It’s critical for any commercial website owner to track the site’s traffic and analytics to see how many people visit the site and how people interact with the website. There are number of stat tracking and traffic analytics companies that can help web developers, but I use just two of them for my websites, including this blog. I want to let you know what I use and why I use each.
Google Analytics is used by many websites of all sizes. One of the best things about Google Analytics is the fact that the website can coordinate with the other products in the Google business suite. It’s simple to install across a website, and it provides a ton of useful information. Website owners can see exactly how people got to a website, how the visitor navigated, length of time on a website/page, and a significant amount of other info. It’s one of the more comprehensive analytics trackers out there. The best part of course is that it’s free.
StatCounter.com allows website owners to track their stats in real time. I particularly like the fact that I can see exactly where the most recent visitors came from in chronological order. This is helpful when someone links to my website, and I can see this traffic immediately. I am able to label IP addresses so I can see who is visiting if I choose to do so, and I can also see what companies are visiting and where visitors are located. I use the upgraded option which tracks the last 10,000 visits and it only costs $49 every three months. It’s not as comprehensive as Google Analytics, but it provides accurate real time information of my website’s visitors.
On my blog where accurate stats is critical due to the advertising revenue, I use both Google Analytics and StatCounter.com. I can cross-check stats, and they are generally very close to each other, giving me a level of comfort to report accurate stats. StatCounter.com loads results very quickly and is simple to navigate. I prefer using it for my stats, and the analytics from GA supplements these numbers.
If you use different tools, which ones to you use and why?
SiteMeter.com is good… free to premium depending on the information you want to see.
I use GetClicky. I like the fact that it’s in real time. It’s pretty comprehensive and with a Pro account, it’s just $59/year and allows you to track multiple sites.
2nd on the goclicky plug, Ive tried a number of programs in the last 12 months (onestat, google analytics, etc)…having the ability to get IP address was critical to combat PPC fraud and the real time data is great…other comparable programs were $400-600 from what I tried
Why give all your best stats and information to Google? I just don’t trust them anymore.
It’s like giving up and telling SkyNet that all your data is theirs to use, mine, and exploit.
Resist the urge! They are not worthy of your data.
Use the little guys tools!
@ Big Jack
I would bet G can get much of the info anyway 🙂
Thanks for the insights about StatCounter.
Currently I am using Google Analytics and Piwik.
From their website: “Piwik is a downloadable, open source (GPL licensed) real time web analytics software program. It provides you with detailed reports on your website visitors: the search engines and keywords they used, the language they speak, your popular pages… and so much more.”
I like Piwik because:
1 It’s open Source
2 Has Plugins available
3 It loads fast
4 Good overview of stats
Cheers
I’m also a big fan of GetClicky. Great real time stats and very user friendly.
I’ve been using AWStats for a long time and still like it. It’s free and open-source:
http://awstats.sourceforge.net/
I host my own, but it’s available as part of Fantastico on a lot of hosting providers, too.
I’d check out Woopra for “true” real time stats.
Domo domain is interesting, as it will look up the owner of the IP and you can see who is actually visiting the site (or who visited today). There is also a tool that will do additional research for you, such as showing you their contact information.
User of GA for a few years, and no real complaints.
The I saw a comment on Clicky a week ago and loaded the free version. Very impressed so far, and the real-time display is excellent if, like me, you’re running PPC campaigns and want to tweak your campaign or spot an obvious flaw early.