Review & Thoughts: “When more is not better: Page Tags” by Eric Peterson
If you have not read Eric Peterson's latest white paper "When more is not better: Page Tags" STOP! Go read it! Then come back!
There are many, many blogs and folks that spend a lot of time talking about how to do analysis of all the data that folks are collecting with various tools, but there are not that many that really go into the topic of tagging, or implementation, or just data collection. Perhaps it us because it is more technical, geeky, and flat out just not as sexy as other topics. But this white paper really stood out for me as my main focus in web analytics is data collection.
The white paper outlined the following issues with tagging as it exists today.
In Web Analytics Demystified’s opinion, the problem with tags is three-fold:
- Tags become a panacea, replacing sound business measurement practices
- Tags can slow down page loading and degrade the consumer experience
- Tags have the potential to erode data confidence when poorly managed
I would add a fourth item to this this. Lack of skilled staff to implement/manage tags. Sure there are lots of companies and consulting shops that can do this for you, but most companies do not have this type of talent on staff, or they do not have full access to this type of IT resource .
Some of the causes listed in the white paper for the proliferation of tags were:
More Tags Does Not Mean “More Accuracy”
I agree in this statement, but what about the use of two tools for validation of trends, not the confirmation of numbers? Although with the right tag monitoring tool in place the need for this would greatly diminish.
Data Confidence
- Shoddy implementation is missing from the list. All too often I have seen or heard of this!
- Lack of good consistent documentation of implementation best practices.
- Lack of internal IT help to manage the tags
- IT has no clue what the tags do or the business requirements behind them
Load time
I have seen this first hand, and yes the tags can slow down a web site, especially when you have have multiple tagging solutions in place. ( Which is why you should track load times 
) The other thing to watch out for is as more and more site use Ajax and the likes to provide a rich experience for the end user, there is a risk of double tagging a page if the developers are not careful in how they load content on a page and that can result in all sorts of wonky data.
This may all sound a bit daunting, but fear not! The white paper has a solution for this very need. A "Chief Data Officer"!! The white paper does a great job explaining the responsibilities that the CDO would have, but what it all boils down to is someone to own all aspects of data collection with regards to analytics. As a developer who is also tasked with these responsibilities I am thrilled about this. As sites become more complex and the tagging solutions evolve with them, the need for a technical person who can fill this role is crucial. My hope is that companies will read and adopt this quickly.
Clever or Creepy?
I was sitting at my desk today happily coding away when a piece of mail was dropped on my desk. It was a 5x7 brown envelope that was addressed by hand to me. Being the curious sort that I am, I opened the envelope to find this....
I was a little confused but went ahead and typed in the url and was taken to a clever micro site that had be created / customized for me. I clicked around a bit and was impressed with the interaction of the site. I did not think too much of this and went back to my code. In less than 20 minutes I received a work email from a sales guy.
Rudi,
Good afternoon. I sent that hotel keycard & napkin, and wanted to hear your thoughts of that personalized web experience.
May I request a discussion, maybe Wednesday afternoon? Let me know what works best.
I’m also happy to send additional information at your request.
Cordially,Sales Guy
Now, being more involved in the analytics space I was impressed. Here was a very clever mail to web campaign and it had worked. I went to the web site, they detected that and sent a timely email about the experience. I was thinking about responding to find out more about the site/product/solutions.
But then my desk phone rang. I still had the email from the sales guy up on my screen and the phone number on the caller id matched the email. I chose not to answer, but did listen to the voice mail. Sure enough....it was the sales guy, letting me know that they had tracked me and like Will Smith in "Enemy of the State" they knew my every move. Well maybe I paraphrased that last part.
This is where they lost me. This clever campaign went to creepy in less than 20 minutes. I thought about it for a little while and then emailed the sales guy.
Dear Sales Guy,
With the email then the voice mail it went from Clever to Creepy pretty quick.
A short time later, he responded.
Rudi,
We have no intention to creep you out. We just wanted to show you our capability of being able to put a message in front of a prospect and know in real time that they are looking at it. I want to share an actual VLG customer lead generation campaign.
This dialog marketing campaign has generated a 38% mail to web response. Just click the link below:
I'd like to answer your questions and provide more information regarding our capabilities at VLG. Please let me know a good time to have a brief discussion.
Cordially,
Sales Guy
I do not fault the intent behind this particular sales pitch, but something about it did not sit right. I am fully aware of the effort and opportunities that such a solution could have, but the creepy factor has outweighed the clever factor for me.
What do you think?
Review: User Driven Change – Give Them What They Want
A few months back I was lucky enough to get a copy of "User Driven Change: Give Them What They Want" by Carlos del Rio & Jeff Noethen. When it arrived I set it on a stack of other books in my ever growing pile of books to read. To be honest I had forgotten about it until I received a nice "nudge" on twitter asking what I thought of the book.
Well, I finally got around to reading it. I was blown away! Not only was it a nice fast read, but the information was broken down in great examples. The book starts off with how to make a site quick to use and engaging, and breaks that down into the following points:
1. Site Speed
2. Short Action Process
3. Intuitive Design
4. Clear Messaging
5. Compartmentalization
6. Third Party Integration
Impressively, the authors take their own advice and apply most of these points to the book, making it both quick and engaging!
1. Site Speed: The book is only 130 pages and can easily be read in one sitting, although I am sure that I will be re-reading it with a highlighter and note pad in hand. It does not get bogged down in useless information.
2. Short Action Process: With each section of the book, there are examples/suggestions to put the topic into action on your own site.
4. Clear Messaging: No fluff. Straight to the points and to the real meat of the content.
5. Compartmentalization: Each section is broken down into small items that can be taken and used on small sections on your site or as part of a larger project.
While this book is not written for someone new to the measure space, there are great insights in this book than can be leveraged by people at all skill levels. After reading through a few very technical books, it was nice to have a light, quick read that is still packed with useful information in an easily digestible format. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for more insight on improving the site experience for your users, and I am looking forward to their next book!
Why I joined the Web Analytics Association
Recently in the great twittersphere there has been a lot of chatter on the value of a Web Analytics Association (WAA) membership. After thinking on it for a few days, I wanted to offer my my 2/5's of nickel on why I joined the WAA and what value I have received as a result of joining.
Let me start with saying that I think true value of a membership in the WAA, or any user group like this, is dependent on what you are willing to put into it. Membership is not a passive experience. My personal goals in joining the WAA were:
- Education
- Networking
- Collaboration
Education:
As I become more and more immersed in the world of analytics, I am constantly looking for way to expand my knowledge. As part of this process I wanted to be able to participate in the WAA committees, forums, peer reviews, webcasts, etc.. Being able to join the committees and not only participate in the discussions, but to learn from the experiences of the other members of great value to me.
Networking:
I love being able to interact with others that are passionate about web analytics. To share experiences, challenges, failures, and successes and to build relationships with others in the industry is great. It is true that this can be done without the WAA, but for me, it has opened up another set of people to interact with that I had not yet, or might not have the had the opportunities to.
Collaboration:
The developer in me loves standards. Love, love, love, love... Standards. So the opportunity to be part of a group/committee that discusses and helps shape those standards is a very exciting offer. I am still getting my feet wet in this area, but I look forward to becoming more active in this area.
Based on these goals alone, I do feel that I get a great value for my membership in the WAA!
There are other great groups and projects out there, like the Analyis Exchange where you could accomplish these goals, but I do not feel that participation in one group should preclude you from participating in the other. I love talking about analytics with whomever will listen and through these conversations, this engagement, and healthy debate on ideas true innovation happens. There is something great about taking an idea and throwing it out for the world to see, comment on, and mold into something new.
IQWorkForce Interview
I wanted to take a moment and say thank you to Corry Prohens, President of IQWorkForce. A few weeks back I had the opportunity to talk with Corry about staffing related issues in Web Analytics, when he was a guest on the Beyond Web Analytics Podcast.
Since then IQWorkForce has launched one of the most engaging facebook fan pages I have ever seen, and just this week I was asked to be interviewed by Corry about the Beyond Web Analytics podcast. I jumped at the chance! I have to admit that I am really geeked out seeing the interview posted. So thank you Corry, for not only being a guest on the podcast but for the interview as well!
IQWorkForce Interview
To read the whole interview, which I highly recommend 
, visit the IQWorkForce site.
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