Hurol Inan: Web Analytics Consultant & Author

Our government clients often ask us for advice on how to improve the adoption of web analytics within a bureaucratic organisation.

The technology to capture web analytics data is available. In most instances, it is the structure or culture of the organisation that is holding them back.

Here are some tips to get web analytics over the line in government, or any organisation with a bureaucratic structure.

Concentrate your efforts

Concentrate your resources, energy and attention to a particular area of concern, responsibility or investigation. Formalise your area of focus in the form of written objective(s) for your website and develop key performance indicators to measure your progress. If you need more information on how to define measurable site objectives and KPIs, refer to the Victorian Government’s Web Analytics Toolkit.

Get a champion

A very important step and one most often overlooked. When starting out, web analytics often suffers from a small voice and limited visibility. Change this by getting a vocal and energetic supporter from management on board. Your web analytics champion will be able to present the benefits of the discipline in meetings and make reviewing the data a basis for any business decision. This person will be able to reach people that you may not have access to and influence the culture of the organisation. Getting respect, creating understanding and improving the visibility for the discipline is the ultimate goal. Use case studies, facts and results to share the successes and opportunities which should motivate your audience to adoption.

Proficiency

Gaining proficiency in web analytics comes from experience and skills. As web analytics is a relatively new discipline finding someone with these skills and experience could be difficult.

If this is the case, use external professional services either from your vendor or a web analytics consulting service to help you get started. This is a simple yet effective way to transfer skills to your staff whilst accelerating your website’s return on investment. We may be able to help.

For formal training, the Web Analytics Association and University of British Columbia offer an online course, the UBC Award of Achievement in Web Analytics. Also, speak with your web analytics tool vendor as most provide training.

Be like Jack: Nimble

Unfortunately, most organisations stop one step before they reach their goal. This is due to the inability of the organisation to take action or to change the way they do things. How nimble your organisation is to change and how alert they are to opportunities is a factor in the success of your website. Here are some ways that you might be able to train your organisation to be more agile:

• Use your champion to enforce that web analytics data be used to support everyday business decisions. For example, if management is discussing action over whether to extend a service to a new area, your champion may recommend for the web analytics data to be reviewed to determine what customer needs may be as shown by they behaviour and activities on the website.
• Conduct regular metrics meetings and have an open door policy that encourages staff from other function areas (eg marketing or operations) to attend. Make sure you assign ownership of the KPI or metric to a specific person. Ask this person to report on the progress and develop a response plan should negative progress be highlighted. This will help increase the understanding of web analytics by explaining the analysis techniques behind the recommendation.
• Share the results in a visually appealing way. Create spreadsheet reports that hold the viewers attention. Hold lunchtime forums to demonstrate how web analytics could be used to support the objectives of the different functions within your organisation. For example, in most organisations HR is responsible for implementing strategies to position the organisation as an employer of choice within the industry. Demonstrate how web analytics will be able to measure the progress towards this goal through visit metrics and online survey results.
• Compile the data with offline data. Integrate the data with other sources, for example contact centre data, competitive analysis studies, or in the case of the HR example, the number of job applications received and the quality of the applications. The data becomes so much more powerful and insightful when a complete picture is presented, allowing management to make quick and accurate decisions or report on performance.
• Lastly, make the changes as recommended by the data. Conduct A/B testing or user testing to ensure the recommended changes create the result you are looking for. You have the facts, you have the approval, you have the knowledge that the integrity of your site will be maintained and the visitor’s online experience will be improved – go for it! Remember to share your successes, even the small ones. They all add up.

Refer to the Victorian Government’s Web Analytics Toolkit for a simple framework on how to get started with Web Analytics.