Web Analytics (also: web tracking) is the generic term for the collection, analysis and presentation of data on websites, web shops and apps. With the help of web analytics tools, user behavior can be tracked and examined in detail. With a worldwide market share of an estimated 80%, Google Analytics is by far the most powerful web analytics tool. The conclusions drawn from this are mainly used to optimize your own website and online marketing in order to achieve better results.
Due to the “digital footprint” that most users leave behind on the web, a wide range of insights can be gained.
The main tasks of web analytics are tracking, monitoring and quality assurance and improvement. They can be applied in any many different areas, which includes the following categories, for example:
User level:
At the user level, mainly behavioral patterns and purchase transactions are recorded. This includes for example:
- Conclusions about typified customer journeys or bounce rates
- Flow of visitors
- Conversions
- and much more
Webshop:
For the shop level, mainly sales-relevant KPI’s are interesting. These include for example:
- Shopping cart analysis
- Time of day factors
- E-mail campaign tracking in connection with conversions
- Analysis of cross-selling potentials
- and much more
Page level:
On page level, the SEO suitability is examined in particular, exemplary KPIs are:
- Keywords
- Visibility
- Analysis and tracking of backlinks
- and much more
There are several ways to collect user data for analytics tools:
- Tags and pixels
The most common tracking method, which is also used by Google Analytics is the integration of a tracking pixel or JavaScript tag directly in the source code of the website. With this, information about the user’s browser, operating system or whether the user is surfing the site via mobile or desktop can be tracked.
- Log file analysis
Each server keeps a log of its activities. This is usually used for error analysis, but can also be used to analyze the site itself. For example, this log file provides data on the frequency of page requests and the activity of website visitors.
- Network protocol analysis
Via the so-called network protocol analysis (NPA) the data traffic in the network (between the web server and the connection to the Internet) is retrieved and collected by decoder.
- Cookies
Cookies are used to assign an entire session or a page view during a session to a (returning) user. However, cookies can now be blocked by users, and the GDPR also allows you to refuse the use of cookies.
Objectives for the use of web analytics tools can be, for example:
- Increased conversions or the conversion rate
- Increased effectiveness of advertising (e.g. banners or SEA)
- Increased number of visitors
- Increased length of stay
- Reduction of the bounce rate
Based on these objectives and with the knowledge gained from the use of web analytics tools, marketing campaigns can then be optimized or relaunched and the website as a whole can be optimized. In doing so, not only the product portfolio is put to the test, but also the page navigation, advertising measures, reasons for leaving the page or SEO measures.
With every web analytics tool, it is essential to ensure that it is used in compliance with data protection regulations.