Analyzing Web Traffic

Measuring Web traffic, Part 1

Contents:

Introduction

Why Web metrics are important

Methods of data collection within a Web environment

Web metrics delivery methods -- in-house product and service providers

I've got all this data . . . now what?!

Conclusion

Next time

Resources

About the authors

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Related content:

Measuring Web traffic, Part 2

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Getting to know your audience is the key to online success -- make the numbers work for you

Andrei Malacinski (malacins@us.ibm.com), IBM Application Integration Middleware Lab

Scott Dominick (scottdom@us.ibm.com), IBM Application Integration Middleware Lab

Tom Hartrick (thartric@us.ibm.com), IBM Application Integration Middleware Lab

March 2001

The best way to know whether your Web site is achieving its goals is to gather extensive traffic data -- not just how many hits you're getting, but which pages are popular, who's visiting your site, when do they visit, and a host of other data that can give you a clearer idea of what's going on. In this article, Scott, Tom, and Andrei introduce you to the benefits of measuring Web traffic, exploring the importance of Web metrics, and describing various approaches of collecting Web data. They also show you how to choose whether to tackle this effort in-house or turn to an application service provider. Finally, they tell you how to make use of this data once it's been collected.

Introduction

"How many hits is my Web site getting?" "How many visitors are going to my site?" "What pages are people looking at?" "Where are my Web customers coming from?" "Are my links broken?" Do you find yourself asking these questions? Are you finding that it is becoming more and more important to measure the traffic on your Web site? Do you find yourself asking "How do I go about measuring the usage traffic on my site?" and "What information can I get?"

This article answers these questions and more. There are several Web measurement approaches that have been adopted by the industry, such as network monitors, single-pixel solutions, and HTTP server log analysis. We begin this article with a discussion of why Web metrics are important and then provide an introduction to the various types of Web measurement approaches with site traffic metrics obtainable with these approaches. When choosing a Web measurement approach, decisions have to be made about the technology to employ, its cost, its setup, and coordinating it with existing enterprise data. This article looks at these and other decisions related to collecting Web measurements.

We provide an introduction to measuring Web traffic that includes a brief description of various Web measurement approaches. This article and its follow-on, "HTTP server log analysis approach," are designed for Web site developers, those in IT who deploy Web sites, company executives interested in site performance, and anyone who wants to know more about Web site tracking capabilities and techniques currently available in the industry. The subject matter is technical, but it does not require any prerequisite skills or experience to be comprehended.

Why Web metrics are important

The power of the Web is astounding. As an extension of other sources, or perhaps as the only source, the informational, operational, and marketing aspects of Web media are potent. Having a Web presence is not sufficient, though. e-businesses must exploit the latest technology and evolve more quickly than their conventional competitors and customers or risk getting left behind. Recognizing that Web site behavior has a direct effect on business success and customer