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77% Of All Statistics
Are Made Up On The Spot...
Welcome back
to another week of Adland Digest. This issue
demystifies those pesky stats many of us rookie site owners
get in those statistic reports. Hits, Visitors, Page
Views, Lions, Tigers, Bears, Oh my! It's all so
confusing sometimes.
Fortunately,
Scott Buresh,
co-founder and principal of Medium Blue Internet Marketing
and our guest writer this week unravels the mystery of web
statistics in great detail under our Guest
Articles section.
Kenneth Sword
Jr, the Jedi Master of Blogging imparts a valuable lesson
about Reputation and how it affects the readers of our Blogs.
Check it out here.
Finally,
Linda Caroll, our Internet Profit and Newbies Advisor gives
us a pretty detailed overview on the process of choosing a
web host. If you're thinking of moving from FREE web
hosts to a paid solution, take 5 minutes to
read this article. You won't be sorry.
Until next
week,
Michael
Dela Cruz, Adland Digest Editor
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Internet and Profit Newbies
If you're new to making money on the internet, get to know the Do's and Don'ts
of taking the step into the world of generating income online. |
Linda Caroll |
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How To Choose A Web Host
Many people do not understand web host server
terminology, and thus are confused about what they need and how to best choose a
web host. Often, they end up making a poor choice of web host because of that
lack of understanding of web hosting terms. Let's cover a few of the basics.
Should you Choose Windows or Unix Web Hosting?
Many people think they need Windows Hosting because they have windows on their
computer. One has nothing to do with the other.
Microsoft has created their own web hosting server software that runs in
Windows, called Internet Information Server (IIS). This allows people to create
their website using ASP. If your website is developed in ASP, then you need to
be on a Microsoft IIS Server.
If you have no clue what ASP is, much less develop your website with it, then
you don't need to be on a Microsoft IIS Server.
Personally speaking, I prefer to work on a Unix server. I find it to be a more
stable system, with less security breaches than IIS server. If you read the
stories in the news about servers getting hacked, "coincidentally" more of them
are IIS servers than Unix servers. Additionally, there are a wider variety of
plug and play interactive scripts (such as refer a friend, etc) for Unix than
there are for IIS.
UNLIMITED!
The one word that is most misleading in the web hosting industry. There is
nothing that a web host can offer that is unlimited. It may be only restricted
by the limitations of the web host server, but it is not unlimited.
Many web hosts that offer "unlimited" bandwidth will have a clause in the fine
print that states your use is unlimited to a point. After that point, you will
have additional fees, and usually high ones.
I have also found that many web hosts that offer "unlimited" space or bandwidth
oversell their space, crowding the server with far, far too many files, which
results in increased downtime and slower web host server performance.
Web Host Server Uptime
Your web host will probably offer some type of uptime guarantee. A web host
uptime guarantee of 99% means their web hosting server will be online and
functional 99% of the time.
99% uptime sounds pretty good, doesn't it? However, if you do the math, that
means the server can be down 87 hours a year, or 7 hours per month. That means
your web site can be down and not functioning for 7 hours every month. Still
sound okay?
An uptime of 99.9% means your web host would only be down for 8 hours per year.
Size of the Web Host Pipeline
The web host's pipeline refers to the cable that connects their web host server
to the Internet, and determines how efficiently information can be passed from
the web host server to people trying to view it. Think of it like drinking a
milkshake. The bigger the straw, the better the flow. The smaller the straw, the
more difficult the flow.
Many web hosts are still using T1 and T3 pipelines. Small town ISPs may even be
using a fractal T1, which means only part of a T1. What does that mean? A T1 can
carry up to 1.5 mbs (megabits of information per second). A T3 can carry 45
megabits of information per second. The bigger the pipeline, the better the flow
of information. So, if you host with a little ISP that uses fractal T1, your web
site can load slower because of the limited capacity of the web host's pipeline
to the internte.
Larger web hosts, often web hosts that do not offer connectivity (as an ISP
does) are now offering connectivity through OC48. What does that mean? Well, by
comparison, a T1 is a skinny drinking straw, and the OC48 is a garden hose. Is
that important? You bet it is, if you want your website to load quickly.
Linda's clients have been featured in Forbes,
People Magazine, Home & Garden TV and more. Visit her website design site at
LindaCaroll.com
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Web Logs, Blogs and the Art of Blogging
The ongoing growth of Blogs and RSS feeds |
Kenneth Sword |
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Earning and Protecting Your
Reputation
Whether or not your brand is
relevant to your content, it will quickly develop one thing for sure: a
reputation. Everyone who reads your blog will form an impression, either
good or bad. They will like it or not. Surprisingly, that's not the most
important issue here, because no reader, not even your most loyal, is
going to like or agree with everything you say. The important issue is
whether that reader believes your blog to be important. If a reader
doesn't find a blog important, he or she will probably not return even
if they liked a story or two: there are just too many other blogs to
see. If a reader finds your blog insightful, entertaining and relevant,
they will return even though they disagree with your commentary or
doesn't like your layout. In order to be a serious dominance in your
blog business, your blog must exude seriousness. That doesn't mean your
subject must be serious, but you must be serious about your subject.
For political and technology blogs, that would mean timely and accurate
postings. Rumors must be noted as such. Opinions must be noted as such.
In fact, you can be a partisan. Your theme may be a very partisan view
of something but you've got to be fair to your readers, who will form an
opinion about your subject based on what you say. If your blog is about
taxes, be sure your information is valid through the IRS. If your blog
is about Motorcross Biking, entries of your grandma's chicken noodle
soup will lose readers. If your blog is a news or reference blog, you
have got to be thorough. Once your reputation is established, readers
will come to your blog to see what you have to say because they will
expect you to know more than them. If you miss the big story or are
shown by later events to be completely off-the-wall when you said you
were certain, they may not return.
Reputation is everything, so as you build your blog business, remember
what you want a reputation for and consistently strive to earn it.
Kenneth R Sword Jr
Co-CEO - Bizzy Blogz
http://www.bizzyblogz.com
Sponsor of the ABA Basketball 'Streetball' group
"Nothing But Net Entertainment"
http://www.bizzyblogz.com/NBNE/
New! Bizzy Blogz Community - like MySpace
http://www.bizzyblogz.biz
An Advertising Traffic Machine
http://www.megatraffic.us/
http://www.frappr.com/bizzyblogzcommunity
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Special
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Your Web Traffic and Your Bottom Line
By Scott Buresh
Most companies that have websites have access to traffic statistics, usually
provided by their web host. Those that don't look at these files (or use a
bargain basement web hosting company that doesn't provide them) don't know what
they are missing- there is a wealth of information to be found, and reacting to
this information can have a positive impact on a company's bottom line. What
follows are some of the most basic stats that are typically available, followed
by brief suggestions on how to use the information.
The Myth of "Hits"
Most web surfers have come across sites that
boast about "20,000 hits per day" or something similar. But what does this mean?
To an internet marketer, unfortunately, not much. "Hits" actually refers to the
number of requests for information the web server receives. To use an
oversimplified example, if your company homepage has 20 separate graphics on it,
each visitor to that page will account for 20 hits. If you were boasting of
20,000 hits per day, you would really only be talking about 1000 visitors.
Obviously, this statistic is not a fair indication of actual site visitors, and
shouldn't be figured into your traffic analysis.
Average Visitors (Daily, Weekly, Monthly)
This is the true measure of website activity.
Of course, more traffic is desirable in most circumstances (provided it is at
least somewhat targeted). Without access to this data and the ability to look at
visitor history, it is impossible to tell if your traffic building initiatives,
whether online or offline, are working. It should be noted that the more your
traffic increases, the more accurate the rest of your data becomes. This is
simply because trends in a larger sample are more telling than trends in a
smaller sample where a small number of atypical users can skew the results.
Average Time Spent On Site and Average Page
Views Per Visitor
This data can be very useful in determining
how your site is connecting with visitors. If the average time that people spend
on the site is small (for example less than a minute), or the average visitor
only visits one or two pages, it may indicate some sort of problem. Perhaps your
site is attracting the wrong traffic, with visitors abandoning the site quickly
when they realize it isn't what they were seeking. Perhaps visitors are confused
by the navigation and decide to look elsewhere. Maybe your site, even though you
love it, gives off an inexplicable bad vibe. Whatever the case, an awareness of
the time people spend on your site and the number of pages they view can bring a
potential problem to your attention, and help you gauge how effective your
solution is.
Most/Least Requested Pages
This information is helpful in determining the
"hot" and "cold" areas of your website. If you notice that a page that you think
is important is not getting any attention, perhaps the link to this page should
be made more prominent or enticing. On the other hand, if there are areas of the
site that you deem less important that are attracting a great deal of your
traffic, you can shift some of your sales/marketing focus to those pages.
Whatever you find in these stats, you can bet that it will give you valuable
insight into the interests and motivations of your visitors.
Top Exit Pages
There are probably certain pages of your site
where you don't mind visitors leaving (after all, they can't stay forever). A
confirmation page after they fill out a request for more information might be
one example of a reasonable exit point. A contact page that tells visitors how
to get in touch with your company might also be acceptable. Unfortunately, it is
unrealistic to assume that each of your visitors is going to find exactly what
they are looking for on your company site, so it is normal to see a wide range
of exit pages. However, if a high percentage of visitors are leaving on any
particular page, it bears some close scrutiny. Sometimes minor modifications in
content can have a positive impact on visitor retention.
Top Search Phrases
This data can be very useful in understanding
what type of traffic is coming to your site. If you see relevant phrases that
bring you consistent traffic, you can assume that you are getting some targeted
traffic. On the other hand, if there are predominant phrases people are using to
find your site that are unrelated to your business, you know that at least some
of your traffic is of a lesser quality. In addition, if you notice that people
find your site by typing in the name of your company, you should be pleased to
know that you have achieved some level of brand awareness. By examining the
search phrases that your visitors are using, you gain a better understanding of
your visitor.
Conclusion
Some people are intimidated by these reports
(mostly because of the sheer volume of data available), but they shouldn't be.
While there are many highly specialized statistics that can be used for more
in-depth analysis of site traffic, the above areas alone can provide invaluable
information on site visitors and website performance. Remember- this data is
available for a reason. It's up to your company to use it!
About the Author
Scott Buresh is co-founder and principal
of Medium Blue Internet Marketing (www.mediumblue.com).
For monthly tips on how to get the most out of your internet presence, sign up
for the Medium Blue Internet Marketing Newsletter at
http://www.mediumblue.com/newsletters.
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