WASHINGTON, DC - August 23, 2007—At Search Engine Strategies in San Jose, CA, the Web Analytics Association (WAA) announced a major accomplishment and milestone with the publishing of standard definitions for 26 foundational web analytic metrics covering the areas of visits, content and conversion. The result of a collaborative effort between WAA members, vendors, agencies, practitioners and thought leaders, the new definitions provide consistency of the most widely used terms across the analytics industry.
The highly anticipated document from the WAA Standards Committee follows its previous release of web analytics definitions, created in 2006, that focused on the three most important metrics across all analytics software and tools – unique visitors, visits/sessions and page views. Once these terms were agreed upon and defined by the industry, the WAA expanded its attention to the many other bedrock metrics that rely on the initial three definitions.
Standards Committee co-chairs Jason Burby, chief analytics and optimization officer for ZAAZ, and Angie Brown, web analytics manager and MD consult for Elsevier Inc., spearheaded this effort within the WAA, and the final document is more than eleven months in the making. In creating these definitions, the Standards Committee has had active participation and debate from a broad spectrum of people representing agencies, consultants, vendors, practitioners and industry thought leaders, resulting in a well-rounded and unbiased resource.
Proving the value of various online channels is increasingly important to marketers and business strategists as more advertising dollars are moving to the Internet, but inconsistencies in the reporting and data from web analytics tools can make them confusing and difficult to interpret. The WAA is encouraging analytics software providers to standardize on these fundamental terms to promote a better overall understanding of web analytics and a strong foundation upon which the industry as a whole can grow and evolve.
“The hard work and dedication from the WAA, the participation from the analytics community and the resulting 26 definitions are truly a sign of the maturity of the industry,” said Avinash Kaushik, WAA board member and author of “Web Analytics: An Hour A Day.” “The market for analytics tools is booming and, with increased interest from all areas of online marketing, these standards benefit both the users and practitioners and will only accelerate the advancement of the analytics industry.”
To learn more about the WAA Standards Committee and to download the WAA Standards Analytics Definitions Volume I, please visit: http://www.webanalyticsassociation.org/en/cmt/?5
About the Web Analytics Association
The Web Analytics Association is a not-for-profit professional organization dedicated to promoting the understanding of web analytics through education, advocacy, standards, research and technology. Founded by web analytics industry leaders, the mission of the association is to unite and foster the interests of practitioners, vendors, consultants and educators who use, sell, install, implement, consult, teach or train in the field of web analytics. For more information, or to become a member, please visit http://www.webanalyticsassociation.org.
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