Website Analytics: There's Power in Numbers

"Do I really need analytics? Which should I use?"

In our last blog post we touched on the importance of analytics as a tool to help you decide which PPC (pay-per-click) advertising network might work best for your website or blog. So, we thought it would be a good time to address the importance of website analytics, more generally. 

It's a question we get with some degree of regularity: "Do I need analytics, what do I use?" Our answer is invariably, "yes." Even if you just blog for fun, or have a website that is just a hobby, don't you want to know who is visiting it, where they are coming from, and how long they are staying? Don't you want to know which of your posts, and which of your pages are really striking a chord with people? 

There is a little known fact that most bloggers, in particular, are unaware of: For the majority of trafficked blogs out there, most of those blog's followers and regular readership come in by way of a bookmark, and never add themselves to one's "Followers" list! Moreover, they tend to not comment, even anonymously. How are you going to entice these people into your fold if you don't know they're there or where they are coming from? Typically, people blog because they genuinely have something to say, and want the world to hear and know about it. Bloggers want their word spread, and hope to have people interact with their ideas. Analytics can help one do that. 

For example, let's say you've made a particularly popular post on your blog that is getting far more attention than the other posts you've written. You're getting a lot of comments; and that, coupled with the very rudimentary analytics provided to you if you are using a platform such as Blogger, is all that you have to go on. But, in-depth analytics can tell you if your post is being shared, where it is being shared, how long people are looking at the post, where they exit to, where on the Internet a link to your post has been made, etc. This is all information that you can use to guide you in the direction you are writing and posting. Here is a specific example: If you have made a post about popular music on your blog that is going mildly viral, perhaps it wouldn't be so wise to then blog about mayonnaise...? You want to keep the proverbial ball rolling: If you want a trafficked blog, it's all about responding to your audience. Website analytics will reveal who your audience is, where they are and what they want; and, provide you with information about how to find like-minded individuals that you can then actively seek-out and communicate with.

More standard websites function the same basic way, except they are not so much about providing perpetually updated content; and, with the exception of Web 2.0 sites, are rarely about interactivity. Indeed, most websites are vehicles for one-way information gathering, and the sales and/or promotion of a product or service. That being said, without analytical data, how do you know any of the things you need to know to be able to effectively include relevant information, or to sell your wares? Just as with bloggers: Who's coming to your website? Where are they coming from? what are they looking at and how long are they looking?...have they been to your website 13 times, but have yet to pull the purchase or sign-up trigger...? This might read as a bit harsh to more sensitive eyes, but millions of people every single day have what they believe to be a big idea, attempt to implement it blindly on the Internet, only to fail horribly because they had no data to verify or falsify the relevance, and more importantly, the market for that idea. Obviously, research prior to launch is key. But, the analytical tracking of that idea--post launch--is at least as important as the idea, itself. Without analytics, the best e-business idea in the cosmos will fail...and then that idea will be taken by someone who plans properly--and uses analytics. 

So which should you use? There are stellar products out there that are absolutely free that will prove just fine for the majority of people, including HiStats (which we use on this blog), Clicky (the best real-time analytics optimized for websites), StatCounter and Google Analytics. The downside to these, however, is that there are certain types of traffic that none of those are good at tracking, such as redirected traffic services (e.g. Revisitors) and popunder traffic (e.g. Growstats). Indeed, if you intend on purchasing any sort of traffic to your web property that you want to be able to track, a product such as Xtremline Proactive eCommerce Client will pay for itself in short order. You probably noticed the Wibiya toolbar at the bottom of either The Making Money Depot.com or here at our blog. While this toolbar will not provide you with in-depth analytics, it does provide you with an additional layer of traceable interactivity that will also increase the time people spend on your website or blog; and, provides nice sharing functionality, features and data. 

It doesn't matter why you have a website or blog. What matters is that you want people to see it for one reason or another...right? We'll close with a phrase that we feel encapsulates the message of this post--make it your mantra. Website analytics: There's power in numbers. 

The Best PPC (Pay-Per-Click) Advertising Network

"I've signed up with a few PPC networks but was wondering which one is the best."

This is, invariably, the question The Making Money Depot.com gets asked the most in emails. Ahhhhh, if it were only that simple!  What is your site about? Do you have a primary category, niche or vertical? How many visitors do you get, on average, each day, each week, each month? What is the primary geographic region from which your site's traffic originates? How do you get most of your site's traffic? How long do they stay on your site? How in-depth do they view your site (how many pages does the average visitor view)? How old is your site? How many of your pages are indexed by search engines and on which search engines are those pages indexed? Are you already affiliated with affiliate programs that are very particular about how and what they want their product to appear with on your web property's pages? What are your primary, secondary and tertiary keywords? What... you get the picture.


What we mean to express, here, is the reality that every site is inherently different; and, the only way to be able to give an accurate answer to this question is--in a word--analytics. Data: Knowing your web property's numbers is the only starting point from which this question can be answered. And, although this is not what most affiliates, webmasters, publishers and partners want to hear, even after you have this analytical data, there are unknown (indeed unknowable) variables to your website or blog that call for some trial and error, and even a complete switch of monetization methods when what one has tried begins to produce those inevitable lulls and protracted, diminishing returns.


Moreover, there are instances in which one probably should not be using PPC (pay-per-click) as a means to monetize their web property at all. Online magazines and highly niche blogs, for example, whose visitors are 90% regular readership are unlikely to benefit from PPC. This is a fairly extreme example, but is is hyperbole meant to express the point: You must know your website or blog analytics in order to make the wisest decision about your PPC affiliations. 


So! You have your data...now who do you use? Again, not that simple. Once you have your data you can begin to experiment with different PPC networks. Generally speaking, go with a reputable network that has received positive reviews, is known for having an advertiser base that will be able to fill your ad real estate; and, most importantly, one that pays. Try to choose networks that are applicable to the data you have garnered, paying closest attention to unique visitors, page views per visit, time per page and the depth of those visits. Compare and contrast this data with the Terms of Service of each of the ad networks you have an interest in, which will give you a clearer picture of the potential profitability of the affiliation. Leave the ad code of whatever PPC affiliation you have made on your site as follows to get an accurate performance appraisal:

• If your site gets 10,000 unique visitors per week (7 full days): Leave the code on for a week (seven full days).
• For every 1,000 unique visitors below 10,000 in a given week, add a full day (24 hours) to the test period. (I.e. Your site gets 9,000 unique visitors in a week, leave the code on for 8 full days; 8,000 unique visitors = 9 full days; 7,000 unique visitors = 10 full days. Etc.)

If at the end of the performance appraisal period you are happy--there you go.

This is a rule of thumb, and if you want to leave the code on longer that's fine--we're just giving the minimums that have produced accurate results for us in the past. However, it is probably as accurate an appraisal duration as any site or blog needs. 

It is also important to note that heaving all of your eggs into one ad network basket is a really, really bad mistake that, unfortunately, a lot of people make. Ad networks come and go, we have yet to see any network with Terms of Service that do not say that they can and just might ban you for any or no reason at any time without them paying you; and, at least 3 times per year a new 'network' comes along whose sole purpose is to scam people--it's pretty big money and hard to get in trouble for. In a word: Diversify--be prepared for these potentialities by having other affiliations at-the-ready. For these reasons (and then some) we do not believe it at all silly to affiliate with any and every PPC network you can find. You are not obligated to use any network that you have signed-up with, and virtually none of them purge inactive publishers with any regularity. 

None of what is said above is meant to indicate any sort of equality amongst the PPC ad networks that exist: Some are better than others; and, are so for most people. For example, we use and have used, almost without fail for several years, and on nearly every site we produce, a PPC network that we would be hard pressed to find a single thing negative to say about: Infolinks. However, this does not mean Infolinks is our only PPC affiliation simply for having all of our quality requirements fulfilled by them. What it means is that Infolinks is one of our best PPC networks. Can one find people saying negative things about Infolinks on the Internet? You bet.

In short, the answer to the question, "What is the best PPC ad network" is approaching the matter in a manner that we, ultimately, feel is incorrect. The question ought to be, "What are my best PPC networks [plural!], relative to my web property."

In summary, keep your affiliation strategy diverse. And, when shopping for a way to monetize your website or blog with a PPC network, there is a single word that will guide you along and never fail you: Options.