This week I installed Google Analytics to my blog. A week later I was eager to get back to my blog and see all of the metrics – or the lack thereof. Unfortunately, I had not properly marketed my blog to gain any substantial site traffic. Over the past week since Google Analytics has been installed on my blog, I have had one visitor. Here is what I know about my visitor:
- They visited my blog on Saturday, November 24
- They are from Jaipur, India
- They are using Google Chrome as their Internet browser on Windows operating system
- They arrived on my blog from a Google organic search
While my lack of metrics left me with little to discuss this week, I took some time looking at all of the metrics available that I had previously overlooked when using Google Analytics for my companies website because I had become enamored with all of the “sexy metrics” that were standing out like page views, traffic sources, etc. The metric that stood out to me was the page load time. What does this mean? Was my page quick to load, or slow? How could this affect my user’s experience on my blog.
First, average page load time refers to how long your site and its content takes to load for a visitor. Load time can affect your bounce rate and page abandonment, as users may become impatient and frustrated the longer they have to wait. According to KISSMetrics, “a 1 second delay in page response can result in a 7% reduction in converstions” (Work, n.d.) How does that contribute to your bottom line? For an e-commerce site that brings in $100,000 each day, a one second page delay could equate to $2.5 million in lost sales annually (Work, n.d.). “79% of web shoppers who have trouble with web site performance say they won’t return to the site to buy again and around 44% of them would tell a friend if they had a poor experience shopping online” (Jacob, n.d.). This can have extremely damaging affects on your business’s reputation and sales.
Users expectations vary depending on whether they are using a desktop computer or a mobile device. Visitors are used to longer wait times on their mobile device, which is often dependent on cell service. 47% of users expect a web page to load within 2 seconds or less, which reflects poorly for my page 6.67 average load time. “40% of people abandon a website that takes more than 3 seconds to load” (Work, n.d.). My lone visitor spent 0:00 time on my blog, after waiting for the page to load and immediately left.
KISSMetrics made some recommendations for “trimming the fat” and improving site load time including;
- Use GZip compression to reduce file size of images, video, and other content by up to 70%
- Optimize images for the web so they load faster. Don’t just rely on HTML to resize the images, do this in Photoshop or another photo editor to save space on your server
- Investigate plugins to use cache so your website isn’t forced to dynamically load with every page visit
- Consider a Content Delivery Network for busy sites. A Content Delivery Network hosts pages on servers that are geographical nearby to your visitors
First impressions are important, especially online. If a users first experience with a website is slow to load they will immediately have a bad impression of the website and the business before evening viewing the site.
Jacob, S. (n.d.). Speed Is A Killer - Why Decreasing Page Load Time Can Drastically Increase Conversions. The @KISSmetrics Marketing Blog. Retrieved November 26, 2012, from http://blog.kissmetrics.com/speed-is-a-killer/
Work, S. (n.d.). How Loading Time Affects Your Bottom Line. (n.d.). The @KISSmetrics Marketing Blog. Retrieved November 26, 2012, from http://blog.kissmetrics.com/loading-time/
When comparing Facebook advertising to Google ads there are many commonalities in the functionality of those ads including;
- No minimum budget requirements
- User targeting tools to reach specific demographics and psychographics
- Both platforms offer flexibility, adaptability, and quick access to metrics to make advertising decisions and shift marketing strategies
While the overall functionality offerings are similar the platforms are very different. According to the Google AdWords tutorial, 8 out 10 internet users view AdWords each month. With Google AdWords you are at the mercy of the user’s search terms. If your keywords do not match the terms you have selected your ad may never reach your intended market. With Facebook advertising your ads are targeted based on demographics and psychographics so you are able to more effectively reach your target market.
One of the other advantages of Facebook ads is the power of word-of-mouth marketing. With the Facebook ads platform you may choose to only target friends-of-friends which will show your ad to consumers who are more likely to be interested in your company because their friends have shown interest in your company.
Another value added of Facebook marketing is the ability to share unique content and images. With Google AdWord’s you are limited to a certain number of characters and a hyperlink, while Facebook has continued to expand its advertising options for companies to enhance their marketing and gain more exposure. Facebook’s new mobile marketing functionality has drastically improved CTR for ads. “With the highest click through rate (CTR) 1.037%, and the second highest conversion rate (CVR) of 65.76%, Facebook’s mobile ads are the best bang for your buck” (Constine, 2012).
Facebook is also the preferred platform for conversation. If you want to get consumers talking about your brand, Facebook is the place to be. Google AdWord’s will help users discover your brand but it does little to promote engagement. Facebook is also the place to be for building brand awareness, as users tend to spend more time on Facebook then on Google search. It is also a good place to get across a specific message. Larry Kim, CTO of online marketing firm WordStream says “That's even more true if that message is intended for a very specific audience, such as a university alumni group or people that like True Blood. Such specific, people-oriented messages would be more difficult to do with AdWords, Kim said, though not impossible” (Casey, 2011).
Both platforms offer unique advantages and depending on your companies goals, one may be better than another for your business. Deciding your goals first and then choosing the right platform will help companies to maximize their ad dollars online.
References
Casey, K. (2011, September 28). How To Choose Between Google AdWords And Facebook Ads - Smb - .InformationWeek. Retrieved November 12, 2012, from http://www.informationweek.com/smb/services/how-to-choose-between-google-adwords-and/231602311
Constine, J. (2012, September 27). Facebook Mobile News Feed Ads Are Popular And The Best Way To Buy Fans, Ad Tech CEOs Confirm. TechCrunch. Retrieved November 12, 2012, from http://techcrunch.com/2012/09/27/cheapest-way-to-buy-facebook-fans/
Who wins the battle for King - content or conversation? Catherine Novak and Michael Greenberg indirectly debate this question in their articles. Novak makes the case that content is just what is talked about on social media platforms, and the conversation is truly what is important. Greenberg, however, argues that without good content there is no conversation. In an effort to be bipartisan, I believe there is something to be gained from both arguments.
Before a conversation can be started, marketers have to give the consumers something to talk about, and good content is where it is at. According to Brian Davies, Managing Partner with Movéo Integrated Branding there are five laws of content marketing.
First, The Law of Consumption, which is that consumers want the latest and greatest content. “There is now more information to read, watch, analyze and share than at any time in history. Yet, for many, simply consuming these vast tides of information is not enough. We now place a very high premium on the currency of information (Davies, n.d.).
The Law of Complexity, is the second law, and states, “The amount of chaos in a system tends to increase with the complexity of the system” (Davies, n.d.). The more complex content is, the more challenging it becomes to manage the content. For example, one a company embarks on an e-newsletter, readers come to expect it and will have expectations about the type of content, how and when it is delivered, the length, and other variables, as they become accustomed to receiving the information. Given that, Greenberg shares that companies must create and adhere to a publication schedule in order to live up to consumer’s expectations. It is important to be timely and provide regular content.
The third law is The Law of Reputation. Consumers have learned that while information is readily available online, finding credible sources is of the utmost importance, particularly as even reputable news sources race to be the first to “break the news.” Given the race to report, news sources are making more errors and such errors can easily damage a source’s reputation, on and offline.
Fourth, is the law of evolution, and the ongoing race to keep pace with technology. According to the Content Marketing Institute and Marketing Profs study, “41% of those queried found that producing the kind of content that engages prospects/customers was their biggest challenge. This percentage will likely go up as technology — and the production value of content — continue to advance” (Davies, n.d.).
The last and arguably most important of the five laws is The Law of Exchange. “’Thought leadership’ has been defined by Gartner as ‘the giving — for free or at a nominal charge — of information or advice that a client will value so as to create awareness of the outcome that a company’s product or service can deliver, in order to position and differentiate that offering and stimulate demand for it’” (Davies, n.d.). If companies are providing valuable content that positions themselves as the answer to consumer’s needs than have successfully mastered content marketing.
Once a company has mastered these laws on content marketing the conversation should come naturally as a result of the content. As a result of the conversation, the content will reach more consumers and become more popular, creating more demand for great content and the cycle is repeated.
References
Davies, B. (n.d.). The 5 new Laws of content and what they mean to your organization. Moveo. Retrieved November 12, 2012, from www.moveo.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/MoveoWhitePape
Greenberg, M. (2009, October 20). Content is king of social marketing. MultichannelMerchant.com. Retrieved April 12, 2012 from http://multichannelmerchant.com/social-media/1020-content-social-marketing/
Novak, C. (2010, July 27). Why conversation, not content, is king. SocialMediaToday.com. Retrieved November 12, 2012 from http://socialmediatoday.com/wordspring/152636/why-conversation-not-content-king
What is Bounce Rate?
Avinash Kaushik, author of Web Analytics 2.0, refers to bounce rate as the “sexiest web metric ever!” (Kaushik, 50). A bold title to bestow one metric over other important metrics such as unique visitors, page referrers, and others. The bounce rate is defined as “the percentage of sessions on your website with only one page view” (Kaushik, 50). For most websites the goal is not for a consumer to visit a single page and move on to the next best site on the web, but instead be so intrigued that they interact and browse the website in search of more valuable content.
Leaving So Soon?
According to Inc., “As a rule of thumb, a 50 percent bounce rate is average. If you surpass 60 percent, you should be concerned. If you're in excess of 80 percent, you've got a major problem” (Quinn, 2011). Why do visitors leave after just one page view, and how can we keep this from happening? There are several reasons that might cause a visitor to leave and depending on that reason there are solutions available to improve and optimize your website.
Treat the Problem, Not The Symptoms
Before, you can lower your bounce rate you need to understand the reasons that a visitor might be leaving a website. Reasons might include poor website design, usability problems, pop-ups, bad content, outbound links, or website format, such as a blog. Search engine ranking and poor website optimization may also affect the bounce rate; for example if a website ranks high for certain keywords but is not relevant to the users needs this may cause a user to leave a site without viewing other pages. Google also suggests that if you are experiencing a high bounce rate on multiple pages that it might be a technical error and you will want to verify the tracking code on your website (“High Bounce Rate”, n.d.).
Today’s Internet users have many options to browse the Internet. It is important to ensure that your website works well in the various browsers available including Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and others. If the website does not perform well in one browser or another it may negatively affect your bounce rate.
Remember sometimes simple is better, and this applies to web design as well. Avoid using large Flash files or images that load slowly and may frustrate users who impatiently wait for them to load. Also, assess the various points of entry to your website and which are working better than others. Consider why by asking “Who is coming to the page? Why are they coming here? What is it that they probably want to do?” (Quinn, 2012).
Direct users to the information they are looking for and don’t make them dig for it, this will cause users to become annoyed and search elsewhere. Instead connect users to content that they might also find interesting. Marketing software company, HubSpot’s blog is a good example of this. They are successful in keeping readers engaged by embedding links within their blogs that connect readers to other related content to keep them on their website, and discovering new content. As a frequent reader of the blog, I often find myself clicking to two or three different pages before signing off.
To learn more view a video of author, Avinash Kaushik explaining bounce rate: http://youtu.be/ppgfjo6IIf4
References
Bounce Rate Demystified. (n.d.). The @KISSmetrics Marketing Blog. Retrieved November 5, 2012, from http://blog.kissmetrics.com/bounce-rate/
There is a wealth of information readily available for marketers online. Google Analytics offers real time data, along with social media sites like Facebook that can track every detail of the visitor’s online experience. With so much information available across so many different platforms it can be easy to get lost in the metrics. Page views, unique visitors, new visitors, returning visitors, conversation rate, page referrer, and the list goes on and on. There are metrics measuring metrics, so where does one begin?
First decide what is important. Don’t get lost in all the numbers and percentages, instead start planning with the end in mind. Decide what is important and what the goal is for your consumers to gain from their experience on your site and then choose the metrics that best measure the success, or failures, based on those goals. Case in point, if you are a blogger, looking at the bounce rate for your blog might not be useful to you if your blog scrolls through multiple posts with little need for the visitor to click around. A more useful metric to consider might be visit duration, or returning visitors to learn how long readers stay on the website and whether they choose to come back.
Author of Web Analytics 2.0, Avinash Kaushik suggest asking yourself four simple questions to gain a macro view of the data (70). First, “How many visitors are coming to my website?” (Kaushik, 71). Consider unique visitors, versus total visitors, or how many people actually visited the website one time, and how many came back and visited the page multiple times. Look at trends and patterns over periods of time and also specific to marketing campaigns like a newsletter or direct mailer. If people aren’t visiting your website there is not much to measure beyond that. Step one is crucial!
The second questions is “Where are Visitors coming from?” (Kaushik, 71). This the equivalent to asking your customers “how did you hear about us?” Referring URLs can share where your visitors are coming from. Is it from search engines or direct traffic such as an email campaign? If they are coming from search engines Google Analytics can provide the search keywords a visitor used to find your website. By using this information to optimize your website you can improve your search engine result pages rankings, and increase the likely hood that others consumers will find your website.
The third question, goes back to the idea of – planning with the end in mind – “what do I want Visitors to do on the website?” (Kaushik, 72). Establish what goals you have for your consumers, whether it is to buy a product or subscribe to an e-newsletter, write down your goals. The last and probably most important question is, “What are Visitors actually doing?” (Kaushik, 72 - 73). This may seem obvious but at times we, as marketers, can get so caught up in what we want our visitors to do on our website that we miss out on what they are actually doing which can lead to opportunities for growth and improvement in new or unexpected areas. Look at where visitors are entering your website. Often we believe (or hope) it is our homepage, and we invest a great deal of time and energy into “prettying” it up, when in reality they may be entering directly form a search engine link and never even see your homepage. Look at the most view pages and assess patterns and trends. What is it that is making these pages more successful than others? Find commonalities and repeat them across your website, particularly on underperforming pages.
Revisit these questions often, as consumers needs and wants change and so to will your website. Keep a few baseline metrics in mind and comparing those metrics over time to measure results. Test new ideas and use those same few metrics to determine the effectiveness. But most importantly, do not drown in the details. It is easy to do so but keep your end goals in mind and use the metrics that matter most to you and your business.
References
Kaushik, A. (2010). Web analytics 2.0: the art of online accountability & science of customer centricity. Indianapolis, IN: Wiley.
