Expectations for this Class

I have a number of questions about web analytics. Among them are:

• Why is web analytics possible? How does it work? What are the principles involved that make web analytics possible? How do webpages need to be altered to enable analytics?
• What are possible technical problems? Is it possible for the user to circumvent web analytics? What will cause it to break? What are circumstances in which web analytics will not collect the information we are expecting?
• Learn (at least briefly) about some of the different tools available for web analytics (other than Google Analytics).
• What are some of the legal and ethical implications of web analytics? Are there laws about the type of information that we are allowed to collect? Is there any legislation pending?
• What kinds of things can we track with analytics?
• How can /should we interpret the different kinds of data that we will collect via web analytics?
• How can I use web analytics to improve my web site?
• How can I use web analytics to bring more traffic to my website?

My expectations for this class would be to get answers to most or all of these questions. I would like to come away from this class with a working knowledge of how to implement and utilize web analytics, and how it can benefit me, especially in establishing my brand identity.

I would like to know all about the types of things that are possible with web analytics.

When we are done, I should be able to implement some web analytics solutions on websites of my own and others, collect information that is interesting and useful, and interpret that data to inform decisions regarding that web site.