17 Web Analytics Tools To Understand Who, What, Why, Where & How People Are Using Your Site

UPDATED: 4/11/09.

  1. Google Analytics – Google’s free Web traffic analysis tool.
  2. Yahoo! Web Analytics – will be made available to a wide range of Yahoo!’s customers, partners, developers and advertisers in stages throughout the rest of 2008 and into 2009.
  3. Quantcast – Free stats for site owners, online media planning tool for advertisers.
  4. Clicky – Free comprehensive stats and some real-time analysis.
  5. ClickTale – Actually records site visitors’ behavior, then replays it for you. Kicks butt! Free and for-fee versions.
  6. whos.among.us – Free stats widget; no registration required.
  7. Enquisite – For fee; focused on search analytics for search marketers.
  8. Crazy Egg – Pricing starts at $9/month but service includes heat maps!
  9. 103bees – Focused on search analytics; for fee.
  10. StatCounter – Free and for-fee versions.
  11. Piwiki – Open source Web analytics built on PHP and MySQL.
  12. AWStats – Open source Web analytics.
  13. FeedBurner – RSS Subscriber analytics
  14. reinvigorate – Heat maps and user-initiated event tracking.
  15. iWebTrack – Free and for-fee versions.
  16. VisiStat – Full-featured, for-fee analytics service that includes ability to add custom notes to your reports to highlight/explain key events as well as an API for developers to access raw data for building custom reports.
  17. WebTrends Analytics – Enterprise Web analytics.
  18. Omniture Online Analytics – Enterprise Web analytics.

Twenty-Six Twitter Tools To Track Tweets

Twitter Logo

I’ve been finding so many Twitter tools and passing them along that it’s hard to keep track of them all. The Twitter tools I want to keep track of are those that monitor, measure, and analyze Twitterers and their traffic. I figured I’d compile them here for your benefit.

  1. Twitter Search – This, obviously, is Twitter’s own search function. You can subscribe to a search via RSS.
  2. TweetBeep – TweetBeep is a “Google Alerts” for Twitter
  3. Tweetscan – Schedule Twitter searches to be sent to your email.
  4. Twist – Like Google Trends for Twitter
  5. TwitScoop – TwitScoop is a real-time tag cloud of Twitter buzz that also allows you to create graphs based on keyword tracking.
  6. MicroBlogBuzz – MicroBlogBuzz tracks the most popular links shared on microblogging services, including Twitter, Jaiku and Identica
  7. Twit(url)y – Tracks popular links and displays them in Digg-like fashion.
  8. Hashtags.org – Hashtags tracks the most popular Twitter posts that include a #hashtag. You can subscribe to an individual hashtag using RSS.
  9. Twemes – Tracks Twitter memes.
  10. TweetGrid – TweetGrid creates a Twitter search dashboard that updates in real time.
  11. monitter – monittor is a real-time keyword-based monitoring service that lets you watch three columns of keyword streams side-by-side. You can subscribe to them using RSS.
  12. ReTweetist – Tracks the most popular retweets.
  13. minn.citytweets.net – Real-time tweets from and/or about Minneapolis.
  14. Qwitter – Qwitter notifies you when someone unfollows you.
  15. Spy – Spy tracks real-time keyword mentions in Twitter, FriendFeed, Flickr, Blog Comments, Yahoo News, Blogs and Google Reader and allows you to subscribe via RSS.
  16. TweetWheel – Finds out which of your Twitter friends know each other.
  17. Twitter Charts – Twitter Charts gives you a visualization of when a particular Twitter user is most active. This is an excellent tool to determine the most opportune time to engage a given person.
  18. twInfluence – Ranks Twitter users’ influence.
  19. TwitterGrader – Grades a given Twitter user according to influence. Includes power users by geographic location; suggests who to follow and allows you to check if someone is following you.
  20. TwitterSheep – Creates a tag cloud of all the words in the bios of a given Twitter user’s followers.
  21. TwitterCounter – Provides stats on a given Twitter user and lets you compare that user to two others.
  22. Twellow – Twellow is a Twitter directory.
  23. TweetBoards – Compare Twitter users side-by-side.
  24. TweetStats – Gives you Twitter statistics about a given user.
  25. TwitterMeter – Twitter Meter allows you to enter a word to graph its use on Twitter’s public feed.
  26. TwitterLocal – Twitter Local is a desktop app that finds Twitter users within a fixed radius of a city or zip code.

UPDATED 7/04/09: I knew this as going to happen: I would forget some or others would suggest sites that should be added to the list. For that reason, and so I don’t have to mess with my wonderful alliterative title, I’m listing the additions unnumbered below:

  • Twitter Analyzer – The best Twitter analytics tool I have found to date. Offers a ton of statistics.
  • Mr. Tweet – A recommendation engine that also provides statistics on your Twitter usage.
  • Localtweeps – Find Tweeps near you.
  • Twits Like Me – A recommendation engine that suggests Twitterers that are like you.
  • Retail Twitter Aggregator – Aggregates the Twitter feeds of a handful of bricks & mortar retailers.
  • retweetradar – Tag clouds and trends of retweets.
  • Twubs – Find hashtags.
  • What The Trend? – Find hashtags that are rising in popularity.
  • Tagalus – A hashtag dictionary.
  • Twitclicks – Shortens URLs and tracks clicks.
  • Bit.ly – Shortens URLs, counts clicks, shows who else shortened a URL and provides metadata about that URL from across the Web.
  • Tweetburner – Shortens URLs and tracks clicks on Twitter & FriendFeed.
  • Twittervision – Real-time geographic posts to Twitter.
  • TweetChannel – Create Twitter channels.
  • Twitterfall – Real-time monitoring.
  • Twendz – Real-time Twitter search engine coupled with related keywords & word clouds.
  • Tweetzi – Advanced Twitter search engine.
  • Twistory – Pumps your Twitter feed into a calendar application so you can visualize your Tweeting history.
  • Twitlinks – Tracks most popular tech links from most popular tech Twitterers.
  • Twitturls – Tracks popular links.
  • OneRiot – Twitter search engine.
  • twopopular – Tracks hashtags and keywors in real time or by time intervals.
  • Tweet Volume – See how often words and phrases are mentioned on Twitter.
  • TweetEffect – Find out which tweets gained and which tweets lost you followers.
  • Tweetmeme – Tweetmeme tracks the most popular links on twitter every 5 minutes, categorized by types of content: Blogs, images, video or audio.
  • Tinker – Aggregates Twitter conversations around topics.
  • Splitweet – Multi account manager & brand monitor.
  • Tweetizen – Lets you categorize your followers and then follow only that feed.
  • Who Should I Follow? – Find new Twitter friends.
  • FriendOrFollow.com – Find Twitterers you follow that don’t follow you back.
  • Twitter Friends – Compare your tweeting behavior with other.
  • Who Follows Who? – Find out the common Twitterers up to five Twitter users have in common.
  • From Howard Greenstein at Social Media Today:
    • Tweetvisor – A Twitter control panel
    • TweetDeck – An Adobe Air desktop application for Twitter. I actually use this. It should’ve been on the original list.
    • PeopleBrowsr – A dashboard for many social media accounts, including Facebook, Flickr, Open ID, Digg, FriendFeed, and, of course, Twitter.
    • CoTweet – Let’s multiple people manage a single Twitter account in a rational fashion.
    • Tweet Later – Let’s you schedule Tweets and vet followers.

Top 10 Internet Marketing Blog Posts Of 2008

January 5, 2009 · Categories: Links, Miscellaneous · Comments 

These are based on page views. So, without further ado, these were the ten most popular posts on this blog for 2008:

links for 2008-08-27

August 27, 2008 · Categories: Internet Marketing News, Links · Comments 

links for 2008-08-21

August 21, 2008 · Categories: Internet Marketing News, Links · Comments 

links for 2008-08-20

August 20, 2008 · Categories: Internet Marketing News, Links · Comments 

links for 2008-08-19

August 19, 2008 · Categories: Internet Marketing News, Links · Comments 

links for 2008-08-16

August 16, 2008 · Categories: Links · Comments 
  •                

                   

    I noticed a few weeks ago that sites using Google Knol or Google pages were getting great positions in the Google SERPs. This didn’t seem like a big deal to me at the time, as it was in less-trafficked areas and nothing that was competing with me.

                   

    (tags: es article google)

                

  •                

                   

    Zillow, a vertical search engine aimed at the real estate market, has announced the launch of Showcase Ads, geo-targeted ads for realtors and other real estate advertisers. Within a given zip code, advertisers can buy 25, 50, 75, or 100 percent of the ads, giving them the ability to target just the local areas they are interested in selling to. Showcase Ads will have a different pricing structure than Zillow’s other local ad offering – EZ Ads.

                   

                

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    As people returned to work on Monday after the first weekend of the Beijing Olympic games, many went online to keep track of events as they unfold, according to Nielsen Online. Traffic to NBC’s Olympics video site jumped a whopping 85% on the first day of the work week, while other sites enjoyed a nice boost as well.

                   

                

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    We’ve seen a natural progression from back rooms to boardrooms — from the basement to the mainstream. SEO has not simply shed its dubious roots; it has become a legitimate, reputable component of a proper client marketing mix.

                   

    (tags: es article SEO SEM)

                

  •                

                   

    January’s JPMorgan estimate that placed global search advertising spending in excess of $30 billion for this year (growing to $60 billion by 2011) got more than a few people thinking about what percentage of search advertising dollars are being spent effectively.

                   

                

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    Google was the recipient of 70.77% of U.S. searches in July 2008, up from 69.17% in June, according to Hitwise. Yahoo and Microsoft continued to drop, at 18.65% and 5.36% respectively. Ask.com dropped month-over-month but gained year-over-year, coming in at 3.53%.

                   

                

  •                

                   

    A couple weeks ago, Google slightly changed how they show the Google search results, which resulted in several search ranking software packages to not function properly anymore. I reported this under the title of WebPosition Ranking Software Being Blocked by Google? early on and Scott Goodyear from WebPosition commented here and also at WebmasterWorld with his two cents.

                   

                

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    When Google Ad Planner came out back in June, I immediately thought of Comscore – and I was not alone. Many in the marketing industry thought that Google’s product would be a "Comscore killer," and when I noted as much in my coverage, Gian Fulgoni, Comscore’s chair, shot back in a comment to my post:

                   

                

  •                

                   

    Please don’t fall prey to scams. Should you 404 or 301? Google fixed the sitemaps bug. Do penalties scare you? Google Reader shares friends. PageRank and link building, what a pair. Live Search Maps does ads. India sues Google and others. YouTube won’t be streaming video.

                   

    (tags: es article news)

                

  •                

                   

    Major technical problems continue at Netflix and a hedge fund sets its sights on Cablevision. Tom Ortuso has those stories and more

                   

    (tags: es podcast news)

                

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    Russian-controlled computers are said to have launched Internet attacks against Georgian government Web sites as early as July 20th, well before fighting on the ground began. The denial of service attacks – which flood targets with malicious data – curtailed Georgia’s ability to spread its message and communicate with the outside world.

                   

                

  •                

                   

    There are 3 advisement types that you’ll find on the Live Search Maps site, but only one of which we’re taking orders for via the Virtual Earth platform licensing group – Highlighted Listings (the other two being Sponsored Listings and Brand Finder are described below, but just for informational purposes). To advertise on Live Search Maps via the Highlighted Listings program send mail to the Virtual Earth Licensing alias (or, yes, you can always email me).

                   

                

  •                

                   

    MySpace had a record 75.2 million unique US visitors in July 2008, the highest number since its launch in 2004 – and an increase of 2.5 million from the previous month – according to data from comScore released by MySpace.

                   

                

  •                

                   

    According to SNL Kagan, 2007 was a banner year for cable networks. Industry revenue increased by 12.6% in 2007 to $38 billion. Ad revenue jumped 10.5% to $19 billion, while license fees (affiliate revenues) soared almost 15% to more than $20 billion.

                   

                

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    Shared consumer experiences can make or break your brand when it comes to WOM. See how to increase your chances of getting on your customers’ good sides.

                   

                

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    Who is to blame for falling CPMs, and which ad network gives marketers the reach they crave? Those questions and a stunning hiccup from Google dominated the top stories this week.

                   

                

  •                

                   

    This week Yahoo took Fire Eagle out of beta. Fire Eagle is a geo-location platform with social, business — and advertising — implications.

                   

                

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    Online ad spend in the U.K. overtook advertising on mainstream commercial TV last year, according to Britain’s Office of Communications. Paid search grabbed over half of online ad dollars spent in the U.K. in 2007.

                   

                

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    Several of my recent columns have dealt with testing and optimization. Today, I’ll focus on the other half of the online marketing world, those who must drive leads through their site.

                   

                

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    In the column "How to Work Effectively With Your Tech Team", I emphasized the importance of marketers gaining a better understanding of technology. Here, I’d like to dive into some additional technology principles for you to understand to reduce some of the "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus" confusion that exists anytime that marketers and technologists sit together at the same table.

                   

                

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    When Google added its sharing feature to Reader last year, there were no options to control which people you shared news with. Couple that with the fact that Gmail added anyone who ever e-mailed you to your list of contacts and you had a recipe for sharing disaster.

                   

                

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    That vision of the future is laid out in "Automotive 2020: Clarity Beyond the Chaos," (.pdf) by the IBM Institute for Business Value. The report, based on interviews with 125 auto industry executives in 15 countries, says the industry is on the cusp of revolutionary changes that will see environmental sustainability and technological innovation become top priorities as automakers respond to consumer demands for more efficient cars that don’t sacrifice performance, comfort or reliability.

                   

                

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    Thus far in our introductory Django tutorial, we’ve installed the open-source Django framework, set up a blog and beefed it up by adding some extras like semantic content tags, some handy template tags and a list of our bookmarks from delicious.com. If you haven’t been following along, now would be a good time to go back to Lesson 1 and catch up.

                   

                

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    In a crucial win for the free software movement, a federal appeals court has ruled that even software developers who give away the programming code for their works can sue for copyright infringement if someone misappropriates that material.

                   

                

  •                

                   

    One of the biggest problems with Apple’s still-fledgling App Store is that there’s no efficient way to sift through new applications. While users can view a list of the most recently uploaded apps, the list can be overwhelming and unorganized. Most users rely on the “Top Apps” lists, which do seem to change often, but these tend to consist mainly of games and “fun” apps that aren’t particularly useful.

                   

                

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    With the appointment of Frank Biondi, Jr. and John Chapple to Yahoo’s board of directors today, the last two slots on the board are now filled. Biondi, the former CEO of Viacom, and Chapple, the former CEO of Nextel, were both on Carl Icahn’s original alternate slate when he was still trying to replace the entire board. As part of his compromise with Yahoo, Icahn backed down from his proxy battle in return for three seats on the board.

                   

                

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    We’ve received confirmation from AOL that the company has acquired Socialthing!, a lifestreaming service that competes with FriendFeed. We originally reported the deal on August 1.

                   

                

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    The long wait for the first Android phone should be over this fall, when T-Mobile is expected to release an HTC phone based on the Google-backed mobile operating system called the Dream. Following up on growing rumors online, the New York Times has confirmed that T-Mobile is hoping for a pre-holiday launch.

                   

                

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    In another apparent effort to streamline its services to focus on revenue, wireless carrier Sprint will stop providing the servers for e-mail service for its PCS phone customers, although it will let customers pick their own providers.

                   

                

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    If a bill now being considered by the California State Senate and Assembly becomes law, schoolyard bullies who use the Internet and text messaging to intimidate others may be expelled from school.

                   

                

  •                

                   

    Intel this morning made available the updated Extended Host Controller Interface (xHCI) specification that will allow manufacturers to start work on USB 3.0 devices.

                   

                

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    New independent data shows Facebook enjoyed 153 percent growth year over year, while MySpace remains essentially flat. The site’s growth is biggest overall outside of the US.

                   

                

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    The official marketing channel for the next edition of Windows was opened this afternoon, as Microsoft quietly raised the curtains on what it’s positioning as an open channel for ideas regarding what the company should add to its next OS.

                   

                

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    The biggest and most significant legal action against now-leading social network Facebook was filed on Tuesday, and will actually test the theory of whether its Beacon behavior sharing program constituted a criminal conspiracy.

                   

                

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    The maker of a popular pre-paid cell phone today announced a program that will give low income Tennessee residents free cell phones and mobile service on a year-to-year basis.

                   

                

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    According to the Torrent tracking site, TorrentFreak, the opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics was the most-downloaded television show for the week of August 3-10th.

                   

                

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    Remember back when Al Gore allegedly said he "invented the Internet?" Well, he didn’t, it was Google. Alright, I’m kidding, but sometimes it does appear that way. Google has consistently launched one killer application after another, and they weren’t playing around when they entered into the pay-per-click arena with their "Adwords" program. Adwords is one of the largest online advertising networks, reaching more than 80% of all Internet users.

                   

                

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    Lately, I have been getting a lot of questions about how the comments section in this blog works — specifically, how I decide which comments to post and which to delete.

                   

                

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    Despite all of its recent up-time troubles, Twitter’s growth has been on a tear lately. According to Google Ad Planner data, time spent is off the charts at a staggering 550 seconds per user in the US and 560 seconds globally. Compare those figures to 480 seconds per user for CNN – a site that’s at least 10 years older. In addition, as you can see from the chart below, daily unique users are skyrocketing as well.

                   

                

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    Young US consumers surveyed spent more time on the Internet than with any other type of media in May 2008, according to a study conducted by DoubleClick Performics and ROI Research.

                   

                

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    Advertising agencies surveyed worldwide planned to increase their search engine marketing (SEM) spending more in 2008 than did advertisers themselves, according to the recently released "State of Search Engine Marketing 2007" report sponsored by the Search Engine Marketing Professionals Organization (SEMPO) and conducted by Radar Research.

                   

                

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    The chart below which compares a custom category of Online Retailers with a custom category of the top 100 Bricks and Mortar Retailers in Australia (ranked by online market share) including Coles, Dick Smith Electronics and Harvey Norman, suggests that the margin between the two categories has closed substantially during July, after an Australian traffic difference of 28.7% at week ending June 21.

                   

                

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    Therefore any organization rebranding itself should monitor internet searches for its brand in order to measure the relative success or failure of its campaign.

                   

                

links for 2008-05-19

May 19, 2008 · Categories: Internet Marketing News, Links, Tools · Comments 

links for 2008-05-10

May 10, 2008 · Categories: Internet Marketing News, Links, Tools · Comments