Google Analytics Friend or Foe to Bloggers?

I have grown to both love and hate Google Analytics. As a public relations practitioner and marketer, I understand the valuable information such a tool can provide. On the other hand, I hate how Google has infiltrated everything I do on my blog. I like sharing insights and my experiences in my Digital Marketing Communications graduate program at West Virginia University. At this point in the program I can honestly say I’m no longer a novice, and I’m proud of that. Still, I’m far from an expert, and I continue to struggle with installing the tools that Google Analytics promises will benefit me, my blog and others.

I understand all too well how important data is for businesses and government agencies alike. Understanding why visitors to a commercial Web site leave before making a purchase, especially when they leave items in a shopping cart, and making the appropriate adjustments can make the difference between those businesses that succeed and those that fail in an Internet-driven economy. What I don’t understand is how this same Google Analytics tool can be used to improve government Web sites and other non-e-commerce sites that only provide information.

No doubt such sites want good visitor experiences as much as commercial entities do so it is important to track visits. That tool is a given. The use of keywords and filtering also could prove useful. Tracking sales, not so much. I am happy to say that I successfully installed mega tags and keywords on my blog as well as filters to better understand those who visit my site so that they may benefit from my experiences, both good and bad. Although I have not yet seen any results from these latests additions, I hope that I will so soon. And when I do, know that those who visit this blog will be the beneficiaries.

Goals, Funnels and Tracking, Oh My!

Until recently, if you asked me what a funnel was, I would have said it was a cone-shaped object usually used in the kitchen to pour liquids from a larger container into a storage jar. I remember my mother using one in the summer to make homemade jams and jellies and can vegetables from the garden. I even would have bought the definition that it is a cone-shaped object placed into the gas tank of a lawnmower to aid in filling it with fuel.


But I would have been wrong in both cases. In today’s technology-dependent world, a funnel is a tool marketers can use in Google Analytics, a free service offered by Google that generates detailed statistics about visitors to a Web site or a blog like this one.

Similarly, a goal is not a personal objective or even a score in an athletic contest like basketball, soccer or hockey; it is a measurable action performed by visitors to your Web site or blog. I think both goals and funnels would be more useful if I were actually selling something instead of sharing information. In fact, I found the steps a little confusing for a non-e-commerce user.

Still, I am happy to report that I successfully installed goals and funnels onto my blog and Google Analytics account. I also enabled site search in hopes of making my blog more user friendly.

Since installing Google Analytics earlier this month, I have 25 visits, 55 page views with the average visitor spending 7:36 on my site and a 44 percent bounce rate.

I am pleasantly surprised by these numbers. I do wish, though, that I could attract more comments. Nonetheless, I hope those who visit my blog, “Come on back now, Ya’ hear!”

Google Analytics Provides Valuable Information

I want to know more about using the Internet, social media and other technology as marketing tools. That’s why I’m enrolled in West Virginia University’s Digital Marketing Communications graduate program. Today I successfully installed Google Analytics on my blog and looked at my first report.



While it doesn’t list much beyond a few zeros, getting here was a journey I won’t soon forget. I send kudos to Bilal Aslam, a computer engineering student and the creator of Blogger Basics: How to Install Google Analytics on Blogger (2009). Without the elementary step-by-step instructions in this article, I would still be struggling to install Google Analytics with my head in a fog.

I know how important this step is for a blogger or a company wanting to do business on the Internet. Google Analytics allows bloggers and businesses alike to monitor their online health. Gathering such information helps companies understand their customers and why other potential consumers may leave the Web site after only a quick visit.

The key to any effective marketing campaign begins with good research. Google Analytics can help provide such valuable information so that businesses and bloggers know what visitors like and what they don’t. Google Analytics goes even further. Thomas McMahon in a post on Online Marketing Blog (2008) outlined five lesser known advantages to using Google Analytics. Among them is that Google Analytics allows users to capture internal search statistics (McMahon, 2008). This feature allows users not only to see what visitors put into an internal search box, but what page they were on when they made the search and what page they chose in the search results.

While it is too soon to know what Google Analytics will tell me about visitors to my blog, I hope it provides insight that will help me make it a better blog to read and perhaps even teach something new to others.

Reference:

Aslam, B. (2009, June 29). Blogger Basics: How to Install Google Analytics on Blogger. Retrieved February 8, 2010, from http://bloggerfaqs.blogspot.com/2009/06/how-to-install-google-analytics-on.html.

McMahon, T. (2008, February 14). Five Lesser Known Google Analytics Features. Online Marketing Blog. Retrieved February 8, 2010, http://www.toprankblog.com/2008/02/5-google-analytics-features.

Google Thinks I'm a Webmaster. Yeah Right.

I thought I knew quite a bit about computers and technology. Then came my latest assignment in my Digital Marketing Communications class at West Virginia University, Web Analytics and Search Engine Optimization. The assignment seemed easy enough: register our blogs on Google. Got it. Then experiment with first anchor text counts. Huh? I know this is a graduate level course but when it comes to what amounts to basic computer programming I need a primer, and when I say primer, I mean step-by-step instructions.

After reading the assigned reading at http://www.seomoz.org/blog/results-of-google-experimentation-only-the-first-anchor-text-counts, I was left more confused than ever. For example, step three in tracking a fictitious Web site tells you to: Create 6 pages on the site, the homepage (A) with two links to pages (B) and (C), pages (D) and (E) - both linked to by page (B) - and page (F) linked to from page (C). It's important to make sure that (B) is the first link on the homepage (A) and (C) is the second link (Fishkin, 2008). Now consider I’ve never had any training or experience like this. So what is a researcher and writer to do? Well Google it, of course!

My search for “how to register a domain name with Google” first led me to multiple sites that wanted me to pay to register my blog. I’m a college student, remember? So I continued my search for a way to register my blog for free. And here comes the funny part. I didn’t find anything right away on Google but a search on Bing returned an eHow article that walked me through it. The instructions were simplistic, but specific, exactly what I needed.

1. Go to Google.

2. Visit the "Submit Your Content" page at Google.com. Click on "Submit a URL" located in the "Here's How to Get Started" box in the upper right corner.

3. Enter the name of your URL. Copy the captcha code. The "captcha code" refers to the funny-looking characters in the box that you must copy into another box. This ensures that people, not software, submits URLs. Software can't read these captcha codes, so this ensures that a human is submitting the site.

The eHow article also include a handy tip box that listed things needed before beginning, including a Google account and the URL of my blog.

I’m proud to say that after days, and when I say days I mean multiple days, of struggling to figure out what exactly I was supposed to do, I successfully registered my blog with Google with the help of that eHow article. And Google now thinks I’m a webmaster! Take a look at this screen grab capture that says it’s providing information for webmasters.

I can tell you that both the webmaster and assistant webmaster at the West Virginia Department of Education felt a chill run down their spines at the thought. They can rest assured that their jobs are safe.

References:

Ehow.com. Retrieved February 7, 2010, from http://www.ehow.com/how_4761630_register-domain-name-google.html.

Fishkin, R. (2008, March 16). Results of Google Experimentation - Only the First Anchor Text Counts. Retrieved February 7, 2010, from http://www.seomoz.org/blog/results-of-google-experimentation-only-the-first-anchor-text-counts.

Search Engine Optimization Lifts Companies to the Top

In a world where Americans alone conducted 14.7 billion Internet searches in December, the importance of search engine optimization and the role it plays in marketing is more important than ever (ComScore.com, 2010). While Google is by far the most used search engine, accounting for nearly 66 percent of all searches in December 2009, according to comScore (2010), other sites also used, including Yahoo, Bing and Ask.


To compare how the different sites work, let’s look at two companies that sell similar products. I’ve been thinking about buying a new house lately so why not look at real estate and the different results those keywords turn up in the different search engines: Google, Yahoo, Bing and Ask.

On Google, Realtor.com is the first entry, followed by several other informational and news sites. Remax, in the fourth spot, is the first real estate company to pop up. Howard Hanna Real Estate Services, a regional real estate company serving West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York, appeared on page 4.

In a similar search in Yahoo, Century 21 was in the top spot, while Remax didn’t even pop up in the first four pages, nor did Howard Hanna. Page 4 in the Yahoo search turned up multiple listings for real estate in Charleston, S.C., a frequent mix-up with Charleston, W.Va.

On Bing, a search for “real estate” found Century 21 on the first page, while Remax shows up on page 4. Howard Hanna is nowhere to be seen. Page 4 on Bing returns several newspaper stories that include real estate, including the listings in The New York Times. On Ask, the same search for “real estate” found Century 21 and Remax on the first page, Century 21 in position 13 and Remax in 14. On page 4 one will find Century 21 again but in a sponsored spot.

Realtor.com and Realestate.com come up first or second in all four searches. While neither provides local listings, they do provide several links and tools that site visitors likely would use. With all the real estate companies out there, the fact that Century 21 and Remax show up the most indicates they understand the importance of keywords on their title pages and in body text on their home pages.

Vanessa Fox, author of Marketing in the Age of Google and the blog Nine by Blue, said (2007) that many companies are too close to their products and Web sites to notice when they fail to use keywords that consumers would use. She suggests that all businesses really need to do to improve their searchability is to look at their sites through the eyes of their audiences. What do they see when they get to the site? Can they easily find what they’re looking for? “Ultimately, you care about users, not search engines,” Fox said. “You just want the search engines to let the users know about your site. And you want to make users happy once they do know about it” (Fox, V., 2009).

Companies that pepper their Web sites and title pages with keywords such as real estate, words that those looking to buy or sell property likely would use, will optimize their online presence, as both Century 21 and Remax have learned.


Reference:

ComScore.com. (2010, January 10). ComScore Releases December 2009 U.S. Search Engine Rankings. News Release. Retrieved January 22, 2010, from http://www.comscore.com/Press_Events/Press_Releases/2010/1/comScore_Releases_December_2009_U.S._Search_Engine_Rankings.

Fox, V. (2007, July 29). The Power of Search: Making Your Blog Content Relevant. Nine to Blue Blog. Retrieved January 21, 2010, from http://www.ninebyblue.com/blog/the-power-of-search-making-your-blog-content-relevant.

You Can't Spell Success Without SE(O)

When I first saw the title of this course, Web Metrics and SEO, I was intimidated to say the least. I didn’t even know that SEO was short for search engine optimization, nor did I really know what Web metrics meant except something to do with math. I think such lack of knowledge among marketers and public relations practitioners like me is more the rule than the exception and contributes to Web analytics failures. While I would not suggest that every marketer and public relations practitioner should be experts in Web metrics, a solid understanding is necessary in today’s Internet-based world.


In my very elementary understanding of the issue, many analytical applications fail because they assume users know precisely what they need before the analysis begins (Gemignani, Z., 2008). Often times, marketers and public relations professionals depend upon a tool to track an answer with only a vague idea where to start. Zack Gemignani with Juice Analytics said (2008) that “the exploratory analysis that follows can feel like swimming upstream when the application isn’t designed to facilitate the journey.”

As any good public relations practitioner or marketer will tell you, research is a key factor in any successful campaign. But measuring for the sake of measuring without a goal is pointless. Mark Twain once said, “People commonly use statistics like a drunk uses a lamp post; for support rather than illumination.”

Many a campaign has failed because no one really looked at what the statistics were saying. The reality is numbers don’t always tell the whole story. We must not make such assumptions if we hope our Web analytics efforts to be successful.

For example, Gerry McGovern in the Marketing Profs Daily Fix (2006) said just because someone is a repeat visitor to your site does not mean they are a satisfied customer. He cites multiple personal visits to the Cruise America site. After his first visit, he left frustrated, confused and annoyed because he could not get the quote function to work properly. A second try had equally frustrating results. Yet the numbers would make McGovern appear to be a satisfied, repeat customer (McGovern, G, 2006).

Similarly, a study by Jared Spool of User Interface Engineering comparing Gap.com with Newport-News.com further illustrates how measuring volume alone contributes to failure. The study found that Gap's site outperformed Newport News by a factor of 10. While the overall Web site design is credited for Gap's success, the study also found that the average purchase on the Gap site took 12 pages, whereas the average purchase on Newport News took 51 pages. The more pages people looked at, the less likely they were to buy (McGovern, 2006).

The lesson for both CruiseAmerica and Newport News is that volume is not sufficient to determine if a Web site is successful because it can blur reality. The numbers could represent loyal, repeat customers. But they also could just as easily represent disgruntled shoppers who leave a site without spending a penny. Better to also look at how long it takes a Web site visitor to complete a task than visits alone.

References:

Gemignani, Z. (2008, July 7). Why analytical Applications Fail. Retrieved January 21, 2010, from http://www.juiceanalytics.com/writing/why-analytical-applications-fail.

McGovern, G. (2006, May 19). Are You Measuring Failure? Marketing Profs Daily Fix blog. Retrieved January 21, 2010, from http://www.mpdailyfix.com/2006/05/are_you_measuring_failure.html.

Phillips, J. (2009, April 9). Why Web Analytics Tools Fail. Online Metrics Insider. Media Post Blogs. Retrieved January 21, 2010, from http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=103844.

Twain, M. (undated). Quotes from Famous People. Retrieved January 21, 2010, from http://www.myeyez.net/famous-quotes.shtml.

Web Metrics? SEO? Ugh! Where's My Martini!!!

As I continue my journey into the world of Digital Marketing Communications, I find myself in a sea of unknowns. My third class in West Virginia University’s DMC graduate program, Web Metrics and SEO, promises to be the most challenging yet, at least for me. You see, I’m a writer, and have been for more than 20 years. It’s a profession I’m good at and enjoy. It’s also one I selected because I didn’t have to take much math to finish my undergraduate degree.


After graduating with a journalism degree in 1987, and working in television news for four years, I found my niche as a reporter with The Associated Press. I spent 14 years with The AP before moving into public relations for the West Virginia Department of Education, where I am now. Still, I write. I am the primary writer for the department, writing everything from speeches, news releases and editorials to radio scripts, magazine articles and brochures. I have been in my position nearly four years.

Working for the AP was a fun yet demanding job, and I am glad I had the experience. I have written stories that have appeared in publications and on television broadcasts all over the world. I was the first reporter to talk to Jessica Lynch’s family when she first went missing, before the Bush Administration used her to promote the war in Iraq. This was one of the more interesting stories I worked on. Jayson Blair, who was fired from the New York Times for plagiarism, used parts of several of my stories without attribution. He was fired and I ended up in a New York Times article. Not exactly how I thought I’d be in the Times but interesting nonetheless.

I am not alone in leaving a job I loved for new adventures. In a recent article in The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg (2010) writes about how public relation practitioners are being inundated with calls from journalists looking to escape the profession before it dies, as opposed to after it dies. Many of them, like me, will need some additional education to be the most successful.

My years at the AP taught me a lot about research and writing but little about technology beyond laptops and cell phones. Everyone has that ah-ha moment, Oprah says. For me, that time came about a year into my job with the Department of Education when I was working on a marketing strategic plan and felt out of my element. It was a gap in my education for which my vast writing experience failed to prepare me. I’ve learned so much about new media in just two courses and am ready for the next step. Yet I admit I am intimidated by this class and the concepts of web analytics because of the math. I hope I am up to the challenge, and overcome my math phobia.

Reference:

Goldberg, J. (2010, January 20). The Great Journalism Exodus. The Atlantic. Retrieved January 22, 2010, from http://jeffreygoldberg.theatlantic.com/archives/2010/01/another_one_bites_the_dust.php