Web Analytics

Web analytics refers to the measurement of the behaviour of visitors to a website. Unlike passive audiences using TV, radio and print, interactive audiences are constantly leaving their 'digital fingerprints' on the media they interact with, which can make it easier to measure the success of any project. Web analytics is often used in the commercial sector to see which parts of a site or advertisment work and which ones do not. UK marketers are increasingly turning to Web analytics firms to help them monitor the success of their online and offline marketing campaigns. 

The most commonly refered to units of measurement for Web analytics are 'page views' and 'visits'. A page view represents a request made to the Web server for a page, as opposed to a graphic. Avisit marks a sequence of requests from a uniquely identified client. However, due to the growing complexity of the Web, these metrics are now considered somewhat basic and unsophisticated, and numerous other factors are now taken into consideration to measure audience behaviour. Web analytics data is often collected using one of two widely-used methods. Logfile analysis uses the traditional method of reading all the transactions recorded by the company's own web server.  

Alternatively, data can be gathered using the page tagging method, which employs JavaScript on each page to notify a third-party server when a page is rendered by a web browser. While logfile analysis typically requires a one-off software purchase, page tagging usually involves a monthly fee, although some vendors offer installable page tagging solutions. With the Internet advertising sector becoming increasingly competitive, there is a growing trend of marketers demanding insight into customer behaviour and revenue paths, rather than just click-throughs and page views, so they can measure the interaction between online and offline activity. To meet this demand, an increasing number of suppliers now offer advanced Web analytics tools, which are designed to align web analytics with business goals.