by 
Web Analytics Demystified released a study today entitled ” onclick=”return TrackClick(” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”" onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”,” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”%3Ca+href%3D” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”)”The Problem with Free Analytics Tools” onclick=”return TrackClick(” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”" onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”,” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”%3Ca+href%3D” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”)” (e.g., Google Analytics). The report doesn” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”t look at the strengths or weaknesses of free analytics tools themselves, but at the support and investment of time or money users of free analytics tools made.
Their overall finding was that:
there appears to be a very strong correlation between a lack of investment [either of money or of time] in web analytics technology and a suboptimal use of this type of technology.
Specifically, they found several things lacking:
- 35% of free tool users reported only ” onclick=”return TrackClick(” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”" onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”,” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”%3Ca+href%3D” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”)”an ad hoc use” onclick=”return TrackClick(” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”" onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”,” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”%3Ca+href%3D” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”)” of their measurement tools (compared to <20% those using licensed solutions).
- 42% of free tool users” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)” companies had no dedicated web analytics resources (versus 18% with licensed solutions).
- 64% of free tool users had less than two years of experience (versus 32% of those using licensed solutions).
Obviously, the problem doesn” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”t lie in the tools themselves. I think it” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”s only natural that companies that don” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”t have the resources to fully use or even monitor their analytics data also don” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”t have the resources for a paid, licensed analytics service.
The report offers hope for those without licensed solutions:
There is ample evidence that given sufficient organizational commitment and attention to process that any company using any application regardless of price can be tremendously successful in their use of web analytics.
The study” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”s proposed solutions:
- Companies who have decided to standardize on free solutions need to work overtime to be successful in their endeavors.
- Companies who have decided to standardize on free solutions must spend the money they’ve saved on technology to hire smart people.
- Companies serious about improving their web sites but unable to commit the necessary resources should consider licensed web analytics solutions.
Other interesting findings of the study include:
- Free tools users are less likely to use web analytics as part of their decision making process, with most either only using web analytics data for general guidance (41%). Another 8% is unsure how to integrate analytics into their decision making at all.
- Free tools users are far more likely to work in situations lacking sufficient resources to be successful with web analytics, with 42 percent reporting zero dedicated resources for web analytics and an additional 39 percent reporting only a single dedicated resource, or 1.0 FTE equivalent.
- Free tools users are less likely to have most of their web-related questions answered by their tools. 46% reported that web analytics tools answered less than half their questions. But that” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”s okay, since they aren” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”t sure what to do with the answers anyway. And I hate to ask this, but could it possibly be that they just don” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”t know where to look for these answers? We did just learn that there are no dedicated analytics resources in these organizations, so would it be safe to assume they” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”ve had little training?
- And one good thing for free tool users: they” onclick=”return TrackClick(”,’%3Ca+href%3D’)”re more likely to work for organizations where web analytics is widely understood (34% say they believe that most people coming in contact with web analytics data actually understand the data, versus 18% at companies using for-fee solutions).
The full study is available from Web Analytics Demystified in PDF form.
