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View Full Version : Tracking tools, the good the bad and the ugly?


Jazajay
01-03-2010, 04:15 AM
Hay up peeps.
Right I currently work as a freelancer web dev for a company, that well doens't hire freelancers. Anyhoo they contacted me with an, I have to say amazingly exciting, CMS job.:rolleyes:

So they wanted to have Search Engine tracking, security and other CMS related stuff built in. So I created, from scratch I may add I know arrogance is great a what can only be described as an experience.

Tracked loads of things when the search engines had visited a page, if they had visited a page, keywords used etc... etc... and then created a nice up down graph that showed them pages with nice coloured arrows, be it dynamic or static of pages that hadn't been visited in a while etc.. etc.. that way they know when pages need to be refreshed with content so to speak or get more links to those pages, rotate to home pages etc... etc...you get the idea.

Anyhoo I used Google analytics for the first time recently and got to say not impressed. Flagging up I have a DNS that I need to cut out when it's the DNS to use analytics, the fact that it doesn't pick up that fact that Googles JS file on their sever is compressed and says I need to do it. :eek:

The top results for such and such results then when I check, with my browser cache empty and history deleted and signed out of my Google account they are just all, but 1, wrong.

The fact that I apparently haven't visited the site at all on the geo tracking as I Live in Leicester and no one from Leicester has visited the site or anywhere near Leicester.

So I was wondering what do you use to track results, doesn't have to be just the search engines can be any metric as I'm curious to see what I missing.

Jaz

AussieWebmaster
01-03-2010, 11:26 AM
GA is good but you need to build refined filters - not as set up for them as other tools

Jazajay
01-03-2010, 09:04 PM
I suppose as I've always used custom built solutions that I may need to play around with it more then. I did notice the filters but never really gave them that much attention really.

Any tips on using it to it's full potential? :)

AussieWebmaster
01-03-2010, 09:43 PM
here are some links
http://searchmarketingads.com/blog/2008/07/03/5-must-have-google-analytic-filters/
http://yoast.com/track-seo-rankings-google-analytics/
http://www.schawel.com/google-analytics-keyword-filters/2008/08/29/
http://www.advanced-web-metrics.com/blog/2008/11/03/tracking-social-networks-with-google-analytics-using-filters/

jag
01-04-2010, 07:47 AM
Use GA if you really need an in depth sight on the site performance and it is not as easy to find :) it needs a real smart work ;)

Best,