Track Your Web Stats with Google Analytics

One of the most important aspects of gauging the success of your web presence is tracking how many viewers actually visit your site, and how those viewers experience it. Everything from where your viewers are coming from, how long they stay on the site, and the path they take when browsing your website are vitally important to improving your web presence. There are a lot of tools available to track your website, most website hosting providers will offer some kind of site statistics reporting tool. But regardless of what reporting tool you currently use, chances are that more information can help. And where better to get that reporting than the biggest search engine out there?

What is it?

Google Analytics is an [as of now] free service that tracks website traffic, and provides some excellent reporting tools, including graphical charts and graphs that display just about every aspect of site traffic. The reporting includes statistics not only about the basic site traffic, but also advanced information about geographic demographics. For more information on the types of reports you get, check out Google's product overview here.

How do I sign up?

The first step in setting up Google Analytics is registering for a Google Account, and then setting up a Google Analytics account. Here is a step by step:

1. To sign up for a Google Account, click here.

2. Once this is complete, you can sign up for a Google Analytics account, click here:

3. Once both of your accounts have been created, sign into Google Analytics at http://www.google.com/analytics/

4. To register a URL for Google tracking: click “Sign Up for Google Analytics”

Follow the prompts:

-Enter Website URL, Account Name, Website Country and Time Zone of Origin, click “Continue” -Enter Contact information, click “Continue”
-Accept User Agreement, click “Continue”

How do I set it up?

At this point, things will get a bit more technical. If you are familiar with HTML and currently utilize a Content Management system such as AccuCMS, you will need to:

-"Copy" the Tracking Code
-Select the “New Tracking Code (ga.js)”
-And "Paste" the code into each page of your website you want to track using Google Analytics just above the last "body" tag in each page.

Here is how you would do it in AccuCMS:

1. Log in to your site manager, and under the “Content” module, select “Templates”
2. Select the template into which you want to add the tracking code and select this template:

3. Scroll to the bottom of the “Rule” field:

4. Paste the Google Analytics code segment into the bottom of your content, immediately before the [body] tag. When complete, click “Save” then “Back to List”:

5. Repeat code insertion into each template you want to track.
6. To Initiate Tracking, under the “Content” module, select “Pages.”
7. “Publish” all of the pages you want to begin tracking. Note: The “Publish All Pages” feature can be useful and efficient for this purpose.
8. Return to the Google Analytics Account page; click “Finish”

Google Analytics is now installed, and your site statistics can be accessed via your Google Analytics login.

Look for an upcoming Blog posting about how to use this information to improve your website's performance!

Search Engine Marketing Primer

Internet Marketing, simply stated, involves the generation of user traffic to your website. Internet Marketing is dominated by two primary areas and tactics: Search Engine Optimization and Search Engine Marketing.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) describes the practice of structuring your website in such a way that Google and other search engines rank your pages at the top of appropriate searches. This is achieved by utilizing a series of tools and best practices to determine the best keywords to include in your website's code and content, and then ensuring these keywords are properly integrated into your website.

Activity generated via SEO is also called "organic traffic", as you are not directly paying for the traffic, you are simply constructing your web pages and content in the most optimal way.

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) describes the practice of paying directly for user traffic. A good example of SEM is Google's "Adwords" program, in which you establish a budget and requested search terms, and users are supplied with an "ad" that links to your website when they enter the appropriate search criteria. You only pay for the traffic you receive, but you pay for every single "click-through".

Although it can become expensive, SEM can be very effective if done properly and monitored on an ongoing basis. However, smart organizations ensure they execute SEO prior to SEM, as organic traffic can be more powerful and less expensive than SEM.

Creating a blog like this one can be another excellent online marketing technique that can be utilized. Blogs should typically focus on value-added information presented in a concise manner. Since search engines treat blogs more like news than marketing content, they can rank higher in search engine results than similar content posted to websites.

In the coming weeks we'll delve more deeply into the topics introduced in this post, so be sure to check back for more information.

The Hybrid Web Firm, a new paradigm

Internet providers have typically come in many flavors, from hardcore technology providers to marketing companies, from hosting datacenters to graphic design firms. But the increasing demands and competition of today's web environment call for a more comprehensive approach to web development, and the addition of consulting and strategy at the beginning of the entire process in order to pull all of these disciplines together.

To ensure the success of our clients, we are dedicated to bringing together all of these skills, and packaging them in a way that is not only intelligent and creative, but also cost-effective.

The articles that follow will not only highlights specific topics, but also show how they integrate with the overall game plan, so look for the process continuum that accompanies each article:

Proprietary CMS vs Open Source, a contrarian point of view

When searching for the best software to power your new website, you could easily be deluged with possibilities. From completely open-source products available free for the taking on the web to proprietary platforms that are available only from their respective developers, the options can be overly expansive.

So where to begin? Well, the first step in analyzing a decision like this should always be to focus on your needs first. Do you have extensive internal technical capability and resources? Are you willing to invest in learning a new technology? Do you want to work with the firm that developed the CMS software? Do it yourself website projects are actually very similar to do it yourself projects at home. How much time do you have? Do you want to save on the initial costs but extend your timeline and ongoing costs? Will you ever really “finish” your project?

Open-source projects do have their following in the general internet community, and also with qualified implementers. Finding a qualified developer who can implement an open-source software can mitigate some of the work and risk involved in a “DIY” project. But is having a third-party involved in the project really a benefit to your business?

Typically produced by educational projects or informal gatherings of developers from around the world, open-source projects tend to adhere to the design principals of their creators. Not generally created with a specific business purpose or end use in mind, the open-source projects tend to focus on tools rather than outcomes. The implementers of these products must therefore inherit many of these conclusions drawn in a relative vacuum from the end-use business world the software will eventually inhabit. Due to the non-commercial nature of many open-source projects, there also is a limited degree of reliability of version releases, bug fixes, and integrated hosting offerings. Implementers who utilize a specific open-source product may well become relatively expert in their use and implementation, but do not typically have the “architects” viewpoint when it comes to making extensive modifications to the software. With this in mind, there is often not a lot of support for extensibility. Since you cannot work direct with the designers of the software, your end-product may not be flexible enough to evolve at the same speed as your business. The traditional advantage cited by open-source projects is that anyone can develop using the platform. This is technically true, but any developer will require a learning curve to master a new technology, and since the technology labor is the most expensive part of any customization project, businesses that choose open-source will end up paying for this learning curve.

The world of proprietary CMS software has seen strong growth in the past several years. With this growth has come a wave of specialization across industries and needs. Some firms have developed software specific to the non-profit sector, while other firms have focused on small-business or the middle-market. These firms have typically developed their own software, and architected this software to meet the needs of their clientele. These firms are positioned to quickly and efficiently meet their needs of their clients, including extending and customizing their technology to meet specific needs. Due to specialization and operational efficiency, the degree of time, cost and functional flexibility of these proprietary offerings can often far outreach their open-source counterparts. And so in the end, forming a strong partnership with a successful, established provider of CMS software can not only result in a better outcome for your company, but also be cheaper. Not to mention that successful CMS providers are around for a reason, they provide a value for their customers. So be sure to check their references and examine their portfolio of work to ensure they are a good fit for your business.