Web Metrics: Proven Methods for Measuring Web Site Success (Paperback)

~ (Author) "How about a World Wide Web simulator?..." (more)
Key Phrases: optimal site path, freshness factor, web metrics, Matt Cutler, Jupiter Media Metrix, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...A great book which actually manages to make a boring subject worth reading about..." (Internet News Bulletin, 18 September 2002)

"...if the book had been published earlier, perhaps there would have been less fallout from the dot.com bubble bursting..." (www. Suchmaschinen Optimierung (German), 17 September 2002)

"...innovative...provides you with everything you need to know to measure your online business strategy..." (www. Software Pro, 18 September 2002)

"...a useful book...useful to anyone in web development..." (Computer Bulletin, May 2003)

"...if you have lots of money and lots of staff, I would recommend you get this book..." (Cvu, June 2003)

"...the content is solid and valuable...a book worth buying..." (Performance Measurement and Metrics, August 03)

"...A great book which actually manages to make a boring subject worth reading about..." -- Internet News Bulletin, 18 September 2002

"...a useful book...useful to anyone in web development..." -- Computer Bulletin, May 2003

"...if the book had been published earlier, perhaps there would have been less fallout from the dot.com bubble bursting..." -- Suchmaschinen Optimierung (German), 17 September 2002

"...if you have lots of money and lots of staff, I would recommend you get this book..." -- Cvu, June 2003

"...innovative&provides you with everything you need to know to measure your online business strategy..." -- Software Pro, 18 September 2002

"...the content is solid and valuable...a book worth buying..." -- Performance Measurement and Metrics, August 03

…A great book which actually manages to make a boring subject worth reading about… -- Internet News Bulletin, 18 September 2002

Product Description

There now exists a wealth of tools and techniques that can determine if and how a Web site is providing business value to its owners. This book is a survey of those metrics and is as important to IT executives as it is to marketing professionals.
* Jim Sterne is recognized worldwide as a leading Internet business expert and is the author of several Wiley books, including WWW Marketing, Third Edition (0-471-41621-5)
* Explains the criteria for building a successful site, surveying the tools, services, techniques, and standards for Web measurement, and fully integrating those metrics with the customer experience
* Companion Web site contains links to online tools, resources, and white papers

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Product Details

• Paperback: 356 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1st edition (June 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471220728
• ISBN-13: 978-0471220725
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #118,668 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #4 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Web Development > Website Analytics
  #8 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Programming > Software Design, Testing & Engineering > Performance Optimization

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "must read" for marketing and CRM professionals, July 28, 2002

By	Mike Tarrani "www.tarrani.com" (Deltona, FL USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

One key phrase from this book sticks in my mind and summarizes the entire theme of the book, "You know your Web site is serving pages. But is it serving company?" Indeed, this is the most business-focused book among the ones I've read on web metrics. The author focuses on two major areas: marketing and customer relationship management metrics, which are closely related. If you're seeking a more technical book, I recommend "Scaling for E-Business: Technologies, Models, Performance, and Capacity Planning" by Daniel A. Menasce and Virgilio A. F. Almeida.

Not only does this book go deeply into the business-related metrics, but it also shows how select the most meaningful metrics (you cannot economically measure or understand everything). It also shows you how to develop a strategy for gathering and using the metrics, including convincing upper management of the need for the strategy.

Interestingly, you can also take the information provided in this book and use it as the basis for a competitive intelligence strategy, because the very metrics that are meaningful to your business are also key indicators for your competitors. You can either benchmark your competitors, or determine if their measurement strategy is as mature as yours. While the author didn't explicitly cover this, the material in the book certainly gives you the foundation for such a strategy.

If you work in marketing or are responsible for CRM you'll find that the book's approach and wealth of ideas and techniques can be put to immediate use. As a side note, if you are using this book in conjunction with a CRM strategy, you'll also want to read "The CRM Handbook: A Business Guide to Customer Relationship Management" by Jill Dyché, which touches upon the metrics aspects presented in this book, and goes deeper into CRM.

In addition to the material presented in the book, the accompanying web site is equally as valuable, especially the numerous links to related material that is grouped by book chapter.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a Keeper, July 26, 2002

By	Jill H. Ellsworth (Texas, USA) - See all my reviews

This is *the* book to read about web metrics and measuring web site success.

I read much of this book in a couple of days and found it to be superb -- clear, to the point, funny and informative. A really excellent, useful book -- I rarely read whole e-marketing type books because, to be honest, most of them bore me to tears.

This is a winner.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book For Those With SEO Responsibilities, July 9, 2003

By	Rick Bateman (Victoria, BC Canada) - See all my reviews

As a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialist I found this book to be an excellent resource to clarify the differences between website traffic analysis, search engine optimization and tracking business success metrics. I like to drive home to my employer that we need to focus on the goals of our sites and define our own metrics as to what success means. My interest is always, "How will this increase sales?"

This book makes very clear which numbers matter and why, including web traffic, sales and marketing. I especially like the focus on "actionable" intel: metrics are great but what do they tell us to DO differently? How will this give us a competitive advantage? What does it tell our sales people?

I recommend this book for newbies as well as pros. If you're a pro there is so much in this book that there has to be something new that will help you compete. If you're a newbie you will soon be talking like a pro. Career advantage. It is written so anyone can understand it in a kind of Dr. Phil tone. I also like that it uses examples from all sizes of companies instead of just telling me how Amazon and EBay did it - like we're all in that league.

There is a lot of information here, it will take you a while to read it. No I did not find every chapter riveting but I seldom find that in any non-fiction book. Many times however I put the book down, weighed the insights provided against how we do things presently and pondered how I could convey the points to the marketing department. If I can give the sales force an edge we all win.