What exactly is web analytics?

Web analytics is the measurement and analysis of web traffic that goes to a website or holds the potential of going to a website. Technically, there are two forms of web analytics, off-site web analytics and on-site web analytics.

The different aspects of web analytics

Off-site web analytics measures and analyzes the traffic of other websites that may bring traffic to your website. Thus, it measures traffic opportunity, your website’s visibility and comments relating to your website. On the other hand, on-site web analytics measures and analyzes visitor’s tracks as they explore your website.

This form of analysis measures the commerciality of your website’s overall performance. Generally, this is measured by which landing pages are most popular and what drives traffic to these landing pages. Analysis would then take place and webmasters would then try to use this data to increase traffic to the website.

Typically there are two approaches in collecting on-site web data. First method is by log file analysis, which involves reading log files wherein all records of web transactions are kept. Second method is by page tagging by using JavaScript on each webpage of the site to alert another server when a browser accesses a page.

However, nowadays software are available that integrates the two into more user friendly interfaces to allow ease of information gathering and analysis. An example is Google Analytics.

How web analytics can assist Search Engine Optimization

SEO Internet marketing is based on the choice and usage of prominent keywords that will direct traffic flow to your website. Thus, your website ranking on a search engine’s results page and PPC marketing is highly dependent on your choice of keywords.

However, how will you know which keywords to use in your website contents and pay per click campaigns? Hence, web analytics comes into play. With the use of web analytics tools identification of essential search words is easily found. You can find the keywords most used by visitors or buyers to access your page and from then onwards optimize those keywords or change contents accordingly in your campaigns.

Although the concept of web analytics is not new, but the use of Analytics in SEO is the key to SEO success. This is because it is a powerful tool that offers the details in obtaining traffic and obtaining actual sales.

These may include: actions which visitors take; through which links the visitors arrive on your website; frequency of visits; the different use of keywords used by people of different geographical locations; which marketing tools are generating the highest conversion rates and the most useful keywords.

Therefore it can be seen that with the use of web analytics, you have more control and information on your website and can then use it to your advantage in your SEO campaign such as increase use of keywords buyers use and decreasing those that may result in high bounce rates. Hence, Search Engine Optimization success is highly dependent on web analytics usage.

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