A Comprehensive Strategy For Using Website Statistics

Collecting website statistics is an essential part of maintaining your online presence. Whether you're a small business looking to refine your marketing strategy or just an individual with an active online presence, you can't afford to be uninformed about who is visiting your site. It can help you decide what content they might enjoy and how much time they are spending on the site. For example, if someone visits for 30 seconds before bouncing back to Facebook, it’s a good idea figure out why they’re not sticking around!

But collecting website statistics isn't always easy. There are three different types: Google Analytics (the big-boys), server logs (more manual), and third party services (usually free). Google Analytics is a powerful tool, but can be quite complex, which is where this article comes in.

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll talk about all three types of website statistics. We’ll also cover some specific ways you can utilize the information you gather to better your online presence. Let’s get started!

Types Of Website Statistics

The three main types of website statistics are Google Analytics, server logs, and third-party services. Some would argue that server logs should be its own distinct category because they are very different from Google Analytics and third-party services. However, they share many similarities with each other (more on this later), so I've combined them together for simplicity's sake.

Google Analytics Server Logs Third-Party Services Description Tracks statistics like the number of visitors, where they are from, what pages they viewed, what devices and browsers they use, etc. Tracks the same information as Google Analytics but is more targeted. Gives you insight into areas like mobile responsiveness and speed/performance. Allows you to monitor your online presence in different ways (e.g., social media metrics). Can be manually added to any website. Can only be implemented onto a site through code or an "Add to site" button Can be added via a browser plugin or coded onto a website. Most reliable for tracking long-term changes in traffic. Typically inaccurate for short-term statistics. Can be difficult to pinpoint the source of a bounce. Can be used to track everything from ad impressions to social media interactions. Often not very user-friendly and can take a long time to set up. Designed for intensive or specific tracking of things like website errors and pageviews.

Google Analytics

Google Analytics is one of the biggest names in website statistics and is considered by many (myself included) as the industry standard when it comes to collecting website statistics. It has a lot of features, which can make it difficult to use at times, but ultimately can provide you with some incredibly powerful insights into your customers' behavior so you know what works and what doesn't on your site.

Advantages of using Google Analytics include the fact that it’s free and easy to set up. The only requirement is that you have a Google account, which can be used as a login for your website. It also provides some powerful statistics that can be very helpful in deciding revamping your marketing strategy (e.g., the Bounce Rate).

The biggest downside of Google Analytics is that it requires you to have tracking codes configured on every page of your site, which can sometimes be difficult to implement correctly. However, more often than not, this process is quite simple and takes between 2-6 hours depending on the size of your site (which I'll get into later).

Conclusion: Google Analytics is a great option for most businesses. It isn't without its flaws, but the time it takes to set up is well worth the future insights you'll get. I'd recommend it to any business looking to refine their online marketing strategy.

Server Logs (e.g., Web Server Log Analysis)

Server logs are quite different from Google Analytics and third-party services as they primarily track more in-depth information related to technical aspects of your website (e.g., load times, error messages).