Website Monitoring & Statistics.

With each new web design project I embed code supplied by a third party which reports on all manor of data, relevant to your website. Surprisingly, for a web designer, I don't opt for Google Analytics but instead use Statcounter. The reason behind this decision is purely down to user-friendliness, Google Analytics just doesn't do that bit as well, for a lot of my clients this is their first exposure to website statstics so I like to ease them in gently!. That said, if your preference is for Analytics I am happy to embed that for you.

The following is an example (based on Statcounter) of the data you can analyse and therefore further enhance your website to attract more visits and more business!

Visitor Numbers.

This report details the number of visitors and page loads received by your website each day, month, quarter, year, allow you to constantly monitor the success of your website. Coupled with some of the other reports (listed below) you can get a really insightful view of how well your website is performing.

Came From.

This details how your visitors arrived at your site, be it via a search engine (Google, MSN, Ask etc.) or from a link on another website. This analysis will help inform your decisions when deciding where to focus your marketing.

Keyword Analysis.

This section is concentrated solely on the Search Engines and details what queries people are using to find your website and on what search engine. So important nowadays as a vast majority of your traffic will be from search engines meaning the design of your site in a search engine friendly way is of paramount importance. Click here to read my article on Search Engine Optimisation.

Search Engine Wars.

Which search engines are visitors using to find your website? This can help you make funding decisions if you wish to pursue paid advertising on Search Engines.

Exit Links.

Where are people going straight after they leave your website? It could be a competitor or to a site you link to from your site. For example, most of my exit links are to websites I have created and listed on my portfolio page.

Downloads.

If you have any downloadable content (such as brochures etc.) on your website this will highlight its popularity.

Visitor Paths.

Shows the most popular routes people take through your website. This may show you an important page is visited later in the visit meaning many may not ever see it. It can certainly help to flag up a potential need for a slight tweek of your website.

Visit Length.

How long are people staying on your website? If it's too short then maybe they can't find the information they are looking for?

Popular Pages.

A simple view of all your website's pages ranked in order of popularity.

Geographic Analysis.

Reports on where in the world your visitors are coming from. This can viewed at Country, County, City or even ISP level. .

System Statistics.

Which browser are your visitors using? Which Operating System? What is their monitor resolution? All this is vital for my job helping me to ensure any website I design works across the board. I have recently amended my code to cater for the increase in iPhone visitors!.

Summary.

Information is power, with a stats system like this you have the information to make informed decisions in all aspects of online promotion.

I can install this code in an existing website for a nominal charge if you would like to monitor your existing site before deciding whether or not to undertake a redesign of your web site.

If you have any questions or would like some further information then please get in touch!

Thanks for reading.