Website Analytics
Many would argue that web site analytics should fall under the general category of Business Intelligence and they are right. However I chose to break it out due to one key feature: Google Analytics. Google Analytics is free and extremely powerful and unlike any other Business Intelligence platform you do not need to design a database to store the data.
History and Setup
Google Analytics came to life in 2006 once Google purchased Urchin Software Corp. Since then Google has drastically changed the platform. However, much like back in 2006, the setup of the system is very easy. With a small amount of tracking code you can capture your website’s visitor information and have an easy to access platform to see all the information. Additionally there are multiple mobile apps that allow access to the data at any point no matter where you are. Furthermore Google has created multiple APIs to allow customized access to all this data, not to mention Google Tag Manger which removes many of the complicated tracking code your site might require.
Is it Right for Me?
Ninety percent of the time, yes. No matter what website your company has, Google Analytics has its place and with its free price tag little should hold you back. However, knowing a few tricks of the trade are very beneficial in the set up. Luckily with the popularity of the platform many sites/blogs provide the information you need. Straight Line Marketing can help if you happen to hit a road block.
Don’t Stop Here!
As we have said before Google Analytics is a powerful tool. But don’t stop there. Google’s APIs allow you to tap this data and bring it into you own data. Combining this data with other Business Intelligence platforms can be very powerful. Both R and Python have capabilities that with a little work can easily blend into your company’s private data. Furthermore don’t forget about combining your Adwords data with your Google Analytics data.