How To Measure Website Effectiveness In 2016

As we enter a new exciting year focus turns back onto the website and what can be done to get the most out of it. Your website may already be performing well, but if you don't regularly check website statistics and performance statistics you could soon find yourself in a tricky situation. In this article I will be discussing some simple, but effective, statistics you can check to help ease the pain of measuring website effectiveness. I will also be touching on how you can help improve visitor experience once on your website. Both these points are crucial when trying to increase the number of visitors you are turning into leads and/or paying customers.

Lets start by looking at what statistics you can check and why these can be important:

What statistics to view

Website Traffic

Lets start with what could be classed as one of the most important statistics for your website; website traffic. You may have different software installed on your site which monitors and records this figure, but this will mostly always be the same number across the different pieces of software. To get an idea of how effective your website was for the previous year the best thing to do is to download the complete data and have a quick look through. This will give you an indication of what you are up against, so you have a benchmark for improvement. This will also give you an indication of your most successful time period. This way you know when you can capitalise on when your site has the most traffic. As you know there are many ways you can increase website traffic, from SEO to PPC you have many options. If you're currently using SEO but you're unsure as to how it is going, here is a great article - How To Know If Your SEO Company Is Doing A Good Job For You.

Website Views on Mobile & Tablet Devices

I am almost certain that over the last 10 months you would have heard either 'Is your website mobile responsive yet?' or 'You need a mobile responsive site’. As much as you may hate these types of phrases, it is crucial that you at least consider a mobile site if you don't currently have one. If you are still unsure about this then looking at the amount of website views that you are currently getting on your website from a Mobile or Tablet device could persuade you to turn a certain way. If you see that you're getting a considerable amount of visits on a mobile device then why not get a responsive site? It is proven to increase conversions, I mean nobody wants to have to zoom in and out in order to navigate a site on a mobile device anymore! But, even if visits from a mobile device are low, do you want to run the risk of losing rankings on Search Engines like Google and Bing? If you're still unsure, here is an article we wrote back in 2015 which could help you take the plunge - 10 Benefits of Mobile Websites: Why You Shouldn't Get Left Behind

Average Time on Page

Do you know what the average time a visitor spends on your site is? This in itself can open up a whole new series of thought around your site.  This can be such a hidden goldmine if you use the information in the right way. One main point to take from this is that if the average time on page is low, then you need to review your current content on your site. Look through every page on your site and decide if there is enough information on that page to keep the visitor engaged. Are there images or videos on pages to help increase this statistic, as having a video can dramatically improve this. If you are stuck for ideas, here is a very helpful article - 10 Content Creation Ideas to Keep Your Readers Hooked.

Ways to help increase visitor experience

Visitor experience is key to website performance and no matter which way you look at it, the visitor has to come first. Even if this means you have to invest in new development work, it will 100% be worth it. Here are some quick points you need to take, and if you read them thinking that you can improve on them, then take action:

Website Speed – Such an easy but overlooked point. You need to ensure that your website is as 'quick' as it can be to load, as any waiting time will decrease the chances of visitors browsing through your full site. Find out more - Can Website Load Speed Impact Customer Sales?

Add easy to see CTA's – Again this can be so easy to implement onto your site, and you will be surprised at the impact this can have on leads. Learn more about effective CTA's - Four Tips for Developing Effective Call to Action Buttons

Mobile Responsiveness – As mentioned above, having a mobile responsive site is crucial and this will certainly improve visitor experience, as they will find using your site on a mobile device much more enjoyable than having a desktop version.

If you want to make 2016 a memorable year then you need to take action today! The longer you sit on statistics and content the longer it will take to improve website performance. All it takes is to get in a regular routine of analysing data and statistics and you will soon find that it takes just small efforts regularly, to make your website go from strength to strength.