In this digital age, there are various methods for tracking and collecting data. And of course, who could forget about the runner-up approach which is referred to as universal analytics. It has been a game-changer in terms of data gathering and analysis. Many marketers are enthusiastic about it because it is a non-cookie-based server tracking.
Most digital marketing campaigns can be measured through website analytics packages. Tracking and collecting data should always be done for the campaigns you do. For instance, you can make high traffic volumes if you use different digital marketing tactics. These may include SEO, PPC, and email marketing. But they can also be pointless and expensive if the users leave your site without achieving your website goals.
Set Your Goals Before Tracking & Gathering Data
Before tracking and collecting your data, it is first important to set your objectives, goals, and KPIs.
To recall, the objective of your campaign can be as simple as increasing the sale of your product, growing brand awareness, or more website traffic.
This objective will be the basis of your desired strategic outcomes.
On the other hand, the goal is all about the action that your user takes on while they are on your website. For example, the goal is for them to make a purchase if you aim to increase sales. If your objective is to get more subscribers, the goal is for them to sign up for a newsletter.
Lastly, KPIs are the indicators of whether the objectives are being met. It determines what data to look at to know if the objectives are being attained.
How Tracking and Collecting Data Works
This section discusses the different methods for tracking and collecting data.
Cookie-Based Tracking
This is the most typical way of tracking and collecting data. Cookie-based tracking first works by adding a page tag at each site’s page. This is typically a piece of JavaScript code that the user accesses through their browser on the page.
When tracking and collecting data using cookies, the information may discuss factors about every visitor. They will see how you operate your system and screen resolution, and your long-term website behavior.
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When your browser stores information on the web page, this is called caching This allows it to retrieve the data once you return. A request will not be sent to the server when you open the cached page. What this means is, the visit won’t be visible on the log files, but on the page tags.
Server-Based Tracking
These are the computers that contain a lot of websites to be made available online. This method of tracking and collecting data is all about looking at log files, or documents that are created by servers. The clicks are also recorded on the server when server-based tracking. Every new request produces a new line in the log file.
Tracking and collecting data using servers is made easier for mobile visitors. This is because many phones are unable to use cookie-based JavaScript tags. They are also crucial for universal analytics.
The Newest Way to Track Data
One of the newest methods for tracking and collecting data is through universal analytics, announced by Google. It is the newest feature in their analytics suite that can solve problems like tracking devices instead of users.
Most web analytics cannot track individual people, just browsers through the help of cookies. This means that if you have three browsers and you use them all for visiting web pages, the computer will see you as three different visitors instead of one returning visitor.
Thanks to universal analytics, you can now track visitors rather than just sessions. This is made possible through assigning unique identifiers for each customer. You are also able to monitor their journey with your brand no matter what device or browser they use.
Another concern with most methods of collecting and tracking data is the decline of cookies. Modern browsers now let users block cookies. And many phones cannot access cookies. Privacy concerns and new regulations are also some other issues regarding cookie-based tracking.
The downside to using universal analytics for tracking and collecting data is the user’s need to have authentication across their devices. This means they have to login to your website or any tool on their devices for you to count them as one.
Information Being Captured
As mentioned, KPIs help you determine which objectives are being met. It considers the metrics or units of measurements. For web analytics, these include counts and ratios. Counts are the raw figures that are used for analytics. Meanwhile, rations interpret the counted data.
These can also be applied in three groupings. The first one is aggregate. This refers to all the traffic to the website for a certain time. The segmented, on the other hand, is a subset of the traffic based on the filter. This could be done by the campaign or the visitor type. Lastly, the the activity of a single visitor for a particular time is called the individual.
Building Block Terms
These are the simplest yet most essential web metrics that tell you the amount of traffic your website is getting. This may include looking at the returning visitors to know if loyalty is being built around your site.
There must be a purpose to analyze in every website. Hit means one page load. Phase alludes to the unit of substance, while online visits are the occasions clients demand a page. Visits or sessions are the interaction on your website. Lastly, unique visitors refer to the number of people visiting the site within a set period. Every user is only counted once. Under visitors, there are two more categories. The new visitor is the unique visitor who only went for the first time. The returning visitor is one who makes more than one visit within the time period being analyzed.
The visit characteristics also include metrics to gauge the click path of the visitors.
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