The Metrics of Web Analytics: Repeat Visitor

The Metrics of Web Analytics
Repeat Visitor

Within web analytics, there are six categories of metrics, including visitor characterization, engagement, and miscellaneous metrics (Reed College of Media, 2018). The visitor characterization metrics determine aspects of the mannerisms of customers or clients online. The metrics track things such as visits to a web page, return visits, frequency of visits, referrals, and more. While all metrics provide applicable and informative data, visitor characterization provides great insight into the type of customer an organization or company is attracting, the type of actions a customer is taking, as well as where this customer is coming from. This type of information proves extremely helpful in making new and upcoming web decisions, as well as marketing decisions in particular.  

            Specific analytics can provide further insight and deeper knowledge for the organization. For example, in a sales environment, it is incredibly important to note when visitors navigate to the website, especially those that return to the website more than once in a reporting period (Web Analytics, 2008).

            If a visitor comes to the website more than once, this is a greater indicator that the visitor is more interested in the products or services that the company is offering. Repeat visitors are a more valuable statistic to the sales and marketing teams. By looking at, and speaking with repeat visitors, the marketing and sales teams are able to target repeat visitors with messaging that will tailor to their specific interests. This will provide the visitors with personalized messaging and enable them to make more informed decisions. In an environment and world where personalized messaging is now expected, receiving analytics about repeat visitors is imperative in order for a company or organization to talk more deeply with prospective customers.

            However, both repeating visitors and new visitors are important to a website and business. Without either one, the company would not survive. There needs to be a steady, organic influx of both types of users in order for the company to create a successful digital strategy. When it comes to understanding exactly what percentage of repeating visitors and new visitors are needed, web analytics provide the backdrop. Using Google Analytics, or another web analytic provider, a company can dissect exactly what percentage of their web track is new, versus repeating on each of their online sites and platforms (Google Analytics, 2018). Repeating visitors are often more useful in some realms, such as email traffic, while new visitors are more significant in areas such as referral traffic (Google Analytics, 2018). A detailed look at these analytics for one such example organization are detailed below (Google Analytics, 2018).

    
          One last important aspect of repeat visitor metrics, is the role they play in social media tracking. Web analytics now provide great insight for social media accounts and tracking. These are particularly helpful in understanding the role of social media within an organization, and the amount of traffic that is drawn to these pages and also the role social media accounts play as a referral. However, social media accounts also happen to draw a large percentage of repeat visitors (Google Analytics, 2018). This is a realm in which having repeat visitors illustrates a huge success. Social media platforms were designed to be interactive and to convince visitors to return again and again for new and exciting content. If an organization or company social media account is attracting a large percentage of repeat visitors, this should be heralded as a success for the company.

Conclusion

            Overall, web analytics all play an important role in businesses and organizations today. They illustrate countless business aspects and provide data for some of the smallest, and largest decisions that are made. Web analytics now provide the foundation for a variety of online data including visitor characterization, visit characterization and engagement. Without web analytics, companies would essential be driving blind in the online sphere.

References

Google Analytics: When Are New Vs. Returning Visitor Ratios Useful? (2018, January 04). Retrieved October 21, 2018, from https://www.christopherspenn.com/2018/01/when-are-new-vs-returning-visitor-ratios-useful/

Kaushik, A. (2010). Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability & Science of Customer Centricity. Indianapolis, IN: Wiley.

Reed College of Media. 2018. West Virginia University. IMC 642: Web Metrics and SEO. Week 1. " Intro to Web Analytics and the Basics of Web Analytics.”

The 8 Critical Web Metrics. (2017, September 15). Retrieved October 16, 2018, from https://myinternetmarketingpartner.com/the-8-critical-web-metrics/

Web Analytics Association. (2008, September 22). Web analytics definitions. Retrieved on October 13, 2012, from: http://www.digitalanalyticsassociation.org/Files/PDF_standards/WebAnalyticsDefinitions.pdf