Analytics & Data
Our coverage of analytics recognizes that data drives ecommerce but collecting that data and interpreting it can be confusing. Our huge library of Google Analytics articles ranges from basic setup to the sophisticated interpretation of on-site activity of visitors and customers. We also analyze data security, blockchain topics, and ancillary tools such as Google Tag Manager and Google Data Studio.
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Analytics & Data
Understanding Big Data For Ecommerce
January 14, 2013 • Marcia Kaplan
The term "Big Data" was the Internet buzzword of 2012. The use of Big Data promises to become more prevalent in 2013, as merchants large and small who use Big Data analytics can gain a significant competitive advantage. What is Big Data? Webopedia defines it as "a massive volume of bo...
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Analytics & Data
Configuring Google Analytics, Part 2: Advanced Capabilities
January 10, 2013 • Tim Wilson
Editor's note: This is "Part 2" of a 2-part series on how to know if you are fully using Google Analytics for your ecommerce site. The first installment, "Configuring Google Analytics, Part 1: Are You Taking Full Advantage?," we published previously. In "Part 1: Are You Taking Full Adv...
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Analytics & Data
Configuring Google Analytics, Part 1: Are You Taking Full Advantage?
December 20, 2012 • Tim Wilson
Editor's note: This is "Part 1" of a 2-part series on how to know if you are fully using Google Analytics for your ecommerce site. "Part 2: Advanced Capabilities" we published later. One of the first things I do with a new Google Analytics clients is log in to their accounts and do a q...
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Analytics & Data
Analyzing Mobile Traffic in Google Analytics; 5 Questions
November 16, 2012 • Tim Wilson
According to published reports, there were 20 million iPhones, 18 million Android-based Samsung Galaxy S3s, and 17 million iPads sold in the third quarter of 2012. The mobile channel, as such, can’t be ignored. But, “mobile” is complicated. It covers a wide range of devices and experien...
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Analytics & Data
How to Measure SEO Performance
November 14, 2012 • Jill Kocher Brown
Search engine optimization may be a mix of art and science, but it’s as measurable and accountable as other online marketing channels. Knowing what key performance indicators to measure for SEO is the first step. Establishing a regular routine for monitoring and measuring performance wi...
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Analytics & Data
Creating Custom Segments in Google Analytics
October 24, 2012 • Tim Wilson
In "Understanding Segmentation in Google Analytics," my previous article, I explained the concept of analyzing traffic to a website in separate groups. This process is called "segmentation." Google Analytics offers several default segments, to automatically track common groups of vi...
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Analytics & Data
Understanding Segmentation in Google Analytics
October 19, 2012 • Tim Wilson
Gary Angel, one of the sharpest digital analytics practitioners, regularly cites the benefits of segmenting traffic in Google Analytics. He says, “In every case, as you think about [specific metrics for your site], segmentation is an excellent first step for choosing the right explanat...
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Analytics & Data
How to Measure Website Load Times
August 28, 2012 • Tim Wilson
Consumers are increasingly impatient when it comes to waiting for their web browsers to load content. Measuring and monitoring how long it takes pages on your site to load — from desktop computers, laptops, tablets, or smartphones — enable you to take corrective action when any one of d...
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Analytics & Data
Google Analytics: 3 Tests to Ensure Your Checkout Process Is Working
July 13, 2012 • Tim Wilson
There’s a reason that an ecommerce site’s checkout process is one of the most popular analytics topics. Once a person initiates a checkout, she has self-identified herself as a visitor with a high intent to purchase. Chances are, you’ve already spent money acquiring that potential custo...
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Analytics & Data
Google Analytics Jumps into Mobile Metrics
July 11, 2012 • Jaime Brugueras
Google Analytics is finally jumping into mobile data metrics. Google recently launched "Mobile App Analytics" as a part of its Analytics web app suite. Analytics is already used by almost a fourth of Internet Retailer’s Top 500 online retailers and more than half of its “Second 500.” Wi...
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Analytics & Data
Integrating Google Analytics with Site Search to Drive Conversions
May 21, 2012 • Tim Wilson
There are two broad types of data you can collect about visits to your site. "Behavioral" data is about what visitors actually do on the site, while "attitudinal" data is about what visitors want to do. Both are valuable sources of information, and they complement each other in many way...
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Analytics & Data
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Merchant Voice
10 Web Analytics Solutions for Ecommerce Merchants
September 26, 2011 • Armando Roggio
Web analytics tools seek to monitor and report on the interaction between Internet users and specific websites or marketing initiatives for the purpose of improving those interactions. This definition is a ...
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Analytics & Data
Google Analytics Adds Social Data
July 25, 2011 • Armando Roggio
Google Analytics has added social-media-related data to its reports. Google +1 button data is available by default. Facebook "Like" and Twitter "Tweet" sharing statistics can be added with some setup and additional tracking code. The new Google Analytics "Social" report tracks what Goo...
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Analytics & Data
Understanding ‘Traffic Sources’ in Google Analytics
July 18, 2011 • Armando Roggio
The Google Analytics "Traffic Sources" section can help ecommerce marketers understand how well campaigns are working and how better to invest in site content, advertising, or other forms of engagement. Google Analytics is a free service that uses cookies — which we explain in "Cookies...
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Analytics & Data
Looking at Location in Google Analytics
June 27, 2011 • Armando Roggio
Understanding your customers — including their preferences and opinions — is an important part of ecommerce marketing. One helpful indicator of customer behavior is location, because where one lives can ...
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Analytics & Data
11 Mobile Apps to Measure Your Online Success
June 8, 2011 • Sig Ueland
Tracking your business's online performance is a necessity. But doing so chained to your desktop computer is not. Whether you’re out on a meeting or away on a summer vacation, with mobile apps you have the ability to check online statistics on the go. Here is a list of mobile apps for ...
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Analytics & Data
Transitioning to the New Google Analytics
June 8, 2011 • Michael Stearns
In May 2011, Google launched a new version of Analytics. This new version 5 is good news for power users, as it makes many of the advanced features Google has been developing over the past few years more accessible. If you still feel a bit overwhelmed with the range of options that Goog...
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Analytics & Data
The PEC Review: Website Grader, for Benchmarking Your Ecommerce Site
October 18, 2010 • Armando Roggio
A successful ecommerce business is an dynamic blend of products, pricing, operations management, customer service, marketing, and web technology. And an ecommerce entrepreneur or manager must monitor each and every ...
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Analytics & Data
Performance Metrics for Ecommerce, Part Three
September 20, 2010 • Armando Roggio
Social marketing has emerged as one of the best ways to connect with consumers online. And tracking how well your business's social media marketing is performing has become a vital measurement of ecommerce marketing measurement. Yet with so many metrics and statistics to follow, it can...
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Analytics & Data
Performance Metrics for Ecommerce, Part Two
September 10, 2010 • Armando Roggio
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Analytics & Data
Performance Metrics for Ecommerce, Part One
September 8, 2010 • Armando Roggio
Performance metrics can help ecommerce businesses measure progress and assess financial and marketing health. But with so much data available from tools like Google Analytics, it can be hard to know what to measure or even what those measurements mean. With this in mind, I put together...
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Analytics & Data
The PEC Review: WooRank Website Analysis Tool
June 14, 2010 • Armando Roggio
Search engine optimization (SEO) is changing. As search engines like Google, Bing, and Ask seek to provide better, more relevant, personalized, and, perhaps, even real-time results to search queries, so-called traditional SEO tactics may not work as expected. What's more, since search ...
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Analytics & Data
The Metrics for Video Success
March 9, 2010 • Armando Roggio
Many online stores have begun to include product videos aimed at boosting sales conversions, reducing shopping cart abandonment, and lowering product return rates. But not all product-related videos are the same, and merchants will need some metrics for measuring which videos are, in fa...
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Analytics & Data
The PeC Review: ClearSaleing Ties Profit to Marketing Tactics
October 9, 2009 • Armando Roggio
Ecommerce marketers want to generate the greatest possible revenue from every promotional dollar invested. But tracking or measuring exactly how each ad, each promotion, or each press release affects shoppers can be allusive. ClearSaleing provides a platform that helps companies accura...
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Analytics & Data
Ecommerce Know-How: Avoid The Last Click Effect
October 2, 2009 • Armando Roggio
As ecommerce marketers strive to get the best return for every dollar they invest, there is a danger that they will fall prey to the last click effect, attributing all of a campaign's success to just the last interaction a customer has before arriving on site or making a purchase. The ...
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Analytics & Data
PeC Review: Clicky Web Analytics
August 12, 2009 • Armando Roggio
Web analytics newcomer Clicky offers real-time site data, Twitter activity, and custom data tracking for a nominal monthly fee, making it an attractive choice for some ecommerce businesses. Web analytics have become the definitive means of measuring marketing campaigns and search engin...
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Analytics & Data
Measuring SEO Success: Challenging, but Necessary
July 21, 2009 • Jill Kocher Brown
Measuring the increased traffic and sales from a search-engine-optimization initiative is among the most challenging issues site owners face. Frequently, when I’m starting a new SEO program with a client, the seemingly simple question of “What’s your goal?” is met with a pause. It’s not...
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Analytics & Data
The PeC Review: Woopra Promises Real-Time Web Analytics and Behavior Tracking
May 7, 2009 • Armando Roggio
Woopra is an innovative web analytics suite that promises to vastly improve the information that website owners can collect and monitor. As customers return to your store, Woopra begins to track behavioral profiles, allowing online merchants to monitor individual customer behavior o...
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Analytics & Data
Ecommerce Know-How: Four Ways to Measure Print Advertising Effectiveness
April 28, 2009 • Armando Roggio
Print advertising is a waning media vehicle. It has become less effective in the post-interruption era. However, in spite of this decline, printed display advertising and classifieds can still provide a solid return on investment (ROI) for some ecommerce merchants willing and able to me...
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Analytics & Data
Ecommerce Know-how: Setting SMART Goals and Measuring Success
April 8, 2009 • Armando Roggio
To really get the most from web measurements, online business owners need a clear understanding of exactly what they want to accomplish and how they will measure those accomplishments. No matter how objective the reporting of analytics software, the meaning divined from its numbers and...