Analyzing Website Traffic

Analyzing your web traffic statistics can be an invaluable
tool for a number of different reasons. But before you can
make full use of this tool, you need to understand how to
interpret the data.

Most web hosting companies will provide you with basic web
traffic information that you then have to interpret and
make pertinent use of. However, the data you receive from
your host company can be overwhelming if you don't
understand how to apply it to your particular business and
website. Let's start by examining the most basic data - the
average visitors to your site on a daily, weekly, and
monthly basis.

These figures are the most accurate measure of your
website's activity. It would appear on the surface that the
more traffic you see recorded, the better you can assume
your website is doing, but this is an inaccurate
perception. You must also look at the behavior of your
visitors once they come to your website to accurately gauge
the effectiveness of your site.

There is often a great misconception about what is commonly
known as "hits" and what is really effective, quality
traffic to your site. Hits simply means the number of
information requests received by the server. If you think
about the fact that a hit can simply equate to the number
of graphics per page, you will get an idea of how overblown
the concept of hits can be. For example, if your homepage
has 15 graphics on it, the server records this as 15 hits,
when in reality we are talking about a single visitor
checking out a single page on your site. As you can see,
hits are not useful in analyzing your website traffic.

The more visitors that come to your website, the more
accurate your interpretation will become. The greater the
traffic is to your website, the more precise your analysis
will be of overall trends in visitor behavior. The smaller
the number of visitors, the more a few anomalous visitors
can distort the analysis.

The aim is to use the web traffic statistics to figure out
how well or how poorly your site is working for your
visitors. One way to determine this is to find out how long
on average your visitors spend on your site. If the time
spent is relatively brief, it usually indicates an
underlying problem. Then the challenge is to figure out
what that problem is.

It could be that your keywords are directing the wrong type
of visitors to your website, or that your graphics are
confusing or intimidating, causing the visitor to exit
rapidly. Use the knowledge of how much time visitors are
spending on your site to pinpoint specific problems, and
after you fix those problems, continue to use time spent as
a gauge of how effective your fix has been.

Additionally, web traffic stats can help you determine
effective and ineffective areas of your website. If you
have a page that you believe is important, but visitors are
exiting it rapidly, that page needs attention. You could,
for example, consider improving the link to this page by
making the link more noticeable and enticing, or you could
improve the look of the page or the ease that your visitors
can access the necessary information on that page.

If, on the other hand, you notice that visitors are
spending a lot of time on pages that you think are less
important, you might consider moving some of your sales
copy and marketing focus to that particular page.

As you can see, these statistics will reveal vital
information about the effectiveness of individual pages,
and visitor habits and motivation. This is essential
information to any successful Internet marketing campaign.

Your website undoubtedly has exit pages, such as a final
order or contact form. This is a page you can expect your
visitor to exit rapidly. However, not every visitor to your
site is going to find exactly what he or she is looking
for, so statistics may show you a number of different exit
pages. This is normal unless you notice a exit trend on a
particular page that is not intended as an exit page. In
the case that a significant percentage of visitors are
exiting your website on a page not designed for that
purpose, you must closely examine that particular page to
discern what the problem is. Once you pinpoint potential
weaknesses on that page, minor modifications in content or
graphic may have a significant impact on the keeping
visitors moving through your site instead of exiting at the
wrong page.

After you have analyzed your visitor statistics, it's time
to turn to your keywords and phrases. Notice if particular
keywords are directing a specific type of visitor to your
site. The more targeted the visitor - meaning that they
find what they are looking for on your site, and even
better, fill out your contact form or make a purchase - the
more valuable that keyword is.

However, if you find a large number of visitors are being
directed - or should I say misdirected - to your site by a
particular keyword or phrase, that keyword demands
adjustment. Keywords are vital to bringing quality visitors
to your site who are ready to do business with you. Close
analysis of the keywords your visitors are using to find
your site will give you a vital understanding of your
visitor's needs and motivations.

Finally, if you notice that users are finding your website
by typing in your company name, break open the champagne!
It means you have achieved a significant level of brand
recognition, and this is a sure sign of burgeoning success.

Thank you for stopping by,
Thom Dickey, Webmaster
http://www.thestarcomputer.com

Technology is wonderful...

Technology is allowing me to connect to the internet even though my electricity is off. I've got a laptop that is running off of battery power and a wireless connection. The wireless connection is a bit slow and often won't load a web page the first time but at least I'm online. What caused this to happen? A wind storm that knocked over a big tree and damaged the electrical boxes.

I'm a internet junkie in that I can't get enough of the internet. With my laptop I terribly limited as to what I can do but at least I'm online. The term "junkie" doesn't have to be a bad thing. I've learned (brain bench transcript id 191052) a great deal by sitting here at my wonderful computer.

I have not yet got the total knack for posting to blogs just yet which is why I have not posted anywhere else except on my own blogs.

DO YOU REBUILD OR REPLACE OUTDATED COMPUTERS?

Do not get sold on buying a new computer just because industry experts say
that they are obsolete after 4 years. Many computer models can be updated
and upgraded by simply replacing specific parts and installing new software.

If you cannot decide weather you need to buy or repair, here's the basic rule
of thumb to guide you in making that decision: Purchase a new computer if
the replacement parts or software necessary to bring it up to date cost more
than 50% of its original purchase price.

If your company (business) buys a new computer model, it should consider
selling the old one. There are secondary markets who export old computers
to Third World countries. The average resale price of a 3-year old system
is usually 10% to 15% of the original purchase price.

Using the Internet

The subject of electronic marketing will not be complete without at least
mentioning the network or all computer networks, known as the Internet.
Founded over 20 years ago by the U.S. military, and managed in part by the
National Science Foundation, the Internet has 20 to 30 million users worldwide
People who use the Internet include, entrepreneurs, executives, researchers,
educators, technicians, consumers, activists, students, and military
personnel. Most use the Internet to exchange e-mail, pursue special
interests, search databases, and conduct business.

E-MAIL
One of the most popular uses of the Internet allows you to send and receive
messages to and from people around the world from the comfort of your home
computer. These messages, which are free to send, are almost always delivered
faster and more accurately than regular mail. You can send messages to anyone
who has an Internet address. This includes members of most online services.

It is estimated that over 4,000 e-mails per minute gr through the Internet
What this means to you as an information marketer is that you can conduct
"direct mail" through the Internet to existing and potential customers.
This will eliminate your postage and printing costs. It will also reduce the
amount of time needed to process your mail.

The Internet also has mailing lists to which you can have your e-mail address
added. These mailing lists are made up of groups of Internet users with
similar interests. The users send messages back and forth to each other
regarding relevant topics. For example, if you are selling a publication on
gardening, you might want to join a mailing list of users interested in
outdoor hobbies. Whenever someone sends e-mail to this mailing list, the
e-mail goes to everyone on the mailing list. Sometimes the mailing list is
monitored by an administrator. If this is the case, you may be limited to
the kinds of e-mail you can send. If you can't find a list that has to do
with your publication's topic, you can start your own mailing list and wait
for others to join.

Once you join a mailing list, usually for free, you can receive 1000's of
e-mails from users you have already selected based on their interests.
You can then respond by sending an e-mail to each user's e-mail address.
Your e-mail might be a short message where you mention how your information
products can help them. Rather than responding to each e-mail individually,
you may be able to respond by sending one e-mail to the entire Internet
mailing list.


USENET
The Internet also has what is called, USENET newsgroups. This aspect of the
Internet allows users with specific interests to forms groups and share
information with each other, usually by posting messages that others
can read. Unlike mailing lists, you do not need to send or receive any
e-mail. You simply connect to the Internet, locate a USENET newsgroup, and
read or post messages to that particular group.

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Marketers can also use USENET newsgroups by finding a newsgroup that focus
on interest of specific advanatge to the information products being sold.
You can do this by scanning the messages that have been posted. By recording
users e-mail addresses, you can compile a mailing list to which you can
e-mail information describing your product.

The Internet also has 100's of free databases that can be accessed to gain
information on practically any subject. These databases are indexed so that
you can search for information using key words or phrases. Most are run by
volunteers, but, just about anyone can start one. Publishers can use these
databases for two purposes. First, they are an excellent source of current
information. This information can be used to help you write your publication.
Second, experienced publishers can create their own database. Once created,
the database can be accessed by millions of Internet users worldwide. Your
own database can contain your publication(s), much like your own BBS.

Finally, the Internet, like many online services, is scattered with 1000's of
interesting computer files that is accessible free of charge to Internet
users. These files are usually located in areas called special interest
groups (SIGs). There are over 5,000 SIGs on the Internet.

Information Marketers can upload free reports, announcements, press releases,
etc., to these SIGs for others to download. This process is known as file
transfer protocol (FTP).

Using this process, Internet users can send and receive computer files
all around the world. These computer files may contain more complex
information than contained in standard e-mails. These computer files can
contain text, graphics, sound, or they may be actual programs. They have all
been created, saved, and stored by a computer connected to the Internet. You
can send and receive advertisements, small reports, or entire publications
using the File Transfer Protocol.

Brand New Content Seed

This latest version is awesome. The controls are spectacular. It is as easy as using Blogger. Seriously it is totally very easy to use. Come on over to The Star Computer http://www.thestarcomputer.com/cs_test.htm and give it a try?