Congratulations to Nedstat and comScore!

This summer’s web analytics acquisition season has heated up to the point where when my phone rings and it’s John (who wakes up hours earlier) saying “comScore has acquired Nedstat” my response is “of course they have!” Not to say this isn’t an exciting acquisition, but wow the vendor landscape has changed a bunch this year … John spent the morning on the phone with our friend Jodi McDermott and comScore’s CEO Dr. Magid Abraham talking about the decision for comScore to get more deeply into client-side measurement technology and he promises to have a more comprehensive post up in a day or two. I only wanted to weigh in and say “congratulations” to the entire team at Nedstat! I have been lucky enough to have worked with Michael, Fred, Michiel, and Ulrike on a number of occasions and have produced two white papers with them (one on video, the other on mobile) with a third coming out in a few weeks. The management team and everyone I have interacted with at Nedstat are wonderful people and they will definitely add great value and expertise to the comScore family. Again, watch for more detail and analysis from John in the coming days and congratulations to the comScore and Nedstat families from all of us here at Web Analytics Demystified. © 2010 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2010-09-01 17:17:28</div>

We are our own worst enemy ?

Back in February of this year, in partnership with BPA Worldwide, Web Analytics Demystified published a white paper detailing the risks associated with the use of Flash Local Shared Objects (LSOs) in digital measurement. Titled “The Use of Flash Objects in Visitor Tracking: Brilliant Idea or Risky Business?” the paper drilled down into how some companies are using Flash LSOs and offered the following guidance: Do not use Flash to reset browser cookies Disclose the use of Local Shared Objects Allow site visitors to disable Local Shared Objects The first piece of advice turns out to be pretty important since companies are now being sued over their use of Flash to reset browser cookies. MTV, ESPN, MySpace, Hulu, ABC, NBC, Disney, and others are being dragged into a lawsuit based on their use of Quantcast and Clearspring who were identified by Soltani, et al. as using Flash LSO to reset deleted browser cookies. These lawsuits allege a ?pattern of covert online surveillance? and seeks status as a class action lawsuit. Yikes. Fortunately for Adobe they do not seem to be one of the targets in these suits, which makes sense considering the position the company has taken regarding the use of Flash. In my interview with MeMe Rasmussen, Adobe’s Chief Privacy Officer back April of this year, Mrs. Rasmussen explicitly stated: “… the position we outlined in the FTC Comment on condemning the misuse of local storage, was specific to the practice of restoring browser cookies without user knowledge and express consent. We believe that there are opportunities to provide value to our customers by combining Omniture solutions with Flash technology while honoring consumers? privacy expectations.” On the topic of consumer privacy and web analytics, following up my partner John’s response to the Wall Street Journal article on online privacy (“Be still my analytical heart”), I recently wrote a piece for Audience Development Magazine titled “You are all evil …” While a little tongue-in-cheek the article encourages marketers and business owners to: Have a rock-solid privacy policy Not use tracking software they don’t understand Not be unaware of what tracking software they have deployed Have a clear answer for “how and why do you track us?” Be transparent as hell when anybody asks what you’re doing As I reflect back on the guidance we have provided in the past year I run the risk of...<br/><div align='right'>2010-08-30 07:36:38</div>

Do not miss this year?s X Change conference!

What a crazy week it has been, what with client visits with John here in the West, web casts with the fine folks at Tealeaf and Unica, and the end of summer fast approaching at the Peterson household. I was so busy I wasn’t able to pay close attention to our X Change registrations and when I looked just now I realized something … X Change 2010 is damn near sold out. Thanks to some quick thinking from Joel, Grace, and Gary over at Semphonic we have a few more seats available than last year, but with nearly a month to go before we convene in Monterey, California at the beautiful Monterey Plaza Resort and Spa we have sold more seats than last year and last year was completely sold out! You’re not gonna miss the X Change because you waited too long to sign up, are you? You aren’t going to risk missing out on the chance to discuss digital measurement in our intense and intimate conversation format with practice leaders and managers from amazing brands like Best Buy, ESPN, Expedia, Facebook, MTV, New York Times, Lowes, Turner Broadcasting, HP, Salesforce.com, Nike, Charles Schwab, Comcast, eBay, and NBC Universal, are you? Seriously, don’t miss out. I only wish I could make a list of all the great participant companies coming to this year’s event … but I can’t. If I could you would see that by coming to this year’s X Change you would be joining some of the most respected brands in technology, media, healthcare, advertising, software, and retail in the world. Worse, you would realize that missing X Change means not getting to hear first-hand how some of the greatest minds in the digital measurement industry are getting it done today. You would be bummed. Don’t be bummed, come to X Change 2010, September 20, 21, and 22 in Monterey, California. Register at our web site now or contact me directly for more information. © 2010 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2010-08-27 08:28:56</div>

Our Mobile Measurement Framework is now available

Today I am really excited to announce the publication of our framework for mobile and multi-channel reporting, sponsored by OpinionLab. You can download the report freely from the OpinionLab web site in trade for your name and email address. This paper builds on our “Truth About Mobile Analytics” paper we published with our friends at Nedstat last year and focuses on both measurement in mobile applications and, more importantly, a cross-channel measurement framework built around interactions, engagement, and consumer-generated feedback. Interactions occur in every channel, digital or not. Online and on mobile sites we call these “visits” (although that is a made up word for interactions); in mobile apps the interaction starts when you click the icon and ends when you click “close”; in SMS it starts when you receive the message; on the phone it starts when you dial, and in stores interactions start when you walk up to an employee. Engagement is simply “more valuable” interactions. Regardless of your particular belief about the definition of engagement, we all know it when we see it. Online it happens after some number of minutes, or clicks, or sessions, or whatever; in mobile apps it happens when you’ve clicked enough buttons; on SMS it happens when you respond to the message; on the phone it starts when you begin a conversation, and the same is true in a physical store. We say engagement is “more valuable” because without engagement, value is unlikely to manifest. Positive Feedback happens when you do a really, really good job. Measuring feedback is a critical “miss” for far too many organizations. Apples “app store” and the value of the star-rating system has essentially proven that there are massive financial differences associated with positive and negative experiences … but most companies still make the mistake of ignoring qualitative feedback altogether. These three incredibly simple metrics can be applied to every one of your channels, your sub-channels, and your sub-sub-channels (if you like.) When applied you can create an apples to apples comparison between your web, mobile web, mobile apps, video, social, etc. efforts. Then you can apply cost data, and you’re really in business. I don’t want to say much more than that but I would really, really encourage you all to download and read this free white paper. When we put something like this...<br/><div align='right'>2010-08-05 08:15:41</div>

Analysis Exchange members going to X Change 2010

Earlier this year after we launched the Analysis Exchange we put out our first challenge to the membership. We asked people to “be exceptional” in their participation, to step up and make a difference by working harder than expected, by bringing crazy passion to their work, and by participating in unexpected ways. In exchange for “being exceptional” we said we would provide a complimentary pass to one mentor and one student to this year’s X Change conference in Monterey, California September 20, 21, and 22. Today I am pleased to announce your exceptional winners of this challenge. While nearly everyone who has participated in Analysis Exchange thus far has really blown my mind with their energy, their commitment, and their willingness to do something special for the larger web analytics and nonprofit communities, five people really stood out in the crowd. Sarah DeAtley, Mentor from Washington who worked like crazy to sign up her fellow Seattle-ites and continues to evangelize for the effort; Victor Acquah, Mentor from Virginia who participated in both our Alpha and Beta tests with PBS and provided tremendously valuable feedback; Jason Thompson, Mentor from Utah who has stepped up repeatedly to mentor projects and has helped a great deal to spread the word; Jan Alden Cornish, Student from California who has not only participated in multiple projects but has been an invaluable source of ideas and feedback; Michael Healy, Student from California who has helped out on numerous projects and who really understands what Analysis Exchange is trying to do. Unfortunately not everyone would have been able to make the X Change this year due to previous commitments; fortunately that made our job selecting the finalists nominally easier. To make our final decision we asked everyone to send us a short paragraph describing “what they have learned” in Analysis Exchange to date. Here is what we heard back: From Jason Thompson: “First let me say, that with the amazing cast of students and mentors that make up the Analysis Exchange, I am truly humbled to be considered for this honor. The Analysis Exchange has reminded me that what makes us truly rich is not the contents of our wallets or how much money we have in our bank accounts, whoa….sorry…started channeling Tyler Durden there for a second, but what makes us truly rich are the relationships we have in life. So what have I learned thus far? I have learned that...<br/><div align='right'>2010-08-03 05:12:54</div>

Sad to see Aurelie Pols go ?

I am very sorry to say that our European partner Aurelie Pols has decided to leave Web Analytics Demystified and pursue other goals in her life. While I am very sad to announce this, I have certainly enjoyed working with Aurelie over the past year and on behalf of myself, my family, and our partner John Lovett we wish Aurelie, Rene, and little Luca all the best. © 2010 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2010-07-23 19:04:06</div>

Guest Post: Kevin Hillstrom

Kevin Hillstrom is one smart dude. President of MineThatData, author of Online Marketing Simulations, and prolific contributor to the Twitter #measure channel. Kevin spends a huge amount of time in Twitter challenging web analysts to think and work harder on behalf of their “clients,” 140 characters at a time. A few weeks ago I asked Kevin “what five practices learned in the offline data analytics world would you like to see web analytics professionals adopt?” The following contributed blog post has Kevin’s answers which are, unsurprisingly, awesome. Near the end Kevin says “The Web Analyst has the keys to the future of the business, so it is a manner of getting the Web Analyst to figure out how to use keys to unlock the future potential of a business.” Brilliant. We are the future of business … so what future will we be helping to create? Kevin Hillstrom, President, MineThatData In 1998, I became the Circulation Director at Eddie Bauer. Back in those days, Eddie Bauer printed money, generating more than a hundred million dollars of pre-tax profit on an annual basis. One of the ways that Eddie Bauer generated profit was through the use of discounts and promotions. If a customer failed to purchase over a six month period of time, Eddie Bauer applied a ?20% off your order? offer. The customer had to use a special promotion code, in order to receive discounted merchandise. We analyzed each promotion code, using ?A/B? test panels. Customers were randomly selected from the population, and then assigned to one of two test panels. The first test panel received the promotion, the second test panel did not receive the promotion. We subtracted the difference between the promotion segment and the control segment, and ran a profit and loss statement against the difference. In almost all cases, the segment receiving the promotion generated more profit than the control segment. In other words, it became a ?best practice? to offer customers promotions and incentives at Eddie Bauer. Over the course of a five year period of time, the marketing calendar became saturated with promotions. In fact, it became hard to find an open window where we could add promotions! Being a huge fan of ?A/B? testing, I decided to try something different. I asked my circulation team to choose two customer groups at random from our housefile. One group would receive promotions for the next six months, if the customer was eligible to receive the...<br/><div align='right'>2010-07-19 19:43:29</div>

X Change 2010 Conversation Topics Announced!

I’m excited to announce that most of the 2010 X Change huddle topics and leaders have now been announced on our web site. If you’ve heard about the X Change and have been wondering what we will be talking about, please go have a look at the 2010 topics! We are more or less talking about everything … mobile, social, tagging, analysis, big data, testing, … you name it and we will be talking about it in Monterey September 21st and 22nd. Serious. We have Kim Weller from ESPN talking about Digital Convergence, Kelly Olin from Nike talking about Measuring Global Brands, Dylan Lewis from Intuit talking about Testing, Lynn Lanphier from Best Buy talking about Analytics for Retailers, and 16 more amazing minds talking about the pressing topics of our day. Are you ready to join us yet? Just in case you’re not, please take a look at some of the amazing practitioners we have leading this year’s conversations. I consider it an honor to be co-producing a conference with so many brilliant web analytics practice leaders coming to join us and make the event happen. Folks like Shari Cleary from MTV Networks, Blandon Casanave from NBC Universal, Bob Page from eBay, and Adam Greco (yes, THAT Adam Greco) from Salesforce.com! I know, amazing! We will be adding a few more topics and conversation leaders this week so bookmark those pages and keep checking in. And by all means, if you have any questions about whether X Change is right for you, what the event is like, and what you can expect to take back to your boss after the conference, please don’t hesitate to contact me or one of my partners. Don’t forget to read about this year’s exciting keynote with our “three VPs” as well. Shari, Joe Megibow from Expedia.com, and Steve Bernstein from Paypal will be talking about the career path from analyst to Vice President and the types of challenges they face heading analytics organizations as part of their companies senior leadership teams. We are waaaay ahead on registrations this year compared to previous years and so a sell-out is more or less assured at this point. Don’t get left out — register right away and ensure your seat at the table at X Change 2010! © 2010 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2010-07-13 09:07:47</div>

Guest Post: Jason Thompson, Analysis Exchange Mentor

(This is a guest post from Jason Thompson, one of the great Analysis Exchange mentors that have been working to help us create an entirely new way to train web analysts while also providing free analytics to nonprofit organizations around the world. Jason blogs at http://emptymind.org and can be found banging around Twitter @usujason. We are offering a complimentary pass to this year’s X Change conference in Monterey, California to one mentor and one student who distinguish themselves in the program.) There is a concept in Zen Buddhism called Shoshin, meaning ?beginner’s mind?. This concept refers to being open and eager or as Shunryu Suzuki puts it, ?In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, in the expert’s mind there are few.” When I first steeped foot inside The Analysis Exchange, I did so as a mentor or in my mind “the expert.” Sure, I had a warm, fuzzy feeling deep down inside about giving back to the community, sharing freely of my knowledge, and showing my altruistic side but really I was there to teach, after all, I was the expert. For those of you who may not be familiar with The Analysis Exchange, let me take a step back. The Analysis Exchange is a unique community of non-profit organizations, web analytics beginners, and industry experts, each willing to give of their time in order to reap their own rewards. For organizations, they gain access to free resources that help analyze data, train future analysts, and establish measurement road maps. The students, well, they get to attend school for free and learn on the job while they are mentored by the industry expert — not to mention it’s a great bullet-point on their resume. The mentors have the opportunity to share their skills, help shape the future of the industry, and yes, get a nice stroke to their ego. It was not long into my first project that I was reminded of why Shoshin is so important. I was greeted by a student and an organization who were open to any possibilities and best of all were eager and excited about what web analytics had in store for them. Their child-like exuberance rekindled a flame inside me that had slowly faded away as the years of segmenting data past by. The team quickly bonded and in 3 weeks we delivered an executive presentation highlighting low hanging fruit that the organization could quickly change and realize huge results, needless to say, this made our project manager look like a rockstar. It...<br/><div align='right'>2010-07-09 06:12:56</div>

Are you looking for experienced web analysts?

Anyone who has read my blog for long knows that I am passionate hour two things in web analytics: process and people. Process is the glue that holds all the hard work we do as analysts together and allows our effort to translate into tangible business value. But without a doubt it is the people who are absolutely critical to any businesses ability to compete and succeed on web analytics. Unfortunately people, especially really good ones, are incredibly hard to find. So much so that my partners and I have invested heavily in creating an entirely new way for novice and veteran analytics practitioners alike to gain valuable “hand’s on” experience using data to answer business questions, The Analysis Exchange. While the Analysis Exchange has exceeded every single short-term milestone we have established for the effort, it has long been clear to my partners and I that training alone is not enough to satisfy the immediate needs of businesses working to take advantage of their existing investment in web Analytics. Companies need analytical talent now, not a year from now, not in six months, right now. Why the urgency? Myriad reasons. The money has been spent on technology, the clock is ticking, the promises have been made, offline revenues are in decline and the company’s digital channels are the hope and future and difference between profitability and not. The web analytics promise is real — companies that have become adept at generating analytically-driven insights and then translating those insights into sound business decisions have staked a clear competitive advantage. The giants of our industry — brilliant people like Joe Megibow, Dylan Lewis, Shari Cleary, and Lynn Lanphier <plug>all of whom are coming to the X Change conference in September, are you?</plug> — have not only determined the value of people but have also figured out how to convince management of that value. Have you? Most companies have not. Most companies persist in their belief that web and digital analytics is something that they can do “part time” and still have the successes that Intuit, Expedia, MTV, Best Buy, and others gain by hiring brilliant people, giving them clear direction, and recognizing the value of the analytical output they produce. Despite being well-intentioned, far too many managers still believe that software alone will provide insights and make recommendations. But I digress. Because we at Web Analytics...<br/><div align='right'>2010-07-07 08:12:45</div>

Does your data quality still suck?

Years ago Google’s Analytics Evangelist Avinash Kaushik told everyone “data quality sucks, get over it” which at the time was quite the funny and controversial thing to say. Among other things Mr. Kaushik encouraged his readers to “resist the urge to dig deep” to understand data-related problems, to “assume a level of comfort with the data” and to focus more on trends and less on absolutes. At the time this advice seemed good. Any number of companies were in the midst of switching vendors back in 2006 (a trend that has noticeably declined) and so guidance to not stress out on the differences observed between old system “A” and new system “B” was good, as was his encouragement to spend more time focusing on data quality in key areas (checkout, carts, etc.) Unfortunately times have changed. Since 2006 we have seen a slow but steady increase in the prominence that digitally collected data has within businesses of all sizes. Now in 2010, more senior managers, Vice Presidents, and CEOs than ever are incorporating both qualitative and quantitative data collected from web, mobile, and social sites than ever before. Among our clients we have seen a profound shift from “nice to have” to “critical” when it comes to data flowing through Omniture, Coremetrics, Unica, Google Analytics and other systems, and slowly web analytics is becoming an embedded component of business decision making. While this shift has far reaching implications lately at Web Analytics Demystified we have been looking more closely at how we can help our clients not “get over” the “suckiness” of data quality and actually do something about it. We are doing this for one simple reason: senior leadership doesn’t want a glib response to data quality issues, they want as high a level of accuracy possible and concrete answers for why that accuracy isn’t forthcoming. Don’t believe me? The next time your boss asks about the quality of the numbers you produce look them squarely in the eye and repeat Mr. Kaushik’s words, “Well Bob the data quality sucks and so you should just get over it, okay?” When you’re done you can call my friend Corry Prohens to help you find a new job. The alternative is, of course, to actually pay attention to your data’s quality and work diligently to incrementally improve data collection processes. Rather than be lazy...<br/><div align='right'>2010-07-01 18:59:38</div>

Thoughts on IBM?s acquisition of Coremetrics ?

By now you’ve heard that IBM announced today their intent to purchase Coremetrics. While I was caught off guard by the news — it was all over Twitter before I’d had a single drop of Espresso — I cannot say I was particularly surprised. Coremetrics has not been particularly coy about their intent to do what is best for their customers and company, and IBM is on a tear for acquisitions and investment in analytics with over $10 billion spent on 14 (now 16) acquisitions since 2005 including SPSS, Cognos, and now Coremetrics. In fact, according to CMS Wire, IBM is now #2 behind privately held SAS for analytics market-share (14.5% versus SAS’s 33%.) Couple this with the consulting services organization IBM established just over a year ago and the picture becomes incredibly clear: IBM has the potential to become a digital analytics juggernaut in the Enterprise. You know what? I’m excited about this. I’m excited for three reasons, none of which are particularly altruistic of me considering that I am a strategic business consultant who has spend years working to elevate the visibility of digital analytics within the Enterprise. From my point of view, my partners and I (and our peers) will only be more successful as traditional business pays more attention to the value of digitally collected data as an input to business intelligence. But I digress. I’m excited by IBM’s acquisition of Coremetrics for these three reasons: This acquisition validates my “Coming Revolution in Web Analytics” thesis. In 2009, with the support of SAS, we postulated that we were on the cusp of a grand revolution in web analytics, one that had profound implications on both the practice and the practitioner. In the same way SAS continues to refine their web and customer experience analytics offerings, IBM buying Coremetrics pushes us further along towards what I believe is an inevitable future where digital analytics is powered as much (or more) by statistical and predictive models as “pretty” spreadsheets and iPhone viewer apps. This acquisition validates my “Two Sets of Tools” thesis. Back in February of this year I wrote a post about the need for two sets of tools to do digital analytics professionally. I wrote this post in response to a dramatic increase in the number of companies telling us their business users were frustrated with the complexity of the most widely deployed “Enterprise”...<br/><div align='right'>2010-06-16 17:25:48</div>

Update from The Analysis Exchange ?

I have been so busy with clients, presentations, the launch of Twitalyzer version 3.0, and trying to enjoy the onset of summer I have been a very bad blogger. I have missed opportunities to follow-up on Steve Jobs mixed messages about analytics in the iOS platform, to talk about some really amazing Web Analytics Wednesday events that have been happening, … heck, I’ve even missed the chance to weigh in on a really interesting (albeit one-sided) flame war between Quantivo and Google. Oh were there only 38 or perhaps 42 hours in every day. Still as busy as I have been I have been amazed at some of the success folks are having in the Analysis Exchange so I wanted to drop a note and share some of what is going on: First, and perhaps coolest, is this article in Internet Retailer about how the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) are using Analysis Exchange to gain insights into their traffic data; Second, we have announced that our first-year goals are to leverage the Analysis Exchange community to produce free analysis for 1,000 nonprofits and non-governmental organizations, to train 500 “student” web analysts, and to create opportunities for participation for 150 “mentor” analytics practitioners; Thirdly, we have also announced that as an incentive to participate, we will be awarding a complimentary pass to this year’s X Change conference in Monterey, California to one (1) student and one (1) mentor who distinguish themselves as participants in the Analysis Exchange effort; Finally, we are just pleased as punch to get so much great feedback from participants, both via email and on Twitter. Folks really seem to be enjoying themselves which is awesome! To keep track of Analysis Exchange I have created a pretty elaborate dashboard. I’ll spare you all the details but in an effort to be transparent in this work here is the top-line summary that I watch change and improve every day: “Of our 529 members, 46% have completed a profile. Based on the number active and staffed projects our member participation rate is currently 7%. Of our 54 organizational members, 52% have created projects and 13% have completed projects. Of our 21 active projects, 62% are fully staffed and 100% of those have set a starting date for the work.” We have work to do, but it is great work and we hope you will join us and participate! © 2010 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in...<br/><div align='right'>2010-06-08 06:40:39</div>

The Analysis Exchange is OPEN TO EVERYONE

Back in December of last year Aurelie, John, and I announced an idea we believe has the potential to change the web analytics industry forever, The Analysis Exchange. Briefly, the Analysis Exchange is a totally new approach towards web analytics training — one that depends less on what you read and more on what you do. The Analysis Exchange lets experience web analysts demonstrate their passion for their work and gives beginners valuable “hands on” experience with data and real business problems. What’s more, the output from Analysis Exchange projects directly benefits some of the most amazing organizations around the globe — nonprofits and non-governmental groups who work not for money but for the betterment of humanity, our planet, and all creatures great and small. You can read more about the origination of this effort in our blog posts and a very nice write up by our friend Jim Sterne, founder of the Web Analytics Association: Announcing The Analysis Exchange Amazing response to The Analysis Exchange Nonprofits Profit from Web Analytics Volunteers Since December we have been hard at work building out a web site and perfecting the business process that would be required to accomplish our core goals. What are those goals, you ask? Very, very simple … between now and June 1, 2011 we want to: Provide FREE analysis to 1,000 nonprofit organizations Provide FREE training and certification to 500 web analytics students Provide FREE certification and support to 150 web analytics experts 1,000/500/150 are the numbers that we will be living by, but we know we’re not living there alone. We know this because the initial response to The Analysis Exchange has been tremendous! In addition to the great stuff we learned in our first testing round we have had excellent feedback from nonprofits, mentors, and students alike. I love what Amy Sample, Director of Web Analytics at PBS Interactive had to say: “What I love about the Analysis Exchange is the learning is reciprocal. Not only is the student learning about analytics and giving back to the organization, but the organization is learning from the student as well. Many of our local PBS stations have little experience with Web Analytics. Through the Exchange, the stations are able to learn how to tackle analytics problems along with the student and how to make a lasting impact to their own organization.” Cindy Olnick from the Los Angeles Conservancy had similar...<br/><div align='right'>2010-05-19 07:50:31</div>

Excited to Announce X Change 2010 Keynote!

Now that Emetrics West is behind us, and what an Emetrics it was this year, Web Analytics Demystified and Semphonic officially start to ramp up our efforts to get the best of the best of you to join us for three days in Monterey September 20, 21, and 22. While I am excited about the entire event, I am particularly excited about our keynote offering this year titled “A Conversation with Management.” Because the X Change draws so many expert practitioners, managers, and directors of web analytics my general feeling has always been that we should be programming for “lifers” in the field, looking for opportunities to help participants expand their career horizons. Our “Conversation with Management” keynote is a conversation with three of the most successful web analytics professionals I personally know: Shari Cleary, Vice President of Digital Research at MTV Networks Joe Megibow, Vice President of Global Analytics at Expedia.com Steve Bernstein, Vice President of Analytics at Myspace I have personally known Shari, Joe, and Steve for years and have had the great honor of watching each progress up the management chain, taking an increasing amount of responsibility with each step. Now all three of our keynote participants represent web analytics at the highest levels within each of their organizations, an incredible feat when you consider the footprint MTV, Expedia, and Myspace have on the Internet. During our keynote I will be leading the panel to explore common “lifer” challenges including staffing, vendor management, the balance between reporting and analysis, their relationship with senior-most management, and the importance of business process to each of their jobs. My goal will be to get each to share details regarding their own career path in hopes those insights will help X Change attendees accelerate their own goals. You can learn more about the 2010 X Change on our micro-site for the conference: The 2010 X Change conference schedule Hotel information for the Monterey Plaza Resort and Spa Details about Web Analytics Demystified’s Think Tank offerings Our X Change Frequently Asked Questions document Registration for the 2010 X Change in Monterey, CA September 20, 21, and 22 If you have questions about the conference please don’t hesitate to give any of the Web Analytics Demystified partners a call or email. Remember that the conference is limited to the first 100 people who register and...<br/><div align='right'>2010-05-11 07:54:59</div>

My Interview with Adobe Chief Privacy Officer

Those of you paying close attention to issues regarding consumer privacy on the Internet are probably at least a little familiar by now with Flash Local Shared Objects (also called Flash “Cookies” by some.) I wrote a white paper on the subject Flash objects’s use in web analytics on behalf of BPA Worldwide back in February and had to update the blog post I wrote when I noticed that Adobe had wisely written a letter to the Federal Trade Commission regarding the use of Flash to reset browser cookies. After writing that update I got in contact with Adobe’s Chief Privacy Officer, MeMe Rasmussen, who politely agreed to answer a few questions that I had about their letter and Adobe’s position on the use of Flash as a back-up strategy for cookies. Given that Scout Analytics is now reporting that Flash “Cookies” are increasingly being deleted by privacy-concerned Internet users I figured it was a good time to publish my questions and MeMe’s responses. The following are my questions (in bold) and Mrs. Rasmussen’s responses verbatim. Flash Local Shared Objects (LSOs) have been around for a long-time and I have been aware of their use as a “backup” for browser cookies for reset and other calculations for a few years. What made you write your letter to the FTC now? Was there a specific event or occurrence? The topic of respawning browser cookies using Flash local storage was publicized after research conducted by UC Berkeley on the subject was published in August 2009. The topic was also raised at the FTC?s First Privacy Roundtable in December, so when the FTC announced that its Second Roundtable would focus on Technology and Privacy, we felt it was the appropriate opportunity for Adobe to describe the problem and state our position on the practice. While I believe the position you outlined in your letter to the FTC is the correct one, you have put many of your customers in an uncomfortable position by condemning an act that they have been using for quite some time — essentially issuing negative guidance where none had been previously issued (to my knowledge.) What has the response to this been if I may ask? We have not received any comments or concerns from customers about our Comment Letter to the FTC. Adobe?s position specifically condemns the practice of using Flash local storage to back up browser cookies for the purpose of restoring them after they have been deleted by the user without the...<br/><div align='right'>2010-04-20 05:44:53</div>

An Open Letter to Steve Jobs

Dear Mr. Jobs, As a very loyal Apple customer and user of your products I want to thank you for all that you’ve done for computing in general. Your attention to detail and your vision have resulted in many of the most useful and usable products I own, too many to list honestly. While I was able to hold off for three days before purchasing the original iPhone (now on my third since I upgrade with every release) I pre-ordered my iPad and absolutely love it. Thanks for that. Unfortunately as a long-time member of the digital measurement industry I am in the uncomfortable position of having to ask you to reconsider what will undoubtedly be viewed by many Apple customers, developers, and end-users as an egregious mistake. I am talking about Section 3.3.9 in your updated iPhone Developer Agreement in which you apparently ban all third-party in-app measurement. While I respect Apple’s right to privacy, for those not familiar with Section 3.3.9 I would encourage you to read the following articles: Apple Places New Limits on App Developers New iPhone Developer Agreement Bans the Use of Third-Party Analytics and Services The summary statement is that your updated Developer Agreement, if my read is accurate, strips all of your Development partners of their ability to measure application usage with an eye towards improving the overall quality of their product. Just as a reminder these Developer partners include Best Buy, Expedia, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Netflix, and some 150,000+ other companies working to deliver great experiences on your iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad devices. While I certainly understand the over-arching desire to have quality control in all things Apple, which the mobile family of applications essentially become by proxy, banning the ability to measure application use is likely to be met with some resistance among your larger Development partners. Many of these companies are known to me as a consultant and have active programs in place to use solutions like Adobe’s Omniture, Webtrends, Coremetrics, Unica, Google Analytics, and Yahoo Web Analytics to determine which application functionality is working and which needs to be addressed in future updates. Given that Apple is a long-time Adobe/Omniture customer I rather suspect that this third-party tracking is embedded in many of your own applications. Perhaps that’s not the case, but given the general utility of these applications I would be pretty...<br/><div align='right'>2010-04-14 00:34:36</div>

iPad, Mobile Analytics, and Web Analytics 3.0

If you follow me on Twitter (@erictpeterson) you are likely already annoyingly aware that I rushed right out last week and bought Apple’s new iPad. I got the device for a few reasons but fundamentally it was because I’m a technology geek–always have been really–and despite knowing the iPad will only get better over time I was happy to shell out $500 to see what the future of computing and all media would look like. Yeah, I see the iPad as the future of computing and all media. Bold, sure, but hear me out … and I promise I’ll make this relevant to web analytics, eventually. I believe that all that the “average user” of any technology really wants is a simple solution to whatever problem they may have at the time. At a high level people look towards their operating system to simplify access to the multitude of applications and documents they use; at a lower level we want our applications to simplify whatever process we’re undertaking. Proof points for my belief are everywhere, ranging from the adoption of speed dial on phones (simplifies calling your friends and family), power seats in cars (simplifies getting comfortable when you switch drivers), and even into web analytics where a substantial growth driver behind Google Analytics has been the profound simplicity with which important tasks such as custom report creation and segmentation are accomplished. The iPad, and to some extent the iPhone and it’s clones, absolutely crushes simplicity in a way that is simultaneously brilliant and powerful. Want to read a book? Touch the iBooks application, touch the book you want, and start reading. Want to send an email? Touch the Mail app, touch the new icon, and start writing. Want to play a game or send an SMS or Tweet something? It all works exactly the same way … tap, swipe, smile. Sure, the iPad is a little heavier than is optimal, and yeah it shows fingerprints and costs a lot of money and isn’t open source and … blah, blah, blah, blah. The complainers are gonna complain no matter what–you’re Apple or your not in this world I guess. But the complainers I think fail to grasp the opportunity the iPad creates: The iPad takes mobile computing to an entirely new level. With iPad you have a 1.5 lb device that will let you read, write, watch, and generally stay connected from just about anywhere for up to 10 hours between charging. What computer or phone does that? None that I...<br/><div align='right'>2010-04-09 05:03:26</div>

WAA Elections: Accountability, Inclusion, and Value

Those of you in the Web Analytics Association are likely aware that the voting for the 2010 – 2012 Directorships starts sometime today. My understanding is that ballots will arrive in the mail and each active member will be able to vote for up to five nominees. While I have never seriously considered running for the WAA I do pay special attention to the board’s make-up, primarily because the Board of Directors is the shepherd of the Web Analytics Forum at Yahoo Groups that I founded in 2004 and “donated” to the Association back in 2006, and because I have a standing partnership with the Association around the Web Analytics Wednesday social network that I founded with Board member June Dershewitz back in 2005. This year there are some really amazing people running for election and there are a lot of them. Because the field is crowded I wanted to take a few minutes to call your attention to three in particular who all have the type of long-standing investment in the web analytics community, passion, and experience required to succeed on the Web Analytics Association Board of Directors. If elected, I am confident that John, June, and Steve will push the WAA to provide more value, show more leadership, and create more opportunities for the larger web analytics community across the globe. John Lovett: Obviously I plan to vote for my business partner John Lovett, despite the fact that I tried repeatedly to talk him out of running! John is a long-time member of the web analytics community and has an incredible depth and breadth of knowledge about the industry. More than anything John gets my vote because he has demonstrated time and time again the ability to build consensus around difficult ideas despite the presence of hot-headed contributors (yes, I do mean me.) This combined with his bold statement “My efforts will be focused to stop making excuses and start delivering value …” resonates clearly with me as it should any member who has ever struggled to justify the cost of membership or time spent volunteering. I believe that a vote for John Lovett is a vote for accountability with the WAA Board. June Dershewitz: June has been a friend for an awfully long time and is someone I have grown to trust, respect, and listen to (which I am not particularly good at on some matters.) June and I worked out the partnership between the WAA and Web Analytics Demystified’s Web Analytics Wednesday social network to provide the...<br/><div align='right'>2010-03-29 05:28:35</div>

Why Google is really offering an opt-out ?

When I first saw the news of Google’s opt-out browser plug-in spread around Twitter I thought “hmm, I wondered when we’d see this” and moved on since opt-out is more or less an non-issue — basically because in the grand scheme of things nobody really opts-out. For all the hand-wringing and navel-gazing people do on the subject of privacy online, I have never, ever seen any data that indicates that web users actively opt-out of tracking in significant numbers. Never. If you have it, bring it on as I’d love to see it. But in my experience the only people really truly and actively interested in browser- or URL-based opt-out for tracking are privacy wonks, extreme bit-heads, and some Europeans. The privacy wonks and bit-heads are who they are and are unlikely to ever change; the Europeans have privacy concerns for other reasons but I will defer to Aurelie to try and make heads or tails of what those reasons are. Still, it has been interesting to see some bright folks like Forrester’s Joe Stanhope offer some explanations about why Google might be doing this and what the ramifications might be. And it has been less interesting to see some of the fear mongering and hyperbole offered by Marketing Pilgrim’s Andy Beal in his post “Why your web traffic is going to nosedive thanks to Google” although I found Econsultancy balances things out with their straightforward and tactful post “Will opt-out threaten Google Analytics?” What Andy, Patricio, and to some extent Joe, apparently didn’t notice is that Google Analytics is about to make a big, big push into Federal Government web sites, and this browser-based opt-out is just a check-box requirement to satisfy the needs of said privacy wonks who for better or worse have the Administration’s ear (or some body part, you choose!) Yep, the browser opt-out isn’t actually for anyone … except for perhaps the Electronic Freedom (sic) Foundation and their ilk. Google is somewhat brilliantly checking a box now so that when the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) releases all new Federal guidelines for browser cookie usage later this year any Federal site operator who wants can immediately dump their existing solution and go directly to Google Analytics. You do remember that Google Analytics comes at the amazing deficit reducing price of ABSOLUTELY FREE. Even a Republican can get his or her arms around that price tag, huh? You betcha....<br/><div align='right'>2010-03-21 05:27:49</div>

Analysis Exchange ALPHA Nearing Completion

You know how sometimes in life a plan looks good on paper but when you put it into action things don’t work out? That happens to me sometimes … but I gotta say that is not happening with The Analysis Exchange! Our Alpha testers are starting to complete their projects and I am so excited I wanted to share the feedback I got this morning from our mentor + student + organization trio. First, from the mentor: “My student presented her initial findings today to the organizational partner and our project lead was THRILLED. She loved the initial findings and asked if we could present the final deliverable to her CMO! I couldn’t have asked for a better outcome of the first alpha project. The student discovered some very compelling findings and she’s getting access to the c-level to showcase her analysis skills and discoveries. It will likely guide the way that they develop for their mobile users. Congratulations! I’m so looking forward to helping you build a high impact final presentation and hearing you deliver.” The student responded with this: “I can’t tell you what a great feeling it is to have someone genuinely get excited about my findings and recommendations, especially on my very first project since finishing the UBC program. The reassurance that what I learned in school is transferable to the real world is invaluable. My mentor was a great mentor and teacher, taking the extra time to educate me on Google Analytics, what data to focus on and where to find it. I am excited about the presentation we will present to our client. This Analysis Exchange experience has been extremely rewarding and educational. I feel that students will get the experience they need to enter the analytics world and be an effective and relevant contributor. I am looking forward to my next project!” (You can perhaps imagine that I personally am floating on cloud nine at this point!) The organizational lead wrote in and said: “I am just so excited about the things our student discovered. I can?t wait to share it with my team here, and see if there?s anything, no matter how small, we can do to improve the site. Doing this kind of analysis was something I just never had the time for, and I knew that it was important to find out more about our mobile audiences. The student is going to prepare a brief presentation that she is going to share with the team here, hopefully next week. I?m really looking forward to seeing all...<br/><div align='right'>2010-03-18 17:49:46</div>

Web Analytics Wednesday: Free and Independent!

If you are one of the thousands of people who have attended one of our Web Analytics Wednesday events over the past few years, well, thank you! Thank you for showing your support of the web analytics community, your local community, and the practice of web analytics in general. I had no idea that our execution of June’s idea would progress to near the point it has … touching so many people and providing a gateway to jobs, employees, and all kinds of new ideas. That said, two challenges have emerged recently and I felt like a quick blog post that everyone could reference would be the best way to deal with each. In no particular order: Web Analytics Wednesdays are designed to be a free event. It has come to my attention that some local chapters of WAW are charging people to attend events. In most (probably all actually) cases these fees are designed to offset the cost of food or drinks, but here’s the thing: we have tons of money for Web Analytics Wednesday and we can almost certainly get more if we need it! If you find yourself in the position of having to ask local members for $10 for an event … please please please email me directly and lets find you money! I am pretty creative, and the 2010 Global Sponsors have already donated very generously, so let me help you make a totally free event if at all possible, please! Web Analytics Wednesdays need to be run thoughtfully when held in conjunction with Web Analytics Association events. This gets back to the open-to-all atmosphere of Web Analytics Wednesday, but it has been brought to our attention that some WAA country hosts in Europe have been holding joint WAA + WAW events. This is excellent and wonderful, except if it happens at the expense of A) the global agreement between the WAA and Web Analytics Wednesday and B) the ability for anyone — WAA or not — to participate. The second point merits additional explanation. Web Analytics Wednesday, as many of you are already aware, is an independent entity created by Web Analytics Demystified, not the Web Analytics Association. Because it is a “community event” many people mistakenly assume it is WAA but it is not and never has been. We maintain WAW as a private entity because A) we believe it needs to remain open to all, not just those folks able to justify and afford the Association’s $199 annual fees and B) honestly, it’s a lot easier to get financial support for these events as an independent...<br/><div align='right'>2010-03-09 06:26:50</div>

Want to meet Web Analytics Demystified?

Whoa I cannot believe it is nearly March already, can you? Seems like 2010 took off like a rocket and is only moving faster and faster every day, which is great if you’re like me and you prefer “hectic” to “easy going” and are happiest when you’re fully engaged. And speaking of being busy … my travel schedule in the next few months looks awesome and will let me meet even more great companies working to take a more strategic approach towards web analytics. If you’re going to be at any of the following events, email me directly and we can arrange a time to chat! Here are some details about where you can meet me in the coming months: March 2nd to 4th, Omniture Summit, Salt Lake City, Utah. Next week I will be attending what has become the biggest party in all of web analytics, the Omniture Summit. Say what you want about Omniture, these guys know how to put on an amazing event, chock full of content, presentations, and amazing “extras” (for example, last year they had Maroon 5 play and Glenn “Big Baby” Davis hanging out at the concert, talking about the Internet and web analytics. How cool is that?) March 9th, SearchFest, Portland, Oregon. On Tuesday, March 9th I will be here in the Rose City presenting with Aaron Gray in the afternoon. Our presentation is “Measuring Online Success: Top Down and Bottom Up” in which Aaron will examine success from a more tactical perspective (his forte!) and I will focus on the strategy and governance issues that all companies need to consider. If you’re in Portland and haven’t registered for SearchFest 2010 you can use the promo code: SPKR-SEMPDXSF1020 and save a little green. The week of March 22nd I will be in Austin, Texas with a client and am hoping to cajole the local crew into having a Web Analytics Wednesday, Texas-style. I know Jennifer Day in Dallas will be mad that I’m not getting to Dallas first (since I owe Dallas after their amazing photo contest win … did you all see this?) If you’re in Austin STAY TUNED! Moving into April, John and I will both be going to the Coremetrics conference, also in Austin, Texas during the week of April 26th. Details about our participation are still being finalized but suffice to say we will be there for the Armadillo races, the awesome BBQ, and to learn more about Coremetrics momentum in the market. If you are a Coremetrics client please contact the company for details...<br/><div align='right'>2010-02-26 18:56:04</div>

The Coming Bifurcation in Web Analytics Tools

When John was with Forrester Research last year he had the opportunity to do some work for Google that published some pretty bold claims. Among these was his reporting that “a staggering 53% of enterprises surveyed currently use a free solution as their primary Web analytics tool, and 71% use free tools in some capacity (PDF from Google). At the time I commented: “When [John] first told me that over half of Enterprise businesses were using free solutions I have to admit I didn?t believe him. In a way I still don?t, but perhaps that?s only because I work with a slightly different sample than he presents. Regardless, John?s report paints a picture of an increasingly challenging market for companies selling web analytics and a new sophistication among end users.” Increasingly my new partner is looking like some kind of prescient seer, although perhaps not for the reason some of you expect. Without a doubt Google is pushing hard to improve their analytics application, and by nearly all measures they are doing a phenomenal job. As I said back in November I personally believe their “Analytics Intelligence” feature is brilliant, and I have little doubt that we’ll continue to see little improvements here and there over the coming year. But as much as I love Google Analytics for what it does, I am also willing to be honest about what it does not do and what it is not. Google Analytics alone is simply not enough for truly sophisticated web analytics. Despite John’s findings at Forrester, and despite the fact that Google Analytics is easily the most widely deployed web analytics solution ever built, there are clearly limits to what Google Analytics is capable of today. What’s more, there is nothing wrong with having limits … what is wrong is trying to be all things to all people, which is what this post is really about. At Web Analytics Demystified we have been talking over the last six months to an increasing number of companies that are considering dropping their historical vendor, almost always in favor of Google Analytics. And at Web Analytics Demystified we don’t do that much work with small, mom-and-pop shops … these are global organizations, name brands, and market leaders in their respective categories. Most of these companies are spending well-over $500,000 per year on analytics technology, and a handful are spending double that. What’s more, all of these companies have multiple...<br/><div align='right'>2010-02-10 18:45:05</div>

Flash Cookies and Consumer Privacy

Update: I should apologize to Adobe since I knew they had written to the FTC but didn’t mention it when I originally published this post. If you’re interested in this topic you should definitely download and read Adobe’s letter to the Secretary of the FTC regarding the use of Flash Local Shared Objects to re-spawn cookies. They cite my BPA white paper and do a great job outlining the company’s position on this particular use of their technology. I am writing to Adobe now to see if I can get someone on the phone to discuss in greater depth but if you know anyone there please ask them to email me directly. A few weeks back we published a white paper with our client BPA Worldwide on the use of Flash Local Shared Objects in web analytics practices. The paper, titled “Flash LSOs: Is Your Privacy at Risk?” is available for download at BPA Worldwide and does require a tiny bit of information (name, company, email.) We wrote the paper with BPA Worldwide because we are seeing a resurgence in the use of Flash LSO as a back-up mechanism for browser cookies and frankly I personally worry about the practice. Cookie deletion is what it is, and nothing anyone has done in the past five years has seemed to do anything to lessen (or worsen) the rate at which consumers clear cookie and history files. And yes, cookie deletion has a confounding effect on a variety of metrics web analytics professionals consider important, we’ve covered this more or less ad nasuem, although I certainly wonder how comScore’s recent reversal on the value of cookies will play out across combined web analytics + audience measurement efforts. My concern is that companies are increasingly using cookies to over-ride consumer preferences regarding cookie deletion. Documented by Soltani, et al. in their paper “Flash Cookies and Privacy”, companies are actively using Flash LSO, which are much more difficult to block and delete than their browser-based counterparts, to essentially “reset” browser cookie values and thusly “remember” information that consumers are either implicitly or explicitly asking the web browser to forget. If you’re doing this, or even considering this, I would encourage you to download the white paper as we provide what I believe to be sound guidance regarding the use of Flash LSO in a measurement practice. You might also want to check out this post over at the Adobe web site which details how...<br/><div align='right'>2010-02-05 19:12:43</div>

Welcome to Web Analytics Demystified 2.0

By now you’ve noticed that we’ve completely re-done the Web Analytics Demystified web site, that is unless you only ever read my posts in an RSS reader in which case I would ask you to click-through and have a look. The new site is the culmination of nearly a year’s effort starting with convincing my good friend Aurelie Pols to join the Web Analytics Demystified and, more recently, convincing my other good friend John Lovett to leave his cushy job at Forrester Research to join Aurelie and I. Hopefully you find the new site more streamlined, easier to read, and a little more focused on the aspects of Web Analytics Demystified we are working to feature. My own personal highlights include: Totally free copies of Web Analytics Demystified, The Big Book of Key Performance Indicators, and the KPI book’s companion worksheets. I made the decision to start giving my books away for one reason and one reason only: to continue to do everything humanly possible to educate as many future web analytics professionals as possible. The response today was good (see image below!) Totally revamped mini-site for The Analysis Exchange, including the ability for everyone to start to create their member profiles. The Analysis Exchange has exceeded every single expectation that I had going in, thanks to many people’s efforts. If you’re interested in helping the Analysis Exchange or learning more about the effort please visits http://www.analysis-exchange.com Partially revamped mini-site for Web Analytics Wednesday, with more features and updates coming in Q2. Web Analytics Wednesday has become such an automated delight, and with SiteSpect and Coremetrics renewing their sponsorship in 2010 we hope to do even more this coming year! All new look and feel for my, Aurelie, and John’s blogs, and the addition of our new Emerging Technology blog. So much of our traffic is driven by the blogs, and so many of our clients find us based on our writing here, we wanted to ensure that reading our blogs was as distraction free as possible. The Emerging Technology blog is something we think of as “TechCrunch for Web Analytics” and we hope you’ll check that out. We have also worked to clarify what the Web Analytics Demystified web analytics consulting business and Senior Partners do, when we’re not supporting the community at large. Perhaps a small point, but one that pays the bills, so if you need help getting your web analytics...<br/><div align='right'>2010-01-19 08:31:51</div>

The Most Important Post on Web Analytics You?ll Ever Read

When John Lovett joined Aurelie and I here at Web Analytics Demystified earlier this month an awful lot of people said, “Hey, nice job getting such nice guy on board,” “We love John, he’s great,” and “Man, what a great addition to your team!” Clearly John has the respect of the industry, but one thing that remained an open question in some people’s minds was “how will John make the transition from the ivory tower an analyst sits in to the ground floor where consultants actually do work?” I admit, I wondered that too in a way, having made a slightly different transition myself years ago. It’s not easy to come away from a situation where you provide advice but are tasked with, honestly, doing very little real work. During my own tenure at JupiterResearch years ago I ensured my own connection to practical web analytics by writing my second and third books. But John had been an analyst for nearly 10 years … and so wondering how he’d hit the ground was a reasonable question. Wonder no more. While John has already contributed greatly to the businesses bottom line and helped out with one of our largest new retail clients, he absolutely floored me this morning when he published his post Defining a Web Analytics Strategy: A Manifesto. I asked him to elaborate on some comments he made at Emetrics where he essentially poo-pooed the use of so called “Web Analytics Maturity Models”, describing the almost religious zeal some people seem to have when talking about models and declaring himself as a “Model Atheist.” Having written the original Web Analytics Maturity Model back in 2005, I have had first-hand experience with their failure to produce anything more than a generalized awareness that most companies simply don’t “get” web analytics, something that we more or less all know already. But honestly I was surprised when John took this position on the subject because, well, in my experience those that don’t do, teach, and models are a classic teaching tool. I had assumed that as an analyst John was a teacher, not a do-er like I have been for years now in my capacity as a practice leader, consultant, and web analyst. Man was I wrong … John’s “Manifesto” is perhaps the most lucid yet succinct explanation I have ever read detailing the steps required to make web analytics work for your business (as opposed to the other way...<br/><div align='right'>2009-12-23 02:16:02</div>

Amazing response to The Analysis Exchange

Wow. Wow. Wow. I am at a total loss for words when it comes to the response from the web analytics community regarding our soft-launch for The Analysis Exchange on Tuesday. We’ve had over 250 people, largely from within the measurement community, sign up to participate and have seen the nicest emails imaginable. Clearly this is an idea that’s time has come, and clearly the lack of training opportunities in the sector was a “raw nerve” for many people. But don’t take my word for it. The following are excerpts from emails we received over the past few days. These speak for themselves and only serve to reiterate the need for the Exchange. The first email is from Bryce in Georgia: “I really want to do web analytics as a profession but am having a hard time breaking into the field. There’s not exactly anywhere to ‘get a degree’ doing this kind of thing and even with my business and accounting background, and decade of web development freelancing, my experience does not seem to be impressing any potential employers. It would be awesome to get some real experience under the guide of professionals. I’ve been reading Avinash’s books, following several analytics blogs and I’ve set up numerous GA sites with funnels, goals, and KPI’s that are being tracked. The fact that we’ll be helping out non-profits and outreaches at the same time is super. Please pick me, :)” From Ali: “I was reading Eric Peterson?s blog entry about the Analysis Exchange and I would like to be a mentor and help contribute to the success of a company by empowering them with the awesomeness of web analytics.” From Ridder in San Diego: “I am very grateful for a “student” opportunity you might generate for and with me as you defined in your clear video today. Through WAW, your email kindnesses, and more, you have taught me “what I don’t know,” and what I do offer is a proven data smog to actionable wealth of knowledge capital “philosophy,” and an “attitude of gratitude of How May I Help You?” These are far more than just nice words to me.” From Emmett in Menlo Park: “This a great initiative!! Being an active student of web analytics, I encountered the same catch 22 when attempting to break into this industry. I have signed up and look forward to participating!!” From Gerry in the UK: “Just been through the...<br/><div align='right'>2009-12-18 05:17:14</div>

Announcing The Analysis Exchange

A few weeks ago I started pinging folks within the digital measurement community asking about the work we do, the challenges we face, and how we got where we are today. The responses I got were all tremendously positive and showed a true commitment to web analytics across vendor, consultant, and end-user practitioner roles. What I learned was, well, exactly what I expected given my decade-plus in the sector: “web analytics” is still a relatively immature industry, one populated by diverse opinions, experiences, and backgrounds. Those of you who have been following my work know that I have spent a great deal of time working to create solutions for the sector. As a matter of record I was the first to create an online community for web analytics professionals and explicitly point out the need for dedicated analysis resources back in 2004, and the first to publish a web analytics maturity model and change how web analytics practitioners interact with their local community back in 2005. I’ve also written a few books, a few blog posts, and have logged a few miles in the air working with some amazing companies to improve their own use of web analytics. I offer the preceding paragraph not to brag but rather to establish my credentials as part of setting the stage for what the rest of this post is about. Like many in web analytics — Jim Sterne, Avinash Kaushik, and Bryan Eisenberg all come to mind — I have worked tirelessly at times to evolve and improve the landscape around us. And with the following announcement I hope to have lightning strike a fourth time … But I digress. One of the key questions I asked in Twitter was “how did you get started [in web analytics?]” Unsurprisingly each and every respondent gave some variation on “miraculously, and without premeditation.” While people’s responses highlighted the enthusiasm we have in the sector, it also highlighted what I see as the single most significant long-term problem we face in web analytics. We haven’t created an entry path into the system. As a community of vendors, consultants, practitioners, evangelists, authors, bloggers, Tweeters, socializers, and thought-leaders, we have failed nearly 100% at creating a way for talented, motivated, and educated individuals who are “not us” to gain the real-world experience required to actually participate meaningfully in this wonderful thing that we have all created. Before the...<br/><div align='right'>2009-12-15 12:30:49</div>

Welcome to our newest partner, John Lovett

As you can see by the title of this post Web Analytics Demystified has some amazingly huge news — respected industry veteran and former Forrester Research senior analyst John Lovett has come on board as a Senior Partner. I have known John for years and have been one of his biggest fans all along; imagine my chagrin when he decided to leave his awesome job and help Aurelie and I build something truly great here at Web Analytics Demystified! John has long blogged over at Analytics Evolution but he’s already set up shop here at http://john.webanalyticsdemystified.com. As you can see he’s pretty excited about joining our team as well, and you can read the official press release on our web site. At Web Analytics Demystified I have worked for the past two years and Aurelie and I have worked this year to build a truly great and well-differentiated consulting firm. Lots and lots of companies do implementations, reporting, and the basic block-and-tackle work that is the foundation of our industry. But when I left Visual Sciences I wanted to fill a completely different need. In the past two years we have, I believe, successfully done that. We count among our clients some of the best companies doing business online, some of the greatest technology firms in measurement today, and some of the nicest people working in web analytics today. Based on the early news from our trusted clients and partners John will only accelerate our growth and allow Web Analytics Demystified to focus on more strategic and more valuable engagements across the globe. Plus, since John is a total and complete Rock Star like Aurelie, I have a new partner that I know I can trust with the kinds of clients we work with here at Web Analytics Demystified. We will have more great announcements from the firm in the coming weeks but I will leave you with these few things: If you’re a Web Analytics Demystified client in any kind of retainer, you have immediate and automatic access to both John and Aurelie. Contact me directly for more information; If you’d like to talk to John about his practice at Web Analytics Demystified you can email him at john@webanalyticsdemystified.com; If you’d like to know more about this announcement and how Web Analytics Demystified can help your business, please give me a call at (503) 282-2601; If you’re in Boston and want to congratulate John and buy the man a drink, please join us at Web Analytics Wednesday in Cambridge on...<br/><div align='right'>2009-12-01 10:39:55</div>

Google Analytics Intelligence Feature is Brilliant!

Long-time blog readers are likely aware that I’m not prone to writing about individual technologies or product features unless I have the opportunity to break the news about something new and cool (or not, as the case is from time to time.) But once and awhile a single feature comes along that in my mind is so compelling and cool I need to bend my own rules; Google Analytics new “Intelligence” offering is exactly that feature. Just in case you’ve been living under a rock for the past month and haven’t already heard about “Intelligence” have a quick watch of the following video pulled from the Google Analytics blog: Pretty awesome, huh? What’s more, now that I’ve had a few weeks to play with the feature and think about it in the context of my published views on the Coming Revolution in Web Analytics, I think that “Intelligence” is one of the most important advances in web analytics since the JavaScript page tag. While Google is certainly not the first vendor to apply some level of statistical and mathematical rigor to web analytics data, an honor that would likely go to Technology Leaders for their Dynamic Alert product or Yahoo for their use of confidence intervals when exposing demographic data in Yahoo Web Analytics, in my humble opinion Google has done the best possible job making statistical analysis of web analytics data accessible, useful, and valuable. Some things I really like: An approachable way to determine confidence intervals via their “Alert Sensitivity” slider. While the implementation doesn’t necessarily impart the level of detail some folks would like, the slider mitigates the prevalent concern that “people won’t understand confidence intervals.” Great visual cues for alerts, especially when statistically relevant changes are not obvious based on traffic patterns. Sometimes traffic patterns just look like hills and valleys, even when something important is happening — for example, the next figure shows two alerts at the lowest threshold setting on September 16th that, upon exploration, turned out to be great news (that I might have missed otherwise.) Good visual cues regarding the statistical relevance of the insight being communicated. This is tough since Google is trying to present moderately complex information regarding the underlying calculations and how much emphasis you should be putting on the insight. By showing a...<br/><div align='right'>2009-11-10 20:36:34</div>

Are You Ready for the Coming Revolution?

Few would argue that the past few years in web analytics have been, well, intense. The emergence of Yahoo Web Analytics, multiple management shake-ups at WebTrends, Adobe’s acquisition of Omniture following Omniture’s acquisition of Visual Sciences, WebSideStory, Offermatica, Instadia, and TouchClarity, and the continued push into the Enterprise from Google Analytics. From where I sit we have seen more changes in the last 24 months than we had in the entire 12 years previous (my tenure in the sector) combined. When I think about these changes, I find myself coming to the undeniable conclusion that our industry is undergoing a radical transformation. More companies than ever are paying attention to digital measurement, and despite my disbelief in Forrester’s numbers, an increasing number of these companies are forging a smart, focused digital measurement strategy. At the X Change, at Emetrics, and at Web Analytics Wednesday events around the world there is more and more evidence that this wonderful sector I call “home” is really starting to grow up. And we’re just getting started. If you pay close attention to the marketing you see from Omniture, WebTrends, Unica, Coremetrics, and the other “for fee” vendors you’ve surely noticed a dramatic change recently. Nobody is talking about web analytics anymore; the entire focus has become one of systems integration, multichannel data analysis, and cross-channel analytics. All the sudden web analytics is starting to sound like, gasp, business and customer intelligence. Eek. Since it’s late and since this post will be over-shadowed by the hype around Google Analytics releasing more “stuff” on Tuesday I’ll cut right to the chase: I believe that we are (finally) on the cusp of a profound revolution in web analytics and that the availability of third-generation web analytics technologies will finally get digital measurement the seat at the table we’ve been fighting to get for years. Statistics, people … statistics and modeling, predictive analytics based on web data, true forecasting, and true analytical competition for the online channel. Yahoo’s use of confidence intervals when presenting demographic data and the application of statistical models in Google’s new “Analytics Intelligence” feature are just the beginning. As an industry it’s time to stop fearing math and embrace analytical sciences that...<br/><div align='right'>2009-10-19 08:20:52</div>

An Apology of Sorts ?

Now that Omniture’s Q3 earnings are public that I sort of felt like I needed to apologize to the company or at least recognize that they did a good job last quarter leading into their sale to Adobe Systems. Despite what I had heard from multiple sources their earnings announcement was right in line with guidance. Congratulations to the entire Omniture and Adobe team! It still leaves me scratching my head about the deal since the synergies are less obvious to me than they clearly are to Adobe and Omniture’s management and shareholders, but hey, with the sheer number of changes occurring in the industry right now who knows what might actually work. Hell, based on what I’m hearing about the Google Analytics announcement next Tuesday, it’s going to look like a great time to be focusing on something other than competing with Google Analytics … I’m going to get to spend time with many of their largest customers next week so I suspect I’ll hear a great deal more about how this sale is being met by HBX customers, Visual Sciences customers, and those folks who have a tremendous amount invested in the SiteCatalyst line of products. If you’re an Omniture customer going to Emetrics next week and have an opinion you’d like to share please reach out to me directly and we’ll arrange some time to chat. Again, congratulations to Josh James and all of the OMTR shareholders on what is increasingly looking like a great deal for all involved. © 2004 - 2009 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2009-10-16 05:12:02</div>

New Data on the Strategic Use of Web Analytics

Recently Google published the results of a Forrester Research study they had commissioned (PDF) to help the broader market understand the use and adoption of free web analytics solution. Google should be applauded for commissioning Forrester to conduct this work, especially given the quality of the research and the level of insights provided. Without a doubt, free solutions like Google Analytics and Yahoo Web Analytics are having an impact on our industry and driving change in ways few of us ever imagined. I really did enjoy the Forrester report, primarily because the author (John Lovett) managed to surface totally new data. When he first told me that over half of Enterprise businesses were using free solutions I have to admit I didn?t believe him. In a way I still don?t, but perhaps that?s only because I work with a slightly different sample than he presents. Regardless, John?s report paints a picture of an increasingly challenging market for companies selling web analytics and a new sophistication among end users. Speaking of sophistication, there are a few points in the report that I question, and since I have pretty good luck getting feedback from readers on big picture stories I figured I?d bring them up here in the blog. Before I do I want to emphasize that I am not questioning Forrester or John?s work?I am merely trying to explore some data that I find contrary to my own experience in this public forum. To this end I pose a handful of questions that I would love to discuss either openly in comments or via email. The first point I question is the observation in Figure 3 that 70% of companies report having a ?well-defined analytics strategy.? Two years ago my own research found that fewer than 10% of companies worldwide had a well-defined strategy for web analytics. Last year Econsultancy reported that only 18% of the companies in their sample had a strategy for analytics. To jump from these low numbers to the majority of Enterprises just doesn?t square with my general experience in the industry. . Remember, the implication of this data point is that 70% of all companies having more than 1,000 employees have a ?well-defined analytics strategy.? According to a 2004 report from the U.S. Census Bureau there were just over 12,000 companies in the U.S. with more than 1,000 employees. Without assuming any growth between 2004 and 2009, Forrester?s 70% figure would result in over 8,500 companies in the U.S. that have a ?well-defined? strategy for web...<br/><div align='right'>2009-10-12 08:35:16</div>

Web Analytics Demystified European Tour

Those of you who live in Europe are likely already aware that my good friend Aurelie Pols has joined me as a partner in Web Analytics Demystified. Over the next two weeks she and I will be making a series of presentations and announcements at events across Northern Europe. We will be at: The Online Performance Management seminars, hosted by Creuna, in Copenhagen on Thursday, October 8th and in Oslo, Norway on Friday, October 9th. More information about our hosts and registration is available from Creuna. While we’re in Copenhagen we will be having a Web Analytics Wednesday on Wednesday, October 7th. I will be giving a short presentation on testing and if you’re in Copenhagen please join us at this FREE EVENT sponsored by IIH Nordic and Webtrekk Over the weekend Aurelie and I will be hanging out in Stockholm, Sweden. If you’re in Stockholm and want to meet-up please either shoot me an email or Twitter me and we’ll make plans! On Monday, October 12th and Tuesday, October 13th Aurelie and I will be joining the excellent Emetrics crew at Emetrics Stockholm. I will be giving the keynote on Tuesday morning and Aurelie and I will both be participating on a series of panels and shorter presentations. Those of you keeping score will note that I have attended EVERY SINGLE Emetrics ever held in the United States but this is my FIRST EVER event in Europe. Yahoo! On Wednesday, October 14th, I will be hanging out in Amsterdam with the Nedstat crew but have a fair amount of downtime during the day. I’m staying near Vondelpark and if you’d like to meet and get a cup of coffee (seriously, I mean coffee, I’m too old for the other stuff) Twitter me and we’ll make plans! Since I usually do three European cities in three or four days this trip is a lazy walkabout for me (four cities, seven days) but Aurelie and I have planning to do and, of course, we’ll spend a little time enjoying the local culture. If you live in any of these cities, or if you plan to come to Emetrics, please join us and come say hello! © 2004 - 2009 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2009-10-04 03:58:02</div>

More color on Adobe + Omniture

Wow, everyone seems to have an opinion about this acquisition. Some people think Microsoft will ride in at the 11th hour and out-bid Adobe because Microsoft and Adobe compete, and because Google has Google Analytics. On this point I am inclined to agree with Joe Davis, CEO of Omniture competitor Coremetrics, who comments that Omniture has been shopping the company around for some time and it is unlikely that Redmond hasn’t already had the opportunity to play (given the significant investment Microsoft has in Omniture.) Other folks appear to be worried that Adobe will be integrating Omniture into Flash and this raises privacy concerns. While certainly folks have concerns about tracking and the possibility of embedding tracking into Flash Local Shared Objects (LSO) I just have to believe that management at Adobe is smart enough not to risk Flash’s dominance by subjecting the technology to the scrutiny, navel-gazing, and paranoia of the “privacy police.” Their customers, at least the ones I am talking to, are more or less 2 to 1 against the acquisition at this point citing a variety of concerns (transition, failure to execute on stated product plans, talent flight, Adobe is not adept at services, etc.) Far be it from me to tell anyone’s customers they are wrong when expressing concerns, especially since this is an out-of-sector acquisition and Omniture is now more or less a medium-sized cog in a very big machine. Arguments for include loving Adobe (I love Adobe!), being relieved that Adobe is a big, grown-up company, and hopes that Adobe will focus on fundamentals like customer support, product execution, and global expansion. Another customer complaint is that Omniture is now losing the (thin, pasty) veneer of third-party objectivity and that some companies may not actually want Adobe to have access to their site’s data. I think this may be the same boondoggle that Omniture (and others) have used to explain why “the Enterprise wouldn’t use Google Analytics” — except there is more and more (and more) evidence that the Enterprise does use Google Analytics — but it will be interesting to see how the “free-standing” analytics vendors work to make Omniture eat their own words now that they too are part of something larger. The comment that has me most concerned is one best detailed by Carter Malloy from Stephens, Inc. Research Analyst who I have known for years and who I know to be...<br/><div align='right'>2009-09-17 02:09:04</div>

Thoughts on Adobe + Omniture

Wow, I have to admit that I was surprised mid-day today at a new client meeting in Chicago when, at the same moment, my phone, my SMS, and my email all went off at the same time. When we got to a break I quickly glanced down and the SMS message said “Adobe buys OMTR for $1.8B!!!!!!” Wow. I didn’t get to talk to the press (John got the honors, congrats) and am just not getting a chance to cogitate a little on what Adobe’s entrance to the web analytics market means after non-stop phone calls for the past five hours. A lot of interesting comments have already been published so I will try and reference the stuff I think is insightful in an effort to avoid repetition. In general, the more I think about the deal the more it makes sense, at least for Omniture. Given increasing pressure from lower-cost (and free) solutions, the economy, and a customer base that is more and more prone to complain about service issues and the high cost of doing business with the company, exiting now makes good sense. Why fight the sea change in the analytics market when you can saddle someone else with the responsibility? Like others, I don’t really see the synergy in the deal, but I admit that I love Adobe and so I’m willing to be surprised. I think of Adobe as a software company for creative types; Omniture sells software-as-a-service to analytical types; these are different business models and very different customers. The idea that somehow this acquisition bolsters Adobe’s position in content management or as a global delivery platform just doesn’t resonate with me. Similarly, I don’t see this acquisition as creating anything new regarding measurement being embedded into rich media applications. Thanks, perhaps ironically, to Macromedia (owned by Adobe) we have been embedding tracking codes into Flash, Flex, Silverlight, AJAX, etc. for years … and while the integration is botched as often as not, I don’t see how adding a “Click here to Omniture-ize” button into Dreamweaver and Adobe’s RIA development suite will solve that problem. I do agree with Alex Yoder’s general thesis that this acquisition increases the overall visibility of the sector and that this is a good thing. I also agree that this acquisition is likely not the last — both WebTrends and Coremetrics are owned by investors and you know how those guys are. His citation of Microsoft and Oracle is interesting given both...<br/><div align='right'>2009-09-16 06:45:31</div>

X Change 2009: Sold Out!

You may have already noticed this when you went to the registration page if you’re still considering the X Change next week but we officially put a cap on things last Thursday. While I’m disappointed that more people won’t be able to join us, it is incredibly gratifying to know that in the midst of the worst business economy in decades that smart people are still able to get management approval for continuing education, networking, and professional development. I am certainly excited about the group we have coming next week: some great vendors, some awesome consultants, an incredible keynote event, and many of the best and brightest practitioners in the digital measurement industry. Excellent! Also, as Gary pointed out in his blog post today, if you really, really, really need to join us in San Francisco and have already gone to bat for the budget, just let me know. We can always squeeze one more in, but we’ll probably make you attend Gary’s Think Tank training session just so he feels a little better (see his blog post for the back-story …) If you can’t make it and you’re on Twitter please watch for conversation and insights on the #xchange hashtag in Twitter. Like Gary, I’m not foolish enough to promise to blog from the conference (hell, I barely blog as is anymore … too busy with work I guess!) but I will definitely try and push up 140 characters here and there, or slightly less when I co-tag with #xchange and #measure LOL! If you’re coming to San Francisco, I look forward to seeing you next week! P.S. piggybacking on Gary’s comments about WebTrends … I’m with Gary and Phil on the whole “9″ release. I’m encouraged by the company making a move in the right direction, but I feel that the release was dramatically over-marketed and set a new, all-time high for “hype over substance” in this industry making even the great green machine look conservative. When your own staff are forced to admit the release is not “the new UI” despite marketing’s claim that “[9's] clean, professional interface lets you creatively explore your data like never before,” well something has gone wrong somewhere. That said, it’s great to see Alex committing to the product and, at the end of the day, it’s not what Gary, Phil, or I think … it’s what their customers and prospects think that counts. I know a handful will...<br/><div align='right'>2009-09-06 02:04:46</div>

White Paper: Testing Secrets of Success

If you’ve been reading my blog for any amount of time you’ve inevitably heard me comment that I think “web analytics is hard” — not complex, not mysterious … just plain difficult. It’s hard to select vendors, hard to install code, hard to train users, hard to get the “right” reports, hard to get management’s attention, hard to make the case for change … the list goes on and on (and on and on and on!) Hard, but not impossible. In the past few years we have definitely started seeing an increase in the number of companies that “get it” — so much so that we’re able to program an entire conference built around the superstars of web analytics. More and more I am talking to, working with, and hearing about companies who have leveraged the “web analytics is hard” mindset to properly set expectations regarding their use of technology, their deployment of people, and their use of business process to really excel at web data analysis and turn this analysis into tangible improvement for both the business and their customers. As I collect more information about these web analytical competitors one thing that nearly always emerges as a hallmark of their success is some type of structured testing program. Of course this makes perfect sense because without testing the analyst is never really sure about the impact of their recommendations, so much so that I have often said “if you’re not testing, you’re not really doing web analytics!” But the increase in testing has raised an interesting corollary to my “web analytics is hard” manifesto … testing is hard too! Fortunately we’re all a little bit older and a little bit wiser this time around and we recognize that testing requires more than just throwing code on the page and clicking the “Optimize” button. Testing is a process that requires people and technology … sound familiar? I’m bringing this up for two reasons: At the X Change conference in San Francisco on September 9, 10, and 11 Matthew Wright from HP will be leading a conversation titled “Testing, Testing, Testing: Building Consensus and Evaluating Results” to discuss the nuances behind testing, things like getting stakeholder approval, planning, and clearly defining measures of success; This morning the nice folks at SiteSpect published a white paper I wrote that details ten...<br/><div align='right'>2009-08-18 18:41:58</div>

Interview: John Lovett from Forrester Research

Following up my interview with Bill Gassman a few weeks ago I realized that I would be remiss if I didn’t build on Forrester’s recent Web Analytics Wave report with an interview with John Lovett. John, like Bill, totally, totally understands the web analytics industry, and in that understanding is able to clarify the marketplace in a way few others can. Don’t believe me? Check out his response to possibly the worst article about web analytics, ever. Measured, polite, even complimentary … that’s John. I am personally honored that John accepted my invitation to return to the X Change this year and both lead the huddle on “Industry Standards (or a lack thereof)” and co-lead a huddle on technology with Bill Gassman. If you haven’t met John personally, and if you are able to join us at the X Change, I strongly recommend you make a point of introducing yourself to him. Finally, before my questions and John’s answers, I wanted to point out how incredibly deft Mr. Lovett really is: in response to a high-and-hard fastball question about “which vendor is really the best,” John knocked the ball clear out of the park with his answer: none of them. I’ll let you read the rest for yourself … Your recent Wave report really emphasized a lot of conventional wisdom about the web analytics vendors but had some surprises for folks. What surprised YOU the most about the Wave results? Well Eric, I like to say that surprises are for birthdays and not for business. So in terms of actual surprises, there weren?t any big bombshells for me. I was however pleased that the vendors demonstrated innovation in a number of areas (like social media measurement) and that despite my attempts to develop extremely challenging criteria, the vendors continue to improve year over year. One comment people have made to me is that they question the validity of comparing fee and free solutions in a single matrix due to the fundamental differences in their business model. How would (or do) you respond to that challenge? That?s preposterous! I respond by saying that it?s negligent not to compare free vs. fee based solutions. In today?s economic environment if you?re not watching expenses by understanding the cost to benefit ratio of your Web analytics solution, you are acting irresponsibly. Free tools have merit for many organizations as both primary and secondary tools, while fee based solutions are more appropriate for...<br/><div align='right'>2009-08-10 02:57:15</div>

How much do you pay for web analytics?

I was just cruising through the just published WebTrends 9 update and thinking about how the web analytics vendor market is evolving. “9″ looks neat and I’m sure glad to see some really important metrics like bounce rate appear in the UI. Still, I always scratch my head when I see vendors make statements like “[the] data visualization tool in Webtrends Analytics 9 lets anyone ? even analytics novices ? quickly and easily understand changes in key metrics” and then put up a feature list like this one. Still, it’s nice to see WebTrends making some moves so congratulations to Jascha, Casey and the entire Portland crew for getting the update out the door! Anyway … I said I had been thinking about the evolution of the web analytics vendor market. A lot of my thinking this past week has been colored, well, purple, thanks to the announcement of Yahoo’s Web Analytics Consulting Network (the YWACN or, as I think about it “the Yack’n!”.) On July 30th Yahoo announced that they were making Yahoo! Web Analytics much easier to get through 48 partners around the globe. Now, when you look at the partner list you might not recognize a lot of the names — I sure don’t — but a few should stand out. Specifically Stratigent, Semphonic, Sapient, and my own company Web Analytics Demystified. While I can’t speak directly for any of these companies, all are run by very smart people, and I have to wonder if they’re not thinking about YWA much the same way I have been. I mean, if you think about it, Yahoo! has basically come to us and said “Go sell excellent implementations of YWA and provide awesome ongoing support” for an application that, according to Forrester Reseach, has 77% of the core functionality of Omniture SiteCatalyst. Or, put another way, “Find companies that are struggling to get value from their existing investment in {pick a vendor}, kick that vendor out, and then make money helping them be successful for less then they spend today.” Sweet, thanks Yahoo! Not to brag (since it was pretty obvious) but I did say this would happen back in April 2008 given the hard work Google Analytics (who is ironically NOT a YWA competitor) had done with their similarly badly acronym’d GAAC. Yahoo wisely avoids having to support customers directly, leverages some incredibly smart folks, and lets companies reduce their annual analytics spend without having to...<br/><div align='right'>2009-08-04 09:21:32</div>

#measure is the new #wa in Twitter

Just a quick post to help bring attention to the fact that the fine people of Washington state have officially over-run the #wa hashtag that many web analytics folks have been using in Twitter. While this certainly our loss given how terse #wa is when you’re limited to 140 characters it is difficult to fault those folks since WA is their state’s abbreviation. Such is life in an unregulated world, huh? As a replacement I have started using #measure when tagging my web analytics-related Tweets. And while there was some debate about #measure versus #waamo and #analytics and the such I would propose that #measure is the basis for everything we do. Without measurement there is no analysis; without measurement there is only gut feel. That said I am choosing to use the #measure tag … you may choose to use something completely different. But since I was one of the catalysts to start using #wa in the first place I figured I would see if lightning might strike twice! See you in the #measure cloud! © 2004 - 2009 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2009-07-28 18:01:32</div>

Interview: Bill Gassman (Gartner) on Google Analytics

Bill Gassman from Gartner is one of those guys that just “gets” what we’re trying to do in the web and digital analytics industry. Perhaps because he’s been covering this space for nearly as long as I’ve been around, or perhaps because he has a deep business intelligence background and sees where all this is going. I dunno, but Bill gets it. Recently Bill, who is incidentally coming to the 2009 X Change and leading a huddle on organizational issues and co-leading a huddle on technology with John Lovett from Forrester, published a short brief on Google Analytics that I thought really hit the nail on the head. Clear, honest, and fully taking the Enterprise into account, Bill’s report clarified a lot about how companies should be thinking about Google’s analytics solution. Since I could not get permission to republish Bill’s report I did the next best thing — I came up with some questions and put them to the man himself. The following are my questions and Bill’s responses. Incidentally, if you want to follow-up on this interview Bill graciously said he would monitor the comments and respond there (so comment away!) Or, you could just come to San Francisco on September 9, 10, and 11 and debate the goodness of Google Analytics with Bill in person. Regarding your recent note on Google Analytics, can you characterize how the companies who are asking you about “free” analytics have changed in the last 12 months? Is any one thing driving that change, do you think? Since Google Analytics improved last October, most client inquires about Web analytics touch on Google Analytics. That is why I published the note ?Is Google Analytics Right for You??. (Gartner account required to access) Marketing departments ask if it is all they need, purchasing agents wonder why they should spend money on commercial tools and corporate lawyers wonder about Google?s terms and conditions. The economy and budget constraints trigger the questions, but the major driver to Google is its simplicity. Many organizations do not have the processes in place to make use of the high-end products or have Web sites that do not need the sophistication they offer. They perceive Google Analytics as good enough and ?free? is a tempting offer. If Google asked you which three things were most important to add to their functional set to be considered “Enterprise” what would those three things be? Getting to functional parity...<br/><div align='right'>2009-07-27 08:16:11</div>

Want to Debate Standards?

One of the biggest problems we face in web analytics today is our industry’s lack of standards and common definitions. And while a great number of incredibly bright folks have put a ton of energy into solving these problems, in my humble opinion we are more or less where we started years ago — agreeing politely to disagree. Those of you who have been reading my blog for awhile know that I’m not shy about disagreement — perhaps more than anything my analyst’s mind loves a spirited debate — but I also am somewhat anxious about creating tangible outcomes. To this end I am incredibly excited about two huddles at X Change 2009, one that was just added! The first is Forrester’s John Lovett’s “Web Analytics Standards (or a Lack Thereof)” in which John will be leading us through the current state of industry standards, proposed definitions and our collective understanding of analytics terminology. The second, and one just added to the X Change, is Jim Hassert’s “When is a Visitor Not a Real Person?” huddle in which Jim will take John’s huddle one step further and drill-down into the often irreconcilable differences found in the seemingly harmless “visitor” metric and dimension. Last year I was forced to miss a lot of good huddles. This year a team of wild horses couldn’t keep me from missing these two. While I have little doubt that both of these huddles will live up to the spirit of the X Change my hope is that they will go one step further. I would love to see both produce some kind of actionable outcome, something that we can carry forth into our careers and the wider conversation about our industry. Given that some serious talent is already signed up for the X Change — including some of the brightest minds in the practitioner and vendor community — I have little doubt that we have the brain power … now all we need is the resolve to do something and not just push words around on paper. If you’re a reader of this blog and want to join us at the X Change I’m happy to help you out. If you act before July 31st I am offering a 15% discount on the registration (a $300 savings!) Come to the X Change. Agree to do more than “politely disagree” — take a stand, defend your ideas, and help shape tangible and positive outcomes. © 2004 - 2009 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new...<br/><div align='right'>2009-07-13 05:00:39</div>

The Truth About Mobile Analytics

Perhaps the only thing hotter than social media right now is mobile. And with good reason — smartphones like the iPhone and Palm Pre are taking our ability to get information to entirely new levels and ushering in an era of “digital ubiquity” that is clearly without precedent. Unsurprisingly business is responding by actively exploring how they can participate in the mobile opportunity, either by optimizing their site for small screens or going so far as to build cool, new iPhone applications to support long-standing offline initiatives. Fortunately most business owners have learned from past mistakes and are showing interest in measuring the effect of their investment into mobile. But measuring mobile isn’t easy — the sheer diversity of technologies involved and the rapid evolution of the industry has created a monsterous landscape of devices, communication protocols, and requirements. As a result dozens of companies have sprung up, all making claim to a unique ability to measure the mobile opportunity. Unfortunately some of these companies have decided that relying on hype, hyperbole, and sometimes outright lies are a better sales strategy than building a great product with a unique value proposition. We have seen CEOs bash other CEOs, sales people obfuscate their identity and try and provide “objective” answers, and antics that can only be described as “juvenile.” Because the mobile opportunity is so great Web Analytics Demystified started taking a closer look at measurement earlier this year. I was fortunate enough to be able to rely on the expertise of folks like Michiel Berger and Thomas Pottjegort at Nedstat, the mobile team at NBC, dozens of analytics end-users, and some of the brightest product managers in the analytics sector tasked with integrating mobile into existing digital measurement offerings. What I found was a series of surprising truths about how mobile analytics is evolving. Nedstat was kind enough to sponsor this research — and clear disclosure: Nedstat has been measuring and integrating mobile data into their web analytics offerings for years — and I am happy to announce the availablity of this research in a new white paper titled “The Truth about Mobile Analytics.” You can download this paper from the Nedstat web site for free (but they do ask your name, email, and company name): DOWNLOAD THE TRUTH ABOUT MOBILE ANALYTICS We are also holding a special...<br/><div align='right'>2009-06-11 18:16:10</div>

X Change Keynote Announced

I am incredibly excited to announce the keynote presentation for X Change 2009 to be held September 9, 10, and 11 in San Francisco at the St. Regis hotel. This year to kick things off we have arranged to have four guys that have done more than anyone to define the web analytics industry join us for a special “Four Founder’s Perspective” session, moderated by yours truly. Brett Crosby, Matt Cutler, John Pestana, and Bob Page are four names that every web analytics insider knows. Co-founders of Urchin, NetGenesis, Omniture, and Accrue respectively and now senior managers at Google Analytics, Visible Measures, ObservePoint, and Yahoo! Web Analytics, each of these gentlemen continue to shape digital measurement to this day. In the keynote session we’ll be focusing on the past, present, and future of digital measurement. These guys were active participants in the early foundations of the industry — hell, Matt Cutler co-authored with Jim Sterne the seminal work Emetrics: Business Metrics for the New Economy back in 2000 which more or less kicked off the whole ball of wax — and all four have a history of participating in the early days of Emetrics in Santa Barbara (which is the model for the X Change, an intimate gathering of peers and friends.) The audience will have a chance to ask questions. Registration for X Change 2009 is now open and you will save 10% off the cost of registration if you sign up to join us before July 31st! I have more information about the X Change here in the “Community” section of the site and will be adding more content very soon! I look forward to meeting many of you at the Founding Father’s keynote at X Change 2009! © 2004 - 2009 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2009-06-10 17:59:21</div>

Davos, TED, X Change, ?

Okay, so maybe the headline for this post is a wee hyperbolic, but if you’ve been to the X Change in the past I know you’ll forgive me my excitement. Yes, it’s that time of the year again, time to get ramped up for the X Change! This year’s conference is being held at the extra fancy-schmancy St. Regis hotel in San Francisco, immediately adjacent to San Francisco MoMa and as central as you can possibly get while still suffering Starwood 5-star luxury accommodations. In a word, the venue is SWEET! But, as with past X Change events, the venue will immediately become secondary to the excellent conversation, excellent company, and excellent insights being shared. As with the 2007 and 2008 events we plan to have the brightest practitioners from the best companies leading the conversation. Confirmed participants already include Best Buy, Intuit, Nokia, AOL, Forrester Research, Charles Schwab, Turner Broadcasting Systems, and more! Also, as Gary alludes to in his post about the conference, I had a pretty good idea for this year’s conference keynote … we’re still pinning down details but I can honestly say the keynote this year is something that none of us have seen before at a web analytics conference or event. We’re also excited to announce that on September 9th we will be holding the first-ever X Change Think Tank training day! Credit Gary this one, and it makes perfect sense to me given the strength of the Semphonic crew, but we will be taking the ideals of the X Change and extending them to an extremely intimate learning environment. I will be leading two classes and I hope to get my new business partner Aurélie Pols to lead one or two as well! If you have budget for training in 2009 I definitely encourage you to have a look at the Think Tank and feel free to ping me directly for more details. One of the things I love the most about the X Change is the transparency we have and that we learn from our participants. Every attendee helps us make the X Change a better conference, every year! To this end I am actively seeking input about the conference via this site, Twitter, email, … heck, you can call me directly if you have a good idea! You can register now for the 2009 X Change and will save 10% if you do so before July 31st! Head on over to the Semphonic web site and start the registration process — and don’t forget this is an event that has sold out every year it has been offered! Because we...<br/><div align='right'>2009-05-26 08:04:37</div>

Demystifying Europe ?

When I quit my job at Visual Sciences back in May 2007 to form Web Analytics Demystified I did so because I had a vision of a new type of web analytics consulting group. I very much wanted to build a small practice made up of very senior people capable of solving the really hard problems most companies have after they’ve made the investment in web analytic technology. I wanted to establish a firm that would compliment the highly tactical firms that I respected so much — companies like Semphonic, Stratigent, and Europe’s OX2. After two years I am very proud of the work I’ve done and the clients I’ve worked with. I have had the opportunity to work with some of the best brands, the best companies, and the most visionary management teams who are actively wokring to do more than simply “run reports” and instead want to actively compete on web analytics. That said, I have come to the realization that there is no way I could satisfy the global need on my own … so I did what every good business owner should do: I went out and got someone smarter, more eloquent, and better looking to be my business partner! At Emetrics last week in San Jose I was incredibly excited to announce that Aurélie Pols, Europe’s most widely known and well respected web analytics consultant, has joined Web Analytics Demystified as a Principal Consultant. Aurélie brings depth and experience in web analytics that is rare anywhere in the world and exceedingly rare in Europe, she was the first consultant to break the “one vendor” stranglehold in Europe that forced firms to work exclusively with a single technology, and she brings a brilliance to the explanation and use of these tools that amazes even me. Now Aurelie and I will be working together in Europe to “demystify web analytics” and help companies make significantly better use of their technology investment. Between the two of us and our contacts across Europe Web Analytics Demystified will now be providing a far greater level of service than was previously possible. I highly recommend that you read Aurélie’s “Hello, World” blog post and start following her at aurelie.webanalyticsdemystified.com. If you have any questions about Aurélie’s practice or how Web Analytics Demystified can help you regardless of where you’re located, please don’t hesitate to contact us directly. I hope you will welcome me in welcoming Aurélie to the...<br/><div align='right'>2009-05-14 06:56:39</div>

Are You Coming to Emetrics?

It’s almost amazing to consider that it has been a full year since the last Emetrics “West” event in California — what with so many changes and little Luca Deschamps Otamendi turning one — but it is again time to gather together and bask in the glory of Mr. Sterne’s excellent event. I am again honored to be presenting to a combined track, this time on Wednesday, May 6th at 11:00 AM, and will be giving an update of my “Competing on Web Analytics” presentation that resonates so well with, well, pretty much everyone who has seen it. The update is important and stems from a bunch of research I have been doing for the past six months. Given the launch of Yahoo Web Analytics 9.5 today and the recent opening up of the Google Analytics APIs I am busier than ever talking with companies who are trying to find the “right” balance of technology, people, and process. Also, as I do from time to time I have a really big announcement that I will be making at the beginning of my talk. Last time I quit my job at Visual Sciences to start Web Analytics Demystified … this time? Come to the talk and be the first to find out! I hope you’ll drop by and see my talk, again: Wednesday, May 6th at 11:00 AM. I am also speaking briefly in the “Softer Side of Metrics” panel with Mr. Stephen “Recently Elected to the WAA Board” Hamel and folks from BT Buckets and Firefox on Thursday, May 7th at 11:00 AM. This should be fun since I’ll get to introduce the larger web analytics community to the work I have been doing with Twitalyzer. Also, don’t forget about the Emetrics edition of Web Analytics Wednesday which is, as always, open to conference attendees and the local community alike. We have something special planned to honor our recently deceased colleague Hosam Elkhodary so I hope you’ll sign up (so we can get a good count) and join us at the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose. Finally, as always I go to Emetrics to meet with as many people as I possibly can and operate under the “I can sleep when I get home” mentality. If you’ve read my books, read my blog, enjoy Twitalyzer, or just have always wanted to ask me something please feel free to reach out … literally if you see me passing by or by Twittering me at @erictpeterson and setting up a time to meet. (If you can’t make it to San Jose the next big analytics event in the U.S. is the X Change Conference...<br/><div align='right'>2009-04-30 06:22:05</div>

Interview on Social Media and Analytics

I have done hundreds of interviews with all kinds of media in my years in web analytics. Some of these interviews have turned out well, some less well, but rarely do I get to participate in a conversation about analytics that afterwards I think “Phew, that was cool.” A few weeks ago I got to do exactly that thanks to Brent Leary at CRM Essentials. If you have a few minutes and want to hear my recent thoughts on a variety of subjects including getting started in analytics, the impact of analytics on social media, and the work I’ve done recently on Twitalyzer, please take the time to listen to this interview. Brent is a totally engaging interviewer and he pushed the conversation along in unexpected ways. I have been getting tons of good feedback already but, as always, I welcome your thoughts and comments. © 2004 - 2009 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2009-04-27 08:42:30</div>

Is Your Attribution Model Appropriate?

Recently I have spent an awful lot of time thinking about and talking about data accuracy issues in the field of web analytics. The widespread use of cookies as a tracking mechanism and the underlying assumption that “one cookie = one visitor” is a big part of the problem, but cookies are not the only problem. Another problem, one that I actually believe to be more substantial than cookies and visitors, is the challenge of campaign attribution. Challenge? What’s hard about campaign attribution? You tag campaigns and web analytics tells you what works, right? You get pretty ROI graphs and click-reports and all that fun stuff? Campaign analytics is easy! Wrong. One of the best-kept secrets in online marketing is that most campaign attribution data is completely wrong and the models used to evaluate campaign performance are wholly inappropriate. The relative nascence of digital marketing practices, combined with conflicting measurement systems and poorly understood interaction between online marketing channels, likely means that hundreds of millions of dollars are wasted annually on marketing efforts that don?t produce their intended results. Companies are increasingly responding to this observation by re-examining their marketing measurement systems. Even the most cursory analysis yields a great deal of information about the ?campaign attribution problem.? Popularized recently by Microsoft with their ?Engagement Mapping? efforts as well as analysis published by Forrester Research and others, it is clear that the most widely used online campaign attribution model is inherently flawed. To correct these flaws and begin to improve both the accuracy of measurement and the general understanding of how marketing really works online, Web Analytics Demystified recommends a new approach to campaign analysis. Dubbed ?Appropriate Attribution?, the approach leverages widely available but infrequently used data to triangulate towards the true value of online marketing efforts. Given that the majority of online advertisers have direct response goals, and that most marketers are still generally unsatisfied with the campaign measurement tools at their disposal, Web Analytics Demystified believes that Appropriate Attribution is the first step towards improving companies? collective understanding of their digital marketing efforts. Eventually marketers will have access to robust warehouses of data detailing consumer interaction with online media and...<br/><div align='right'>2009-04-20 19:31:27</div>

Hosam Elkhodary

On Tuesday of this week the web analytics community lost a passionate advocate with the passing of Hosam Elkhodary. I had the pleasure of working with Hosam just after founding Web Analytics Demystified as well as spending time with him at many an Emetrics. There are many blog posts about Hosam out there but the most touching is Mike Sukmanowsky’s — Hosam clearly had the same impact on Mike as he did on many of us. I encourage you to read Mike’s post and comment there if you knew Hosam. Hosam will be missed. © 2004 - 2009 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2009-04-10 17:40:49</div>

WAA Board Election: Don?t Forget to Vote!

I finally had a chance to look at the fine group of folks running for Web Analytics Association Board of Directors in this go-around and I have to say I am mighty impressed! Not that the WAA doesn’t already have an amazing group of Directors, but wow, some serious contenders each with a ton of experience in the sector running this time around. If you haven’t already voted, have a look at the consultants, practitioners, and vendors running in this year’s election. This is actually a unique election given that none of the existing Directors who have the ability to run again have chosen to do so. The few I have talked to about this have cited “time” as the major factor but no doubt the WAA will miss April Wilson’s passion, Neil Mason and Laura Paxia’s experience and European perspective, and Seth Romanow’s historical knowledge of the Association. Thankfully Jim Sterne will still be serving as Chairman of the Board (right Jim?) I really like the approach the WAA took this time interviewing each candidate and putting the text and recording on the Association web site. It certainly helps us learn a little more about each candidate which will make a difficult vote a little easier. I also like that some candidates are actively campaigning in the Web Analytics Forum, in Twitter, at Emetrics, etc. This more than anything emphasizes the importance of these Board positions — and of the Association in general. If there is any one question I would have posed to the candidates that did not get asked it would be this: “If there was one thing you could go back in time and change about the web analytics industry, what would it be?” Who knows, maybe some of the folks running for WAA Directorships will take the time to answer the question. I know what my answer would be ;-) Best of luck to EVERYONE running in this election! © 2004 - 2009 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2009-04-02 01:33:51</div>

Unique Visitors ONLY Come in One Size

Back in January I published a note about the proposed IAB Audience Reach Measurement Guidelines that generated a fair amount of interest. At the time I applauded the IAB for providing guidance regarding the definition of a “unique user” or “unique visitor” while noting some concerns about how the proposed definition would actually manifest. In summary, the new IAB definition of “unique visitor” needed to have some basis in underlying data that is based on secondary research that can be directly tied to “a person.” Now that the IAB Audience Reach Measurement Guidelines have been officially published we can use the IAB’s own words: “… in order to report a Unique User, the measurement organization must utilitze in its identification and attribution processes underlying data that is, at least in reasonable proportion, attributed directly to a person” and “In no instance may a census measurement organization report Unique Users purely through algorithms or modeling that is not at least partially traceable to information obtained directly from people, as opposed to browsers, computers, or any other non-human element.” (Section 1.2.4) The last little bit references, I believe, the IAB’s distinction of four types of unique “countables” — Unique Cookies (Section 1.2.1), Unique Browsers (1.2.2), Unique Devices (1.2.3) and Unique Users or Unique Visitors (1.2.4). The term “measurement organization” was a little, well, mystifying as was evidenced in my January post, and sadly the final document does little to clarify this term other than to say the “document is principally applicable to Internet Publishers, Ad-serving organizations, Syndicated Measurement Organizations and auditors” on the IAB web site. This definition is important since in my last post the real conundrum appeared to be that if “measurement organization” included Omniture, WebTrends, Google, Coremetrics, etc. then the IAB was essentially saying that the vendors needed to change the way they reported Unique Visitors, at least for their clients who would be subject to the perview of the IAB and MRC. What’s more, George Ivey from MRC never got back to my repeated requests for information, despite two members of the IAB working group (Josh Chasin from comScore and Pete Black from BPA Worldwide) openly disagreeing in their interpretation of the definition...<br/><div align='right'>2009-03-23 08:12:32</div>

Unique Visitors ONLY Come in One Size ?

Back in January I published a note about the proposed IAB Audience Reach Measurement Guidelines that generated a fair amount of interest. At the time I applauded the IAB for providing guidance regarding the definition of a “unique user” or “unique visitor” while noting some concerns about how the proposed definition would actually manifest. In summary, the new IAB definition of “unique visitor” needed to have some basis in underlying data that is based on secondary research that can be directly tied to “a person.” Now that the IAB Audience Reach Measurement Guidelines have been officially published we can use the IAB’s own words: “… in order to report a Unique User, the measurement organization must utilitze in its identification and attribution processes underlying data that is, at least in reasonable proportion, attributed directly to a person” and “In no instance may a census measurement organization report Unique Users purely through algorithms or modeling that is not at least partially traceable to information obtained directly from people, as opposed to browsers, computers, or any other non-human element.” (Section 1.2.4) The last little bit references, I believe, the IAB’s distinction of four types of unique “countables” — Unique Cookies (Section 1.2.1), Unique Browsers (1.2.2), Unique Devices (1.2.3) and Unique Users or Unique Visitors (1.2.4). The term “measurement organization” was a little, well, mystifying as was evidenced in my January post, and sadly the final document does little to clarify this term other than to say the “document is principally applicable to Internet Publishers, Ad-serving organizations, Syndicated Measurement Organizations and auditors” on the IAB web site. This definition is important since in my last post the real conundrum appeared to be that if “measurement organization” included Omniture, WebTrends, Google, Coremetrics, etc. then the IAB was essentially saying that the vendors needed to change the way they reported Unique Visitors, at least for their clients who would be subject to the perview of the IAB and MRC. What’s more, George Ivey from MRC never got back to my repeated requests for information, despite two members of the IAB working group (Josh Chasin from comScore and Pete Black from BPA Worldwide) openly disagreeing in their interpretation of the definition...<br/><div align='right'>2009-03-23 08:12:32</div>

Omniture, Europe, SAS, WebTrends, and Twitter!

You may be wondering “What do those things have in common?” You may also be wondering “Did Eric drop off the face of the Earth?” The answer to the first question is the explanation to the second … Despite changes in Web Analytics Demystified’s client portfolio–changes that I believe accurately reflect the current economic climate–we are busier than ever here in Portland, Oregon.  Or rather not in Portland, Oregon as Q1 2009 has me bouncing around the globe to talk about web analytics, something I enjoy tremendously. World Tour 2009 (Part I) got started a few weeks back at the Omniture Summit in Salt Lake City, Utah. If you haven’t been to an Omniture Summit, assuming you are an Omniture, WebSideStory, Visual Sciences, Instadia, Mercado, Offermatica … am I forgetting anyone?! … I definitely recommend attending if you have the chance. Aside from excellent production and plenty of attention to detail I felt like Omniture did a great job on the content, something they took some criticism for in years past. The break-out sessions I saw paired an Omniture employee with a customer, analyst, or industry leader and in general the result was informative without being overly sales-y. Perhaps the thing I enjoyed the most was that, despite my occasional open criticism of Omniture and some of their practices, senior management seemed (or at least pretended) to be happy enough to see me.  I had a wonderful conversation with President of Sales Chris Harrington, spent some time with Gail Ennis and John Mellor, and even got to share Swedish Fish with Brett Error (who is now in Twitter @bretterror)  Even Josh James and I had a chance to catch up … but no, I didn’t hug it out with Matt Belkin ;-) The World Tour continues here in Portland, then off to Milan, Madrid, and Washington, D.C. Locally I am excited to get to present at SearchFest 2009, but I have to admit I’m somewhat more excited about my first trip to Milan, Italy for Web Analytics Strategies 2009 and my first return to Madrid in several years. Perhaps most excitedly, following a special presentation with MV Consultoria, I will get to meet Rene and Aurelie’s new baby Lucca! After a brief return home (to spend time reading with my five year old daughter who has recently adopted her dad’s great love for reading) I fly to D.C. to deliver a keynote presentation at the SAS Global Forum. And that is just the beginning. You can...<br/><div align='right'>2009-03-05 06:32:08</div>

Omniture, Europe, SAS, WebTrends ? and Twitter!

You may be wondering “What do those things have in common?” You may also be wondering “Did Eric drop off the face of the Earth?” The answer to the first question is the explanation to the second … Despite changes in Web Analytics Demystified’s client portfolio–changes that I believe accurately reflect the current economic climate–we are busier than ever here in Portland, Oregon.  Or rather not in Portland, Oregon as Q1 2009 has me bouncing around the globe to talk about web analytics, something I enjoy tremendously. World Tour 2009 (Part I) got started a few weeks back at the Omniture Summit in Salt Lake City, Utah. If you haven’t been to an Omniture Summit, assuming you are an Omniture, WebSideStory, Visual Sciences, Instadia, Mercado, Offermatica … am I forgetting anyone?! … I definitely recommend attending if you have the chance. Aside from excellent production and plenty of attention to detail I felt like Omniture did a great job on the content, something they took some criticism for in years past. The break-out sessions I saw paired an Omniture employee with a customer, analyst, or industry leader and in general the result was informative without being overly sales-y. Perhaps the thing I enjoyed the most was that, despite my occasional open criticism of Omniture and some of their practices, senior management seemed (or at least pretended) to be happy enough to see me.  I had a wonderful conversation with President of Sales Chris Harrington, spent some time with Gail Ennis and John Mellor, and even got to share Swedish Fish with Brett Error (who is now in Twitter @bretterror)  Even Josh James and I had a chance to catch up … but no, I didn’t hug it out with Matt Belkin ;-) The World Tour continues here in Portland, then off to Milan, Madrid, and Washington, D.C. Locally I am excited to get to present at SearchFest 2009, but I have to admit I’m somewhat more excited about my first trip to Milan, Italy for Web Analytics Strategies 2009 and my first return to Madrid in several years. Perhaps most excitedly, following a special presentation with MV Consultoria, I will get to meet Rene and Aurelie’s new baby Lucca! After a brief return home (to spend time reading with my five year old daughter who has recently adopted her dad’s great love for reading) I fly to D.C. to deliver a keynote presentation at the SAS Global Forum. And that is just the beginning. You can...<br/><div align='right'>2009-03-05 06:32:08</div>

Customer service done right in Twitter, #wa style

Like many people, over the past few months I have become quite the Twitter-wonk. I find myself spending an increasing amount of time monitoring the #wa channel in Twitter, even if my individual contribution has a tendency to ebb and flow. And while I watch the Twits ramble on, one thing I have developed is an appreciation for the work that Ben Gaines is doing on behalf of Omniture. Who is Ben Gaines? Ben is the guy who monitors all of Twitter for things like “reported 25 hour latency in omniture conversion reporting. good thing we’re not ecommerce” and “really productive omniture call - happiness is helpful reporting tools!!” More importantly, Ben is the guy who is paid by Omniture to take the time to reach out to anyone and everyone who has a problem in an attempt to engage them in a positive conversation. Yep, Ben Gaines is @OmnitureCare. Given the challenges that every web analytics vendor faces, combined with the naked conversations happening in Twitter, the fact that the management team at Omniture has dedicated an even-keel like Ben it is a testament to the company’s awareness of the marketplace around them. And while other vendors have slowly started to dedicate similar resources, Ben has established himself (at least in my mind) as the standard against which all other analytics vendor’s representatives in Twitter will be judged. Even though I’m heading to Salt Lake City in a few days and will have the opportunity to meet Ben face-to-face, I reached out to the team at Omniture and asked to interview him for my blog. My questions and Ben’s responses follow. Q: Tell me a little about yourself … who is “Ben Gaines” and how did you get into web analytics? A: I never quite know what to say in introducing myself, so I?m going to give you 10 words/phrases to describe me: Husband. Father. Boston expatriate (and, yes, Red Sox fan). Computer geek. Wannabe athlete. Omniture-ite. Web analytics student. MBA candidate. Writer. That?s me in a nutshell, I suppose. And it?s slightly embarrassing how hard it was for me to come up with that list. Would it be cliché for me to say that I first got into web analytics in seventh grade when I put a hit counter on my first web site? My first serious foray into web analytics was at my last company, where I helped to run what was then Utah?s official travel web site. Analytics wasn?t part of my primary responsibilities, but I remember being fascinated...<br/><div align='right'>2009-02-13 07:57:58</div>

Free webinars on February 11th and 12th

If you are one of the many, many people out there who have been told in no uncertain terms that there is “no travel budget” to attend conferences in the near future and you’re bummed out about missing out on some great learning opportunities Web Analytics Demystified has a great solution! Rather than mope around the office, complaining about missing Ian Ayres at WebTrends Engage or Maroon 5 at the Omniture Summit, why not join Web Analytics Demystified, Forrester Research, Coremetrics, and Tealeaf for two free webinars next week! And who doesn’t love “free?” The first webinar will be held at 10 AM Pacific next Wednesday, February 11th and is sponsored by the nice folks at Coremetrics. The topic is campaign attribution, and while the “official title” of the presentation is “Effectively Managing Your Online Marketing Mix with Advanced Attribution” my personal subtitle for the event is “How LAST-Based Attribution is Wrecking Your Marketing Budget (and What To Do About It!)” While I love the topic, I’m doubly excited about this webinar since I get to co-present with John Lovett from Forrester Research. The best thing about presenting with John is that he is never shy about his opinion and we frequently get into “heated” debates, even in front of a live audience. We will also be joined by Coremetrics own John Squire, a gentleman also known for his willingness to have his opinion heard. If you’d like to participate in this webcast with Web Analytics Demystified, Forrester Research, and Coremetrics please register for this totally free event through Coremetrics. The second webinar will be held at 9 AM Pacific next Thursday, February 12th and is sponsored by the nice folks at Tealeaf. The topic here is the Web Site Optimization Ecosystem that I first described with Tealeaf and Foresee Results back in 2007. The ecosystem is a great topic when times are tough since most companies have at least two of the technologies we’ll discuss (web analytics, voice of customer, customer experience management, testing, personalization) but have done very little to actually integrate the systems. I will be joined on the call by Geoff Galat, Tealeaf’s VP of Marketing and Product Strategy. If you’d like to register and listen to Geoff Galat from Tealeaf and I, please register for this totally free webcast through Tealeaf. So there you have it. Two great topics, five...<br/><div align='right'>2009-02-04 19:46:17</div>

Web Analytics Wednesday partners with the WAA and eMetrics!

I am incredibly pleased to be able to announce that thanks in part to the hard work and determination of my good friend (and soon-to-be-Mommy!) June Dershewitz the Web Analytics Association and eMetrics Marketing Optimization Summit have both signed on to become “Community Sponsors” of Web Analytics Wednesday! You can read the entire press release if you’re so inclined, or have a look at the updated Web Analytics Wednesday Sponsors page. These two great organizations will join Web Analytics Demystified, SiteSpect, and Coremetrics as official sponsors of Web Analytics Wednesday in 2009. The WAA will be helping “spread the word” about Web Analytics Wednesday among the Association’s growing membership, and eMetrics will help make sure that there is a WAW event at every Marketing Optimization Summit conference around the world — starting in Toronto on March 29th! Thanks to the financial and community support Web Analytics Wednesday recieves, our goal for this coming year is to help at least two dozen new cities start to to have regular WAW events! If you’re interested in starting a WAW group in your community or have any questions about the Community Sponsors please don’t hesitate to contact us directly. On behalf of Web Analytics Demystified, the WAA, Jim and Matthew, SiteSpect, Coremetrics, and all the great local sponsors of WAW events around the globe, thank you to everyone who hosts and participates! © 2004 - 2009 Web Analytics Demystified | www.webanalyticsdemystified.com Looking for a new job in web analytics? Check out the Web Analytics Demystified Job Board! ...<br/><div align='right'>2009-02-03 16:22:08</div>

As of 9/7 5:48pm. Last new 9/1 7:23pm.