.com/

Remember what I said about certain web metric tools that add a certain feature that makes it all worth it. Well 10³ Bees has a feature that is definitely worth having on your site.

The 10³ Bees engine collects questions that people asked in search engines. If you view these questions, they may give you an insight as to how to focus the past, present, and future content of your site even more.

I would definitely recommended this web metrics tool.

HitTail
http://www.hittail.com/

HitTail is another site that fills a specific need. HitTail focuses on the long tail of the Internet. Sometimes it's better to focus on the smaller searches as opposed to the larger ones.

HitTail provides a list of keywords that niche people are focusing on. View these reports and keyword suggestions to make the most of your site.

Performancing Metrics
http://pmetrics.performancing.com/

Performancing Metrics has a great dashboard when looking over a site at first glance. It's very clean and provides a lot of useful information when you first visit to view your stats.

Reinvigorate
http://www.reinvigorate.net/

Reinvigorate is another great web metrics tool. I would even rank Performancing Metrics and Reinvigorate on a Google Analytics level. They are that good and that thorough in their reporting.

Conclusion

Phew, I think that's all of them.

Each one has their own strengths and weaknesses, but like I said, I've hand-picked these sites to help me better understand my audience and find out their needs.

Oh! One other thing...I've had friends and clients ask me if adding too many metrics packages are bad or could slow down your site. In my opinion, I really haven't see a degradation or lack of performance in my site, but while I think that "too much information is better than not enough information," I would also agree that adding an obscene amount of tracking would eventually hurt your sites performance (Think of those poor users on dialup).

Of course, it all depends on how much each site collects and sends remotely.

As the Knight says in Indiana Jones, "Choose wisely."

Are you using a great metrics tool that no one has heard about yet? Post something below about it.

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