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Website Analytics for Attorneys: Becoming Familiar with Website Data
Nielsen Holdings, N.V., the American global information and measurement leader, recently posted the results of a survey conducted with over 25,000 global internet consumers and found that although 90 percent of consumers trust a personal recommendation for consumer services, 70 percent also trusted consumer endorsements posted online.
As a practicing attorney, this information should provide credence to the time and effort you put forth in designing, building and maintaining your professional website, but are you relying solely on past accolades and missing an important key factor governing website effectiveness?
If you hesitated before answering this question, you may not be fully familiar with the benefits of website analytics or the collection and analysis of site data as an effective marketing tool. It is important to use website analytics to determine how hard your website is actually working to increase your online presence.
In general, by retrieving and analyzing site data, you will be able to zero in on specific site areas to determine what may or may not be working based upon consumer activity.
When reviewing relevant data, do not focus on the number of consumer hits. Rather, concentrate on data supporting the relevancy of hits by those defined by your target audience.
If you are ready to analyze your website’s effectiveness through data, these four basic metrics may be the starting point to access the value of each layer of your website. If you need additional information, consider contacting an experienced online marketing firm specializing in website development for attorneys.
Visits or Sessions
This metric calculates the total number of website clicks but does not differentiate between initial and duplicate visits.
For example, if Connie Consumer visited your site early in the month and returned a week later, her two visits would be recorded under the total number of website visits.
Unique Visitors or New Users
This metric measures the number of website hits but differs from sessions. Data from new users only monitors the number of unique hits, excluding duplicate visits.
For example, Don Demographic visited your site three times this month from the same electronic device. Analytics would consider him as a single unique visitor.
Page Views
This metric measures the specific number of times a specific page within your site has been accessed. As one of the more informative metrics, Page Views provide valuable insight into how your website is directing traffic to areas of specific interest.
For example, Peggy Prospective-Client has visited one of your specific practice pages several times over the course of the month. This could provide assurance that your website is correctly navigating prospective clients to areas demonstrating your legal experience and specialty.
Bounce Rate
This fourth metric provides the total percentage of visitors who navigated away from a specific website page. If you noticed a high bounce rate for one particular page, it may be an indication of a specific problem with this page.
For example, Bob Bounce landed on a specific practice page and then quickly navigated away from your site. If data projects a high bounce rate, you may need to revisit your website content to determine if additional information is needed to keep prospective clients interested by increasing time spent researching your site.
Deriving data from a professional website necessitates continual attention. Not only is it important to maintain your site with relevant and timely updates, but it is equally important to mine data to ensure your efforts are substantiated. By becoming more familiar with your site’s data through website analytics, you will effectively reach your target audience, achieve a higher rate of return on your initial investment and lastly, and increase your conversion rate of prospective clients to retained clients.
For more information of how website analytics can drive a successful website, contact the experienced team of OVC, INC. Since 2008, we have been assisting attorneys with the creation, maintenance, monitoring and reconfiguration of professional legal websites to ensure the highest rate of return on your online marketing investment. Contact us at 630-635-8000 for a free analysis of your website today.
About the Author: Greg Wildman is the President of OVC, INC. Since 1999, Greg has developed hundreds of websites for attorneys from his company's inception as Online Video Concepts, LLC to the modern era's OVC, INC. Greg's knowledge of law firm marketing has helped many attorneys establish online presences through custom website development, Search Engine Optimization, legal directory partnerships, social media marketing, content writing and more.
