2015 NYU TorchTech unMeeting

Open Space - Notes Taker Format

Please follow the format below and email your notes to: . You can find an electronic form here:

Session Topic: Web analytics

Session Number ___2__ and Space/Location Letter ___A__

Convener: Carol Kassel

Notes-taker(s): Eric Stedfeld

Other Participants: (see sign in sheet for complete group –other session participants included Jim Robertson, Jeff Bary, Ryan Di Francesco, KamleshDevjani and Lawrence Mirsky)

List below the essences or key points of the conversation (This may include key understandings or new learning, outstanding questions, observations

  • What data or analytics is of greater value or interest:
  • Sessions and return visitors, also referrals (and whether we know them)
  • See both what areas are and aren't being visited
  • Consider only what data we care about, for decision making - for ourselves, our clients or aligned with other groups (such as Digital Library Federation)
  • What is selected on the home page for "Quick Links" or "About Channels," based on actual need, amount of content and usage
  • Searches (and perhaps words) to make more prominent for search engine optimization (SEO)
  • System management, to tell when errors or anomalies occur
  • Track significant changes or trends, often in the middle of the data (not top or bottom numbers)
  • Google Analytics (GA):
  • Questions persist on privacy and access to data, but most organizations have seemed to "give up the ghost" and don't worry about it anymore - GA's rich set of reports and functionality is the tradeoff
  • GA's Service Level Agreement makes specific commitments regarding privacy and holding the data
  • GA appears to be the "only game in town," and is also easier than installing and having to "babysit" a local solution
  • One has to take care not to share confidential info when tracking data on pages accessed by authenticated users
  • APIs or other implementations of GA exist, e.g., for WordPress

List below any resources that surface in your session - Links, Books, Organizations, Articles etc… related to this topic

  • Google Analytics
  • Urchin (deprecated, dying, may already be dead)
  • SimilarWeb PRO (info including audience and competitors)
  • Lucky Orange (can replay visits)
  • Solr tagging
  • Video player in video wrapper for Google - schema.org style tagging

If applicable to this discussion please list below any action items or next steps

  • Check for more opportunities for webinars together - Jim Robertson can arrange
  • Move towards a community of practice? can help facilitate this
  • Work closely with user experience (UX) people in configuring analytics, especially when considering web redesigns
  • Apply GA first in more e-commerce-like environments (GA's primary orientation), such as NYU Press, admissions or School of Professional Studies, then extend to other more academic environments
  • Consider configuring goals and "conversions," with key performance indicators and metrics, to better measure "success"
  • Need for a metrics/analytics expert at NYU - a full-time job at least (no one currently holds such a position)
  • Perhaps include analytics needs within a hack-a-thon, or hire student interns

We encourage you to carry this conversation forward. If you need our assistance facilitating a Community of Practice (COP), please contact .