Web Analytics 101 – Part Seven – Its all about Keywords, Keywords, Keywords!

Post by
Paul Wackell – Imagine Web Designs
Principal Designer – Marketing Consultant

Now we are getting into the meat and potatoes (did i get that right Mr. Quayle?) of the web analytics. So far we have covered some of the more basic stats, the high level stats, information that can be of some help, but now we begin looking at the truly important details that make web analytics a must have tool for your marketing program.

Of course you have a marketing program. Even if you sit on your couch waiting for new clients to tap you on the shoulder and beg you to take their money, you have a marketing program. In the previous example its the couch potato approach. (There I go again, do I put an ‘e’ on the end of potato or no, yes or no when plural, this is hard, I think I’ll run for vice president. Don’t tell Murphy Brown!)

Today’s part of the Web Analytics report is the Keywords detail. Below is a picture of just the beginning of this report. As you can see the report actually contains details on 157 keywords used by site visitors to find this particular website in the prior month.

Getting your site found by qualified prospects with the keywords you want, in the volume you want is the holy grail of search engine optimization. The keyword section of your web analytics report will help you determine if your SEO is working or not. This section of your analytics report should be one of the sections you spend the most time on each month.

Are you being found with the keywords you want? Are you being found by keywords you didn’t expect? Are there keywords you thought would be great, that just aren’t working at all? These are just a few of the questions you can address with the part of the report. Evaluate this information carefully to determine what it means for your business, then decide what changes to make to your site. Do you need to update content, add content, add a blog, review your current site optimization or something else.

If you aren’t sure what to do with this information, are overwhelmed or just don’t have time to deal with this, contact your web or marketing professional for help. You won’t regret it!