For a long time I resisted using a tool like Google Analytics on my websites. I don't know exactly why, other than to say I didn't think I needed the information. But these days it's one of the first things I recommend to website customers. Simply put, if you want to be successful -- and not waste your time -- you need to know what pages visitors are looking at when they come to your website, and how they got to your website.
For instance, until recently I knew that my blog about living in Alaska was growing in popularity, but I didn't know exactly why. Although I was using some off the shelf Apache log reading tools, the information was very basic, and not very useful.
Using Google Analytics
I just installed Google Analytics on the OneMansAlaska.com website last week, and already I can see that this page about lodging in Seward, Alaska is one of the most popular web pages on the entire site. This other page about an Alaska man surviving a grizzly bear attack is also very popular.
Without giving away too many strategies, I'll say that information like this is very powerful ... hmph, I guess that's all I want to say here, lol. Suffice it to say, using Google Analytics gives you the information you need to make informed decisions, and what you do with that information is up to you.
Oh, and using Google Analytics is also free, and easy to set up as well, especially if you're using a content management system like Drupal, Wordpress, or Joomla. If you're serious about your website, there's no excuse for not using it.
books by alvin
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