Web Design Statistics - April 2005
How web design statistics allow you to analyse your web page performance.
At Web Design Sunshine Coast we design a web page to produce results for the client. All of our web hosting packages include easy to follow web site statistics where you can find information on:
- Number of unique visitors
- Entry & exit pages
- Search terms being used
- Search engines listings
- Dozens of other points
Website homepage has in depth detail about the number of visitors and entry / exit pages. General web statistics give pertinent information about website visitors. Are these visitors local, from Brisbane, overseas, from the Sunshine Coast or interstate?
Webmasters and owners analysing these statistics have a better understanding of who their website visitors are and how they perceive the website. A lot can be learned by evaluating navigation patterns or the use of your website links as your web page viewers look for what they want to buy or gain information about.
Related information on web design testing here.
When a visitor comes to a website, the site has just a few seconds to grab the visitor's interest. Slow-loading pages or broken graphics will send visitors and potential customers looking elsewhere. More on web design basics. In order to make sense of web statistics, consider using one of website statistics programs. These are included in all of our web hosting and arrange the information from the log files in an easy-to-understand way. We provide graphs or visual representations that make understanding and seeing patterns that much easier. You may choose whoever you wish for your web designer. More info on hiring a web designer.
The information contained in the log file / statistics program should be analyzed in conjunction with other information. Let's take a look at some of the critical areas.
How many unique visitors visit the site each day? This statistic, by itself, is not terribly important, but when compared to a previous week's or month's logs, patterns will generally emerge. Sudden declines in site visitors might be indicative of downtime or dropped links, while sudden increases might be indicative of a successful ad campaign or improved search engine ranking. This assumption can only be made if sales for the corresponding time period have increased as well. More on website sales.
Traffic alone is not the goal; qualified website traffic that converts a visitor into a buyer is generally the goal of most owners. Web statistics on their own do not always paint a true picture. Webmasters and owners need to use logs to validate advertising campaigns and track where traffic is coming from. While details in a log file alone are not conclusive proof of an ad campaign's success or failure, general assumptions can be made based on the patterns. General statistics will help determine who your visitors are and what habits they have.
Specific areas of web design to take a close look at:
This question addresses a website's "stickiness". Stickiness gives webmasters and owners an indication of how important their content is. If users return on a regular basis or remain on a specific page for an extended period of time, generally the content is considered valuable. If a website has a user friendly web design layout, visitors will continue to return.
What pages in a website are visitors coming into?
Is a specific page on the site drawing an unusually high amount of traffic? Do users come back to the website?
Is there a reason for a visitor to come back to the website?
Generally, content that is refreshed often will attract return visitors. What specific areas on the site are of interest to web visitors, and can those content sections be expanded to increase the overall value of the website? More of this in web design research.
What pages in a website are visitors leaving from? If a specific page has a large number of visitors leaving the site, perhaps the content needs updating. It is critical that you consider the source of the traffic. Are visitors coming to the website through a pay-per-click campaign with a landing page that does not relate to the initial search terms? Directing visitors to content-specific landing pages will help reduce quick site exits.
What kind of website is sending traffic to your website?
Assumptions can be made based on the quality of the referral source. Let's face it, if a crack site is the leading referral generator to a software site, it is unlikely that the bulk of visitors will be interested in purchasing.
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Are visitors attempting to access pages on your website that are no longer active? Be sure to check logs for any pages or graphics that are generating errors for visitors.
Don't get too hung up on the number of "hits" a website has, as this can be interpreted differently. Sometimes logs interpret graphic access as a hit. A more accurate reflection of traffic can be seen by tracking unique visitors.
By evaluating your website statistics logs webmasters and owners can continuously improve their site and measure their success. Online or off, tracking results is critical to achieving success. If you don't track, you don't
know what works. How can you improve what you don't measure?
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