Website Analytics – Avoid Click To Conversion Blame Game!

Even in today’s nanosec web search world, a first click does not mean instant conversion. Service and product enquiries are subject to complex and time dependent cycles. Business owners may blame search providers for low conversions, but the key is going back to the website to find out why users aren’t converting.

It can be all too easy to simply assume that interpreting website analytics incorrectly leads to wrong decisions! Certainly, it can be annoying to discover that your latest online or email marketing campaign may not have been as informed, and as a consequence, less targeted as it could have been but the answer may not necessarily lie with reading and understanding the recent stats but more with knowing the right follow up course of action required!

It may be a case of poring over stats but not really knowing what to do with the data! Successful action taken from site analytics comes as a result of allowing access to those individuals who should know how use data productively, and can actually follow through by using data effectively.

Many SMEs and even larger organisations are quick to see the vital necessity of installing analytics to monitor site visitor behaviour but without knowing how to use or understand the software, critical to building SEO keyword phrases and spot on PPC ads !

By taking a closer look, potential answers may be uncovered, e.g. the original website design and construction. Perhaps the visitors are converting, but in other ways not readily apparent. The potential customer could be following up their site visit by making a phone call for further assistance and reassurance. They may be putting your product or service on their ‘to do’ list, bookmarking and coming back a few weeks later. Perhaps they may be beginning the process by requesting a catalogue!

Defining and tracking a full visitor history from enquiry, using any contact method and the various way of maintaining subsequent involvement is key. The outcomes will vary as to both visitor intention and your required actions, and whether this is to lead to conversion, every single time.

Zeroing in on the actual user search query (and match type), and focusing on any behaviour change can be good starting points – but remember – accurate analytics interpretation requires experience and know -how to translate to the required follow up.