Web Analytics
Wei Fang
Head of Digital Services
Rutgers University Law Library
Using RUL Databases
Web Analytics
• Web Analytics is the measurement, collection, analysis and
reporting of Internet data for the purposes of understanding
and optimizing Web usage.
--- Web Analytics Association (2006)
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Why Web Analytics
• Paper based surveys
• Online surveys

• Web analytics


Objective
Accurate
Up-to-date
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Methods
• Counters
• Cookies
• Log Files
– Collected by severs
• Web Analytic Services
– Client-side data collection (Page tags), done by
JS.
– Or Packet-sniffing
• There will always be errors in Web analytics' data and it is hard to
tell what the margin of error is.
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Tools
• Sever log files
Apache Extended log file format
Apache Common log file format
Microsoft IIS W3C Extended log file format
Microsoft IIS NCSA Common log file format
Microsoft IIS log file format
Sun ONE Web Server (iPlanet) log file format
64.190.42.82 - - [13/Jun/2008:09:17:26
-0400]
"GETlog
/coah/1989/19890806.pdf
Netscape Web
Server
file format
HTTP/1.1" 200 53089
WebSTAR Common Log Format (CLF) log file format
"http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=Angus+Harmony+Township"
WebSTAR Extended Log Format (ExLF) log file format
"Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE
6.0; Windows
NT log
5.1;file
SV1;
.NET CLR 1.0.3705)"
Standard
Common
format
Standard Combined log file format
Windows Media Services W3C log file format
Microsoft Windows Firewall log file format
Squid log file format
………
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Tools
• Local Applications
– Depend on
OS
– Usually
require fees
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Tools
• Server-based services
for Web analytics
– Such as Analog,
Webalizer,
AWStats, etc.
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Tools
• Analytics in A Box (AIB)from Google
– Software (Urchin) and Hardware (Coradiant)
– Uses Packet-sniffing instead of serer log and
page tags
– Runs behind firewall
– Monitors Web site activities and server
performances
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Tools
• Web-based services for Web analytics
– Google Analytics
http://www.google.com/analytics/
– Lyris
http://www.lyris.com/company/
– StatCounter
http://www.visistat.com/
– VisiStat
http://www.visistat.com/
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Life Cycle of Web Site Design with Web Analytics
Goals
Monitoring
New
Design
Objectives
Analysis
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Target
Total Visitors
Non-Bouncing
Visitors
Stayed
Bounced Visitors
Abandoned
2-3% Source: the e-tailing group, April 2007
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Google Analytics
• Acquired Urchin in March, 2005
(http://www.google.com/urchin/)
• Google Analytics collects server activities and store data on
its servers, whereas Urchin is downloadable and can be used
to analysis log files locally
• Free with an active Adword campaign or if your site is less
than 5 million pageviews per month per account
(Google Analytics TOS, 2010)
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Data Accuracy
•
•
•
•
Not real-time, about 2 to 24 hours delay
Slow loading time
Redirect
Setup: page not taged
– Static page VS. Dynamic page
– Tracking code placement </body>
– sitescanga.com
• JS errors
• Misinterpretation
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Reports
• Annual reports
• Activities of one article or an area
• Redesign Web Site
– Visitors’ computers
– Network load
• Tune up performance
– Purchasing new equipment
– Expending network
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Simple Statistics
Using RUL Databases
Simple Statistics
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Dimensions and Metrics
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Dimensions and Metrics
Using RUL Databases
Dimensions and Metrics
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Dimensions and Metrics
• 2-pair combinations
– Metric to metric
– Dimension to metric
– No Dimension to Dimension
• Custom report for queries that have more than 2 fields
http://code.google.com/intl/en/apis/analytics/docs/gdata/gdataReferenc
eValidCombos.html#queryValidation
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Data Output
• Why
– Use other statistical programs to process data
– Archive
– Share with others
• Formats
– PDF, XML, CSV, CSV for Excel and TSV
– Google Analytics API
• Data Export API
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References
• Google Analytics Developer’s Guide
• Using Google Analytics for Improving Library Website Content
• Advanced Web Metrics with Google Analytics