21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
Must buy for anyone looking to grow and succeed in the Internet
As with most books, I started by taking a look at a few sample pages of the book before getting deep into it. My first data point was page 248: where Avinash describes elegantly a case study on measuring offline applications using Google Analytics. Exquisite. Than, on page 279 he shows how to analyze video influence on revenues. Amazing.
Editors went on vacation?
While the author demonstrates considerable knowledge and experience, the book is written as if a direct transcription of several conference PPt presentations cobbled together. It is meandering, repetitive and tonally off-putting. Less business rah-rah-speak and more systematic writing would greatly improve the book's effectiveness and reduce its length by about half...
This review is from: Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity (Paperback)
As with most books, I started by taking a look at a few sample pages of the book before getting deep into it. My first data point was page 248: where Avinash describes elegantly a case study on measuring offline applications using Google Analytics. Exquisite. Than, on page 279 he shows how to analyze video influence on revenues. Amazing.
After leafing through the book for a while I went back to the beginning and I really enjoyed the way Avinahs Kaushik links the content; bringing basic and important concepts and very advanced techniques side by side. The book has a friendly tone, i.e., it feels like walking down the street and talking to a friend. Avinash knows when to soothe the reader and let him know that this might be frustrating or difficult, he does not pretend to give all the answers.
A central theme on Avinash philosophy also in his previous book (Web Analytics: An Hour a Day) is that people will bring change, not tools. So, even though he proposes several techniques for choosing vendors, he puts in in its place: if you don't have people, you better look for them, no tool will help you. For every $100 you have, you should invest $90 on people and $10 on tools.
This book describes a holistic approach of the Web Analytics field which he defines as "the analysis of qualitative and quantitative data from your website and the competition, to drive a continual improvement of the online experience that your customers, and potential customers have, which translates into your desired outcomes (online and offline)."
The book treats all the aspects that need to be understood in order to have a successful web strategy: clickstream data, testing, Voice of Customer, social, mobile, video, you name it. In addition, you will learn about planning and growing a web analytics career, so if you are serious about your career, this book is for you.
Concluding, 'Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity' is a landmark on the Web Analytics field and a must buy for anyone looking to grow and succeed in the Internet.
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This review is from: Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity (Paperback)
This book is like dark chocolate covered pretzels on top of walnut ice cream- blissful & enlightening... Whether you're a seasoned analytics practitioner or a newbie, you'll find Web Analytics 2.0 engaging and informative. Avinash breaks down hard-to-grasp concepts into digestible nuggets by pulling in relevant examples and using real analytics tools to illustrate each point. If you're in the process of vendor selection, chapter two will be your guiding light. If you're re-visiting your initial implementation, or are still trying to figure out how to use the tool you implemented, look no further. This book will help you figure out what you're looking at, isolate actionable metrics, and tell a story with the data that will drive your online and offline strategies. It doesn't hurt that Avinash is hilarious and paints a colorful picture with every insightful anecdote. Who knew web analytics could be this simple?
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This review is from: Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity (Paperback)
If you manage a website, run your own online business, or handle the Internet marketing for your business, you really need this book. You might be spending oodles of money on pay per click ads or hiring firms to redesign a site or manage your campaigns - but you'll want Web Analytics 2.0 to provide you with the foundation you need to make intelligent decisions, to ask the right questions, and make sure you're taking advantage of every ounce of data you can collect about your site visitors. As the book tells you early on, you'll want to align your site to increase your revenue, reduce your costs, or improve customer loyalty and satisfaction.
One of the best things of this book is that it helps to clarify the heaps of data and reporting you can get from the many available analytics tools. What data should you look at? What are actionable outcomes you want to measure? What are some ways to measure success of your site?
I'd go so far as to say that every site designer should read this book - not just analytics or marketing pros. This is because it has some great sections about how you should be testing the impact of site designs and changes. The book also includes a CD and one of the items is a usability checklist that every designer should have. And if you're interested in a career in analytics, there's even a chapter at the end dedicated to this - I'm happy in my job, so I didn't read this section, but he closes out with some ideas and advice on how to find the right people for analytics jobs you may need to fill.
It's difficult to make a book about data interesting - but Avinash Kaushik has definitely done so with this book. I've already given a copy of this book to a colleague knowing that he'll find it valuable.
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This review is from: Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity (Paperback)
As a guy who's more technically challenged than 99% of the population, I thought I'd never figure out what Avinash Kaushik was explaining about the complex world of Web Analytics 2.0. To my surprise, it makes sense; and it's probably the most comprehensive guide you'd ever want to find. I suppose that's why it's a best seller, with nothing but 5 star Amazon reviews. What's not to love?
Kaushik's expertise is astounding, yet his prose is engaging. He knows how to explain things to guys like me who barely know how to turn on a computer; and he does it so well, you're comprehending the complex strategies in a manner that's actionable. That's where the value lies in this book; it points us in the right direction to get the most out of our online marketing efforts by understanding the data we're trying to analyze. Brilliant.
For anyone trying to figure out how to maximize their online presence in order to grow their (completely satisfied) customer base, you need look no further than this wonderful guide; it's the best place to start.
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This review is from: Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity (Paperback)
Avinash's new book is a must read for any online marketer or website owner that wants to understand their website traffic more effectively. Avinash teaches you to act on data instead of just presenting pretty reports and devotes a good chunk of the book reviewing other website tools (many of which are free) that you can use to improve your websites key performance indicators.
Most SEM and Analytic books suck or are to basic. Avinash's book explains intermediate/advanced topics in a basic tone that any future "analysis ninja" can quickly apply to their own website. To top it off he is donating all his proceeds to two charities he supports. I would recommend anyone that is new to web analytics reads his book at least twice and applying his techniques to your website before reading another analytic or online marketing book.
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This review is from: Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity (Paperback)
Although I just received my book in the mail last week, it looks like I have had it for years. I am in the process of building out a Strategic Framework for Web Analytics and BI at my company, and thought a little additional insight would be useful. I picked the book up and began thumbing through only to find myself reading the entire book in a few hours. Since I finished, I have gone back and highlighted, bookmarked and re-read the book a few times. It truly is my bible, sitting front and center on my desk at all times. Building out a web strategy for a successful high tech company in Silicon Valley can, at times, seem daunting. This book adds so much context and helps me craft my messaging to the key stakeholders in a way that makes sense to them. Getting the support and buy in of your HIPPO's will always be a challenge but reading this book will help you organize your strategy in a very simple way, ensuring you are getting insight and not merely data out of your web analytics.
Achieving Web Analytics "Nirvana" is possible but only if you read this book. Kudos to Avinash for making this process clear and understandable, fun and "sexy".........who knew you could "sexify" wab analytics!
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This review is from: Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity (Paperback)
If you've ever stared at an analytics dashboard with your eyes glazed over (or worse, you haven't), you need to read this book before applying ONE MORE marketing principle. Before any other project. Stop now. Read this. Then get back to work on the most important project of your career: learning to make data-driven decisions.
This is not a series of dry lectures: Avinash's light, readable, and personal tone makes it feel like he's stepping into your role, and walking with you as you discover the joys that come with moving past the numbers and really discovering insights about your customers.
Though the latter half of the book is written for the "impress your boss" crowd, I think every business owner needs to read this and understand why they need a data wonk that's empowered to make recommendations, not just someone to run numbers and present graphs.
Web analytics is a widely misunderstood field (even by me, before reading this). The author understands most people don't really know where to start, and he walks you through the process of deciding what to measure first, skipping common pitfalls and frustrations.
This book and a solid week or 2 with Google Analytics will take you from where you are now (most likely clueless) to the most informed person in the business.
I watched businesses crumble into the sea while ignoring the most basic principles in this book. You can ignore it at your peril, or reap rewards of personal satisfaction, as well as those of success in your business.
Avinash is a real human being that illuminates a very walkable path to a major discovery: Analytics is more than numbers, and even more than revenue: it's about creating deeper connections between you and your customers & readers.
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This review is from: Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity (Paperback)
Web Analytics 2.0 is not a sequel to Kaushik's first book Web Analytics: An Hour a Day.
The latter was a hard core offering that covered all aspects of the subject.
2.0 is a more general book that covers a wide range of topics related to and around Web Analytics.
The coverage of Social Media and Mobile analytics is sparse and that's my only gripe. Considering that both topics are quite hot and that Social Media has gained maturity it would have been helpful to have both these covered in depth. That said the book is pretty robust in its coverage of a wide mix of topics. The list of tools mentioned is also quite exhaustive.
Key Takeaways
· Paid Web Analytics providers are better than the free ones if you need advanced reporting. The other reason is that the paid tools integrate well with other allied offerings/tools. (A project that I'm working on validates both these points)
· Data needs to be actionable. No point collecting old data if the business cannot use it
· Keep an eye on the competition using Google Insights For Search(contains search keyword data on[...] only), Google Trends (contains broad web usage data), Compete, Hitwise. Also check Google Ad Planner and Quantacast since both use self reported data. Most analytics tools now allow you to benchmark against specific verticals.
· Use tools like page level/site level surveys to gather user feedback(kampyle, uservoice, opinionlab). The Voice of the Consumer is necessary to fill in the gaps
Now if only we could get key sales and marketing folks to read this book and understand how much data is there for them to use
Tools
Web Analytics: Omniture, WebTrends, CoreMetrics, Google Analytics
Mobile Analytics: Bango Analytics, [...], [...]
Experimentation and Testing: Google Optmizer, Omniture Test and Target, Optimost, Sitespect
Voice of the Customer: 4Q, iPerceptions, ForeseeResults, Ethnio
Competitive Intelligence: Google Insights For Search, Google Trends, Compete, Hitwise, Technorati, Google Ad Planner, Quantacast
Analytics Tags Audit: SiteAudit(ObservePoint)
SEO gaps, Web Application Performance Management, more : Maxamine, Coradiant
Page level/site level surveys to gather user feedback: Kampyle, Uservoice, Opinionlab
Usability: Ethnio, Usertesting
Analyze Actual Online Experiences: Tealeaf, Clicktale
Information Architecture: OptimalSort, [...]
Visual heat maps: Feng-gui.com, Crazyegg
Keyword Analysis: Google Adwords Tool, Wordtracker, KeywordSpy
Onsite Behavior Targeting Platforms: Audience Science, kefta, Netmining, BTBuckets(free)
Paid Search Tools: Marinsoftware, Kenshoo, ClickEquations
For this and other Web Marketing articles, my blog: [...]
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This review is from: Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity (Paperback)
Although it is only January, I can say with a pretty high degree of confidence, that the analytics book of the year is Avinash Kaushik's new book Web Analytics 2.0. As a follow up to his first book, Web Analytics: An Hour A Day, I think Avinash out did himself with this book.
Web Analytics 2.0 is a nice balance of theory and practical tips, but more importantly, provides guidance for readers with a wide range of skill and experience. Over the 14 chapters of the book, Kaushik covers almost every aspect of web analytics, from competitive analytics to optimization, even guides for picking a solution vendor and starting a career in the industry.
Overall the book is an easy read for anyone interested. Avinash's causal writing style and frequent examples makes the text engaging and entertaining. For the most part, you can dive into any area of the book without missing too much context from the rest of the book. Of course I recommend reading the whole thing, but even if you just read one chapter, say on social measurement, you'll still get a lot out of it.
On top of being a well-written resource, all of the profits from this book (and his previous one) go to two charities: The Smile Train and The Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation. Get the book and start the new year off right with a quick education on the in's and out's of web analytics.
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