Google Insights for Search is quite an interesting tool.  Even though its been around since 2008, it is still in beta as is most of Google.  There is a lot of intelligence that can be gathered by using this tool along your web analytics package of choice.  The only drawback to me is that the search data doesn’t go back farther than 2004.  With this tool you can gauge interest and demand for the search terms you specify and you can compare multiple search terms in the same ‘report’.   There is even a bit of forecasting so can test out Google’s trending and forecasting prowess over time.  Try it out and compare the data you see with that from your web analytics package and other tools such as Quantcast.  Enjoy!

…. sounds like something you’ve heard when searching for a new home, doesn’t it?  I’m borrowing from the real estate buzz phrase ‘location, location, location’ which helps explain real estate demand and property values.

Getting to the point related to web analytics, it is so important to validate reports, when possible, against another data source.  This topic is addressed from an Omniture SiteCatalyst perspective in this excellent blog post at The Omni Man blog.  Enjoy the read; let me know your reaction, or if I can help you better understand your web analytics results.

A lot of folks dread reviewing log files.  Log file analysis need not be such a horrible task with the right tools.  Find dozens of log file analysis tools (including some useful tools for the web analyst and web developer) at LogAnalysis.org. 

Now more than ever it is important to monitor web server activity by reviewing http access files and event logs. Take a moment and review the various logfiles in your environment as soon as possible.  Recently I reviewed a site’s logs and realized that one page of the site was under constant attack from overseas. It wasn’t long before this constant traffic turned into a DDoS attack which was easily stopped by blocking the origin IPs. What started out as casual, routine log review became a task with a serious outcome.  Let me know your thoughts and experiences!

or… Translating Webtrends-speak to Omniture-speak.

June Dershewitz provided this excellent short post at her web analytics blog to help those who know Omniture and need to learn Webtrends, and vice-versa.  Specifically, she’s writing about migrating between the two packages, but there’s great info for anyone who ‘grew up’ using one package before learning the other.

Tagless web analytics has recently been a popular topic on the Yahoo! Groups Web Analytics discussion. One of the vendors, AtomicLabs, offers its Pion solution. I’m interested in the concept. More to come…

This is my first photo post… it’s one of the more interesting scribbles Lee would give me as I went out the door on the way to work every day. 

Turns out setting up a WordPress blog with GoDaddy (free plug for them and props too!) was easier and quicker than I expected.   As you can see, I’ve got a few moments left over to write a few posts! 

Hi – this is Mitchell Teixeira and welcome to my blog, Once In A Web.

This site will be a place where I can rant, rave and generalize about what I like (or not),  what I’m working on, and what I’m interested in.  Enjoy!