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Analyzing Website Traffic
(C) Michael Rasmussen
All Rights Reserved
http://www.search-engines-revealed.com
Analyzing your web traffic statistics can be an invaluable tool for a
number of different reasons. But before you can make full use of this
tool, you need to understand how to interpret the data.
Most web hosting companies will provide you with basic web traffic
information that you then have to interpret and make pertinent use of.
However, the data you receive from your host company can be
overwhelming if you don't understand how to apply it to your particular
business and website. Let's start by examining the most basic data -
the average visitors to your site on a daily, weekly, and monthly
basis.
These figures are the most accurate measure of your website's activity.
It would appear on the surface that the more traffic you see recorded,
the better you can assume your website is doing, but this is an
inaccurate perception. You must also look at the behavior of your
visitors once they come to your website to accurately gauge the
effectiveness of your site.
There is often a great misconception about what is commonly known as
"hits" and what is really effective, quality traffic to your site. Hits
simply means the number of information requests received by the server.
If you think about the fact that a hit can simply equate to the number
of graphics per page, you will get an idea of how overblown the concept
of hits can be. For example, if your homepage has 15 graphics on it,
the server records this as 15 hits, when in reality we are talking
about a single visitor checking out a single page on your site. As you
can see, hits are not useful in analyzing your website traffic.
The more visitors that come to your website, the more accurate your
interpretation will become. The greater the traffic is to your website,
the more precise your analysis will be of overall trends in visitor
behavior. The smaller the number of visitors, the more a few anomalous
visitors can distort the analysis.
The aim is to use the web traffic statistics to figure out how well or
how poorly your site is working for your visitors. One way to determine
this is to find out how long on average your visitors spend on your
site. If the time spent is relatively brief, it usually indicates an
underlying problem. Then the challenge is to figure out what that
problem is.
It could be that your keywords are directing the wrong type of visitors
to your website, or that your graphics are confusing or intimidating,
causing the visitor to exit rapidly. Use the knowledge of how much time
visitors are spending on your site to pinpoint specific problems, and
after you fix those problems, continue to use time spent as a gauge of
how effective your fix has been.
Additionally, web traffic stats can help you determine effective and
ineffective areas of your website. If you have a page that you believe
is important, but visitors are exiting it rapidly, that page needs
attention. You could, for example, consider improving the link to this
page by making the link more noticeable and enticing, or you could
improve the look of the page or the ease that your visitors can access
the necessary information on that page.
If, on the other hand, you notice that visitors are spending a lot of
time on pages that you think are less important, you might consider
moving some of your sales copy and marketing focus to that particular
page.
As you can see, these statistics will reveal vital information about
the effectiveness of individual pages, and visitor habits and
motivation. This is essential information to any successful Internet
marketing campaign.
Your website undoubtedly has exit pages, such as a final order or
contact form. This is a page you can expect your visitor to exit
rapidly. However, not every visitor to your site is going to find
exactly what he or she is looking for, so statistics may show you a
number of different exit pages. This is normal unless you notice a exit
trend on a particular page that is not intended as an exit page. In the
case that a significant percentage of visitors are exiting your website
on a page not designed for that purpose, you must closely examine that
particular page to discern what the problem is. Once you pinpoint
potential weaknesses on that page, minor modifications in content or
graphic may have a significant impact on the keeping visitors moving
through your site instead of exiting at the wrong page.
After you have analyzed your visitor statistics, it's time to turn to
your keywords and phrases. Notice if particular keywords are directing
a specific type of visitor to your site. The more targeted the visitor
- meaning that they find what they are looking for on your site, and
even better, fill out your contact form or make a purchase - the more
valuable that keyword is.
However, if you find a large number of visitors are being directed - or
should I say misdirected - to your site by a particular keyword or
phrase, that keyword demands adjustment. Keywords are vital to bringing
quality visitors to your site who are ready to do business with you.
Close analysis of the keywords your visitors are using to find your
site will give you a vital understanding of your visitor's needs and
motivations.
Finally, if you notice that users are finding your website by typing in
your company name, break open the champagne! It means you have achieved
a significant level of brand recognition, and this is a sure sign of
burgeoning success.
Michael Rasmussen is a successful Internet Marketing Consultant and
author of many top-selling eBooks. Michael has been marketing online
since the early days and he knows what it takes to make money and
succeed online. Stop by his Web site and subscribe to his Free monthly
newsletter full strategies and techniques for successful web site
promotions that can help YOU!
Go to
http://www.search-engines-revealed.com
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